https://www.scmp.com/rss/326925/feed en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Igor Patrick Igor Patrick The Brazilian government has dismissed the head of its labour inspection authority, days after his office added Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD to a registry of employers found to have subjected workers to conditions analogous to slavery. Luiz Felipe Brandao de Mello led the National Secretariat of Labour Inspection since 2023 and his dismissal was published in the official gazette on Monday. He oversaw the unit responsible for enforcing labour standards nationwide, including the fight... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3349965/brazil-fires-slave-labour-watchdog-chief-after-byd-blacklisting?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3349965/brazil-fires-slave-labour-watchdog-chief-after-byd-blacklisting?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 13 Apr 2026 22:23:31 +0000 Lucy Quaggin Lucy Quaggin US first lady Melania Trump on Thursday rejected what she called “lies” about her relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, in a rare White House address where she also called on Congress to hold public hearings for his victims. The first lady denied having ties to Epstein or knowledge of his crimes in a brief but strongly worded statement, saying the “lies” linking her to the disgraced financier “need to end today”. “I am not ‌Epstein’s victim,” said Melania Trump, while also... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3349570/melania-trump-denies-any-ties-epstein-or-knowledge-his-crimes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3349570/melania-trump-denies-any-ties-epstein-or-knowledge-his-crimes?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Apr 2026 19:09:47 +0000 Reuters Reuters Former US attorney general Pam Bondi does not plan to appear for a planned interview with a House of Representatives committee on the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files following her firing by US President Donald Trump, the Justice Department told Congress on Wednesday. Bondi was subpoenaed ‌last month to testify in her formal role as attorney general, rendering the demand invalid now that she no longer holds that title, a Justice Department official wrote in a letter to the House Oversight... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3349438/bondi-wont-appear-us-lawmakers-over-epstein-files-justice-department-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3349438/bondi-wont-appear-us-lawmakers-over-epstein-files-justice-department-says?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Apr 2026 21:39:44 +0000 Maria Siow Maria Siow Cambodia’s first law targeting scam centres, passed after mounting international pressure over the country’s massive fraud and trafficking economy, may do little to curb it unless authorities go after the officials and networks that have long enabled it, analysts have warned. Approved by parliament on Friday, the law takes aim at an industry estimated to generate up to US$19 billion annually and to have trafficked as many as 200,000 workers into compounds across the country. Justice Minister... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3349298/cambodia-has-new-law-targeting-scams-it-just-another-paper-reform?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3349298/cambodia-has-new-law-targeting-scams-it-just-another-paper-reform?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Apr 2026 00:00:17 +0000 Bryanna Entwistle Bryanna Entwistle On April 1, amid China’s cybercrime offensive in Southeast Asia, Cambodia extradited to China Li Xiong, former chairman of Huione Group, which had been severed from the US financial system last year for laundering at least US$336 million from cyber scams between 2021 and 2025. The US had also sanctioned Huione’s parent company, Prince Group, and indicted founder Chen Zhi. In January, Cambodia extradited Chen to China, securing the arrest of a man accused of being Cambodia’s biggest scam... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3349051/beat-cambodias-scam-gangs-us-must-work-china-not-blame-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3349051/beat-cambodias-scam-gangs-us-must-work-china-not-blame-it?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Apr 2026 21:30:07 +0000 Igor Patrick Igor Patrick Brazil’s labour ministry on Tuesday added Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD to a registry of employers found to have subjected workers to conditions analogous to slavery, limiting access to state financing and increasing reputational risks in its most important market outside China. The Ministry of Labour and Employment published the updated Cadastro de Empregadores, commonly known as the “dirty list”, adding 169 employers in the latest semi-annual revision. BYD Auto do Brasil Ltda. was... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3349311/brazil-blacklists-byd-slave-labour-conditions-its-biggest-plant-outside-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3349311/brazil-blacklists-byd-slave-labour-conditions-its-biggest-plant-outside-china?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 07 Apr 2026 20:10:07 +0000 Letters Letters Feel strongly about these letters, or any other aspects of the news? Share your views by emailing us your Letter to the Editor at letters@scmp.com or filling in this Google form. Submissions should not exceed 400 words The conflict involving Iran could create serious risks for Southeast Asian countries, especially when it comes to the increase in human trafficking. If the situation worsens, the region could face major problems such as fuel shortages, rising food prices and supply chain... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/letters/article/3348950/iran-war-can-increase-vulnerability-human-trafficking-southeast-asia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/letters/article/3348950/iran-war-can-increase-vulnerability-human-trafficking-southeast-asia?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 05 Apr 2026 03:30:08 +0000 Laura Zhou Laura Zhou The compound is modern with air conditioning in every room. Inside are a medical clinic, massage parlour, and Vietnamese barbecue, Chinese hotpot and halal eateries – a full range of conveniences. Yet the residents are gone – and they appear to have fled in haste. Clothes still hang out to dry, while the stench of rotting food lingers. Located in a secluded area in Kampot province near Cambodia’s border with Vietnam, the site is believed to be a telecoms scam centre. Cambodian authorities said... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3348930/game-whack-mole-how-could-scam-industry-bring-china-and-us-together?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3348930/game-whack-mole-how-could-scam-industry-bring-china-and-us-together?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 03 Apr 2026 22:00:10 +0000 Zoey Zhang Zoey Zhang Using only a childhood photograph, a woman in central China found her younger brother who had been lured away with a piece of bread more than three decades ago. Li Lin, 44, from Xiantao in Hubei province, was separated from her brother, Li Xin, in childhood after tragedy tore their family apart, Daxiang News reported. Their mother died of cancer, while their father reportedly suffered a mental collapse, left home and never returned. Orphaned at the ages of 11 and seven, the siblings survived by... https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/trending-china/article/3347846/china-woman-uses-old-photo-find-brother-who-was-lured-away-bread-33-years-ago?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/trending-china/article/3347846/china-woman-uses-old-photo-find-brother-who-was-lured-away-bread-33-years-ago?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Mar 2026 01:00:09 +0000 Theodora Yu Theodora Yu A Hongkonger has been rescued from Myanmar and transferred to Thailand after being held captive and forced to do illegal work, in an ordeal he described as a “horror movie”. The Security Bureau on Saturday said its dedicated task force had earlier received a request for help from the 25-year-old man who was trapped in Myanmar. It then liaised with the Chinese embassies in Myanmar and Thailand, the city’s economic and trade office in Bangkok and Thai authorities to launch a joint operation. The... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3348261/horror-movie-hongkonger-rescued-after-forced-labour-ordeal-myanmar?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3348261/horror-movie-hongkonger-rescued-after-forced-labour-ordeal-myanmar?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Mar 2026 12:55:41 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Bank of America has agreed to pay US$72.5 million to settle a class-action lawsuit alleging that the bank facilitated a sex-trafficking ring orchestrated by Jeffrey Epstein, court documents showed on Friday. Bank of America said separately that while it continued to deny supporting Epstein’s crimes, “this resolution allows us to put this matter behind us and provides further closure for the plaintiffs”. The suit, filed by an unidentified woman on behalf of herself and other alleged victims,... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3348228/bank-america-pay-us725-million-settle-epstein-sex-trafficking-lawsuit?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3348228/bank-america-pay-us725-million-settle-epstein-sex-trafficking-lawsuit?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Mar 2026 03:33:21 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press French financial prosecutors said on Tuesday that searches were carried out at several locations, including the Paris arm of Swiss private bank Edmond de Rothschild, as part of an investigation tied to revelations from the files on Jeffrey Epstein. France’s national financial prosecutor’s office said searches were carried out last Friday as part of a preliminary investigation opened last month. Investigators are examining suspicions of bribery involving a foreign public official and complicity... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3347767/french-authorities-search-paris-arm-swiss-bank-epstein-linked-probe?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3347767/french-authorities-search-paris-arm-swiss-bank-epstein-linked-probe?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 24 Mar 2026 17:37:53 +0000 Vanessa Cai Vanessa Cai A shadowy go-between known as “Aunt Mei” allegedly involved in a notorious child trafficking case has been arrested, according to police in southern China. Police in the city of Guangzhou said the woman, surnamed Xie, had been identified last year, and the case was still under investigation, state media reported on Saturday. The reports did not specify when the arrest was made. For years, police were aware an intermediary had been involved in the trafficking case, but Aunt Mei remained at large... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3347429/chinas-infamous-aunt-mei-arrested-after-decade-long-hunt-child-trafficker?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3347429/chinas-infamous-aunt-mei-arrested-after-decade-long-hunt-child-trafficker?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 21 Mar 2026 10:16:58 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The first two months of 2026 saw a record number of migrant deaths in the Mediterranean, despite fewer crossing attempts towards Europe, according to data from the International Organization for Migration (IOM). At least 655 people died or went missing in January and February - more than double the 287 recorded for the same period last year. NGOs and researchers said the reasons were multiple: storms, complications for rescue operations and border closures. Frontex, the EU’s border control... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3347136/hundreds-die-crossing-mediterranean-2026-already-smashes-records?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3347136/hundreds-die-crossing-mediterranean-2026-already-smashes-records?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Mar 2026 07:07:11 +0000 Reuters Reuters A US congressional committee said ⁠on Tuesday it has ⁠issued a subpoena to Attorney General ⁠Pam Bondi to testify behind closed doors in its probe of the late convicted sex criminal Jeffrey Epstein. Bondi faces accusations that the Justice Department has concealed the names of powerful associates of Epstein in its release ‌of millions of documents related to the late financier. Under the subpoena, Bondi would give a sworn deposition to the House of Representatives Oversight Committee on ‌April... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3346938/us-house-panel-subpoenas-pam-bondi-testify-epstein-investigation?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3346938/us-house-panel-subpoenas-pam-bondi-testify-epstein-investigation?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Mar 2026 19:29:38 +0000 Sam Beltran Sam Beltran For many of those rescued from Southeast Asia’s scam compounds, escape is not the end of the ordeal. They leave behind the locked gates, surveillance and violence, but often return home carrying injuries, trauma and the stigma of having been forced to scam others. Just as difficult is what comes next: trying to explain the experience to the people waiting for them. “Some of them are not able to tell their family members or their community what has happened,” said human rights advocate Andrey... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3346532/southeast-asias-scam-compound-survivors-suffer-stigma-and-silence?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3346532/southeast-asias-scam-compound-survivors-suffer-stigma-and-silence?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Mar 2026 00:00:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A photograph of Britain’s former prince Andrew and veteran politician Peter Mandelson sitting in bathrobes alongside late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was unearthed on Friday in previously published documents. The image is believed to be the first known photograph of the two men with Epstein. They are both currently engulfed in scandal in the UK over their ties to their mutual friend. The undated photograph, first reported by ITV News, shows King Charles’ disgraced brother and Britain’s former... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3346566/uks-andrew-and-peter-mandelson-pictured-bathrobes-jeffrey-epstein?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3346566/uks-andrew-and-peter-mandelson-pictured-bathrobes-jeffrey-epstein?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Mar 2026 19:04:36 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Meta disabled more than 150,000 accounts and Thai police arrested 21 people in a sweeping international crackdown on Southeast Asian criminal scam centres that targeted people around the world, the social media giant said on Wednesday. The operation was led by Thailand’s Royal Thai Police Anti-Cyber Scam Centre alongside the FBI and the US Justice Department’s Scam Centre Strike Force, with Meta investigators acting on intelligence shared in real time by law enforcement. Online scam networks –... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3346280/meta-disables-150000-accounts-global-sting-southeast-asian-scam-centres?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3346280/meta-disables-150000-accounts-global-sting-southeast-asian-scam-centres?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Mar 2026 01:12:19 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The House Oversight Committee voted on Wednesday to subpoena US Attorney General Pam Bondi to answer questions over the Justice Department’s handling of files regarding the Jeffrey Epstein sex-trafficking investigation. Five Republicans joined Democrats to support the subpoena proposed by Republican congresswoman Nancy Mace in a sign of continued frustration among conservatives with the department’s review and release of a tranche of documents related to the disgraced financier. The move... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3345486/us-lawmakers-vote-subpoena-pam-bondi-over-epstein-files?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3345486/us-lawmakers-vote-subpoena-pam-bondi-over-epstein-files?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Mar 2026 23:40:47 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Former US president Bill Clinton said in sworn testimony released on Monday by a US congressional committee that he had no knowledge of the sex crimes of the late financier Jeffrey Epstein. Clinton also said President Donald Trump, a one-time close friend of Epstein, “never said anything to me to make me think he was involved in anything improper with regard to Epstein either”. Bill Clinton and his wife, former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, were deposed last week by the Republican-led... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3345193/us-house-panel-releases-video-clintons-epstein-depositions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3345193/us-house-panel-releases-video-clintons-epstein-depositions?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Mar 2026 22:32:21 +0000 Laura Zhou Laura Zhou Early in 2021, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Myanmar’s capital Naypyidaw and held talks with both General Min Aung Hlaing, the chief of the armed forces, and Aung San Suu Kyi, the de facto leader of the civilian government. The meeting was a chance for China to voice support for Myanmar’s “national conditions” development path and signal China’s long-term pragmatic approach to ties with its southwestern neighbour, irrespective of who was in power. That strategy, however, came under... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343830/5-years-and-1-election-later-why-chinas-myanmar-dilemma-still-isnt-over?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3343830/5-years-and-1-election-later-why-chinas-myanmar-dilemma-still-isnt-over?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Feb 2026 22:00:10 +0000 Reuters Reuters Bill Clinton told American lawmakers on Friday that he “saw nothing that gave me pause” when he spent time with Jeffrey Epstein, as the former US president gave closed-door testimony about his relationship with the late sex offender. In a prepared statement, Clinton told the House of Representatives Oversight Committee that he would not have flown on the late financier’s plane if ‌he had known about his alleged sex trafficking of underage girls, and would have reported him if he did. “We are... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3344938/bill-clinton-grilled-over-epstein-ties-us-lawmakers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3344938/bill-clinton-grilled-over-epstein-ties-us-lawmakers?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Feb 2026 17:40:35 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Hillary Clinton used her forced appearance Thursday before a Republican-led panel probing Jeffrey Epstein to go on the offensive and demand US President Donald Trump testify about his own links to the sex offender. Clinton said after her deposition when asked if she was confident that her husband did not know of Epstein’s crimes, Clinton said “I am”. “I don’t know how many times I had to say I did not know Jeffrey Epstein,” she added. “I never went to his island, I never went to his homes, I... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3344784/hillary-clinton-calls-trump-testify-she-faces-us-house-epstein-panel?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3344784/hillary-clinton-calls-trump-testify-she-faces-us-house-epstein-panel?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Feb 2026 17:39:02 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Cambodia’s Prime Minister Hun Manet said on Wednesday that scam centres were destroying his country’s economy and giving the nation a bad name – pushing back on allegations of government connivance. The nation has emerged as a hotspot for crime syndicates running a multibillion-dollar fraud industry that sees scammers lure internet users globally into fake romantic relationships and cryptocurrency investments. “The scam network, what we call the black economy, is destroying our honest economy.... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3344713/cambodias-hun-manet-denies-state-profiting-scam-centre-proceeds?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3344713/cambodias-hun-manet-denies-state-profiting-scam-centre-proceeds?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 26 Feb 2026 07:39:02 +0000 Reuters Reuters London police officers assigned to King ⁠Charles’ younger brother ⁠Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor were instructed to provide ⁠security for a dinner party at Jeffrey Epstein’s residence in New York in 2010, British media reported on Sunday. The Sunday Times, which first reported the story, cited emails from the Epstein files that ‌appear to detail arrangements for Mountbatten-Windsor to stay with the late convicted sex offender in December 2010, along with his two protection officers from London’s... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3344277/uk-protection-officers-instructed-guard-2010-epstein-dinner-party-reports-say?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3344277/uk-protection-officers-instructed-guard-2010-epstein-dinner-party-reports-say?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 22 Feb 2026 17:12:16 +0000 Reuters Reuters Britain’s government will consider new legislation to remove the former prince Andrew from the line of royal succession once the police investigation into his ties with Epstein is over, a UK official has said. Any changes to the line of succession – Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor is eighth in line to the throne – would require consultation and agreement with other countries where King Charles ‌is head of state, the official, who asked not to be identified, said on Friday. The former prince was... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3344185/uk-consider-removing-ex-prince-andrew-royal-line-succession?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3344185/uk-consider-removing-ex-prince-andrew-royal-line-succession?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Feb 2026 19:27:00 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse The UN human rights agency on Friday called on governments to clamp down on scam centres, which have mushroomed in Southeast Asia and where hundreds of thousands of people have been trafficked into forced labour. The agency released a report documenting torture, sexual abuse, forced abortions, food deprivation, solitary confinement and other abuses. “The litany of abuse is staggering and at the same time heartbreaking,” UN Human Rights high commissioner Volker Turk said, calling on governments... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3344166/water-prisons-torture-un-urges-crackdown-brutal-southeast-asia-scam-centres?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3344166/water-prisons-torture-un-urges-crackdown-brutal-southeast-asia-scam-centres?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Feb 2026 11:29:07 +0000 Reuters Reuters More than 1,000 Kenyans have been recruited to fight on Russia’s side in the war in Ukraine, according to a Kenyan intelligence report presented to lawmakers this week, five times more than authorities had previously estimated. The Russian embassy in Nairobi denied on Thursday that Moscow was involved in illegally recruiting Kenyans to fight in Ukraine, though it said ‌foreign citizens could voluntarily join its armed forces. Reading the report of Kenya’s National Intelligence Service to... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3344104/over-1000-kenyans-recruited-fight-russia-ukraine-war-report?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3344104/over-1000-kenyans-recruited-fight-russia-ukraine-war-report?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Feb 2026 06:44:23 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The former prince Andrew was arrested and held for hours by British police Thursday on suspicion of misconduct in public office related to his links to Jeffrey Epstein, an extraordinary move in a country where authorities once sought to shield the royal family from embarrassment. It was the first time in nearly four centuries that a senior British royal was placed under arrest, and it underscored how deference to the monarchy has eroded in recent years. King Charles, whose late mother lived by... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3344019/andrew-mountbatten-windsor-was-arrested-suspicion-misconduct-public-office?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3344019/andrew-mountbatten-windsor-was-arrested-suspicion-misconduct-public-office?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 19 Feb 2026 10:22:37 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg Long after Jeffrey Epstein was known as a convicted sex offender, he was also a top contributor to an elite cluster of groups founded by Harvard University students. For years, he was able to fill a table with “girls” at an annual gala that featured celebrities, billionaires and cultural luminaries. Annual donations of at least US$50,000 to the Hasty Pudding Institute of 1770 – a non-profit umbrella for a social club, theatre troupe and a cappella singers – qualified him as a “Guardian of the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3343658/hello-girls-epstein-was-hasty-pudding-donor-years-after-sex-conviction?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3343658/hello-girls-epstein-was-hasty-pudding-donor-years-after-sex-conviction?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Feb 2026 23:39:15 +0000 Ivan Franceschini,Charlotte Setijadi,Ling Li Ivan Franceschini,Charlotte Setijadi,Ling Li “I was running from the war, and I got to a war again.” This is how Eric, a young man from central Africa, described how he ended up at a scam compound in Cambodia – and then stranded in the country with no way out. His story is like that of many people deceived into the scamming world. After fleeing conflict in his home country and living in extreme deprivation, Eric – not his real name – received an email offering a US$2,000-per-month job in Cambodia. The recruiter quickly persuaded him to... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3343519/cambodias-scam-factory-survivors-find-no-escape-freedom?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/opinion/article/3343519/cambodias-scam-factory-survivors-find-no-escape-freedom?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Feb 2026 04:00:18 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg In early 2013, Jeffrey Epstein’s girlfriend, Karyna Shuliak, was stressed about her US visa status. Later that year, she married an American citizen and her worries were gone. A Green Card followed, and in 2018, citizenship. Then Shuliak divorced her spouse: a woman named Jennifer who had been in a relationship with Kimbal Musk – Elon Musk’s brother – after Epstein connected them. “now that she’s an american you should throw her a big ole party,” one of Epstein’s go-to immigration lawyers... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3343600/epsteins-girlfriend-married-woman-showing-how-he-gamed-immigration?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3343600/epsteins-girlfriend-married-woman-showing-how-he-gamed-immigration?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Feb 2026 17:30:38 +0000 Biman Mukherji Biman Mukherji Human trafficking syndicates operating across Southeast Asia are increasingly laundering their profits through cryptocurrency, a shift that reflects how swiftly these networks are scaling up and exploiting the ease of moving funds across borders, according to findings by a US blockchain analysis firm. Crypto transactions linked to suspected trafficking operations surged 85 per cent in 2025 to hundreds of millions of dollars, Chainalysis said in its 2026 crypto crime report, which tracked illicit... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3343325/more-southeast-asian-human-trafficking-gangs-use-crypto-move-illegal-funds?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3343325/more-southeast-asian-human-trafficking-gangs-use-crypto-move-illegal-funds?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Feb 2026 13:00:09 +0000 Pheaktra Neth Pheaktra Neth Transnational online crime is one of the most serious security challenges facing the global community. It drives human trafficking and forced labour, enables large-scale fraud, destabilises economies and erodes public trust in digital financial systems. No country is immune, and no country can confront this threat alone. In Cambodia, we are confronting this challenge directly. Prime Minister Hun Manet has made cyber-enabled crime, including online scams, trafficking and digital fraud, a national... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3342670/cambodia-frontline-battle-against-transnational-scam-syndicates?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3342670/cambodia-frontline-battle-against-transnational-scam-syndicates?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 Feb 2026 21:30:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell refused on Monday to answer questions from US lawmakers but her lawyer said she was prepared to speak if granted clemency by US President Donald Trump. Maxwell, 64, who is serving a 20-year prison sentence for sex trafficking, was subpoenaed by the House Oversight Committee to discuss her relations with Epstein. Rather than answer the committee’s questions, however, the former British socialite invoked her Fifth Amendment... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342976/epstein-accomplice-ghislaine-maxwell-seeks-trump-clemency-testimony?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3342976/epstein-accomplice-ghislaine-maxwell-seeks-trump-clemency-testimony?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 Feb 2026 18:41:19 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Britain’s King Charles is ready to “support’’ UK police examining claims that the former prince Andrew gave confidential information to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Buckingham Palace said on Monday. The statement came after Thames Valley Police said Monday that they were “assessing” reports that the former prince, now known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, sent trade reports to Epstein in 2010. The department, which serves an area west of London that includes Mountbatten-Windsor’s... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3342973/uk-police-assess-claims-ex-prince-andrew-sent-sensitive-trade-records-epstein?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3342973/uk-police-assess-claims-ex-prince-andrew-sent-sensitive-trade-records-epstein?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 Feb 2026 16:55:35 +0000 Reuters Reuters In a Cambodian compound with rooms designed to look like Singaporean and Australian police offices, papers were strewn across desks and floors: the detritus of a fraud factory abandoned in haste. Among the documents were profiles of a 73-year-old Japanese retiree, complete with his phone number and bank account balance, and an American woman who disclosed that she was a victim of domestic abuse. Nearby were scripts to commit love scams and impersonate police, as well as a room set up to resemble... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3342740/cambodian-scam-victims-details-found-inside-compound-reveal-reach-cyber-gangs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3342740/cambodian-scam-victims-details-found-inside-compound-reveal-reach-cyber-gangs?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 07 Feb 2026 00:52:04 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk A social media warning to transnational scam networks by South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has ignited backlash from Cambodians accusing him of tarnishing their country’s image, prompting the post’s deletion amid diplomatic clarifications. On Friday, Lee shared a report by Korean outlet OhMyNews stating that Chinese organised crime groups in Cambodia were shunning Korean recruits for fear of Seoul’s police raids, as reported by the Khmer Times and The Korea Herald. “If you dare to mess with... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3342219/cambodians-outraged-south-korean-presidents-ruin-you-scam-threat?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3342219/cambodians-outraged-south-korean-presidents-ruin-you-scam-threat?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 03 Feb 2026 07:53:23 +0000 Reuters Reuters Queen’s University Belfast on Monday cut ties with former US senator George Mitchell over his links to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, saying it was no longer appropriate to remain associated with the key figure in the Northern Ireland peace deal. The university said its ⁠decision followed new information on Mitchell released in the latest trove of millions of files linked to late convicted sex offender Epstein by the US Justice Department last Friday. The university plans to remove... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3342159/queens-university-belfast-cuts-ties-us-politician-george-mitchell-over-epstein-links?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3342159/queens-university-belfast-cuts-ties-us-politician-george-mitchell-over-epstein-links?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Feb 2026 21:19:54 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Sarah Ferguson, the ex-wife of Britain’s former prince Andrew, called late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein a “legend” and the “brother I have always wished for”, according to newly released documents. While the friendship between Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor – who was stripped of his royal titles last October – and Epstein has been in the spotlight for years, the latest emails released by US authorities appear to shine a new light on the extent of Ferguson’s ties. “I have never been more touched by a... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3342141/sarah-ferguson-called-epstein-brother-and-legend-new-emails-reveal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3342141/sarah-ferguson-called-epstein-brother-and-legend-new-emails-reveal?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Feb 2026 12:54:29 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Former British ambassador to Washington Peter Mandelson quit the Labour Party Sunday, seeking to avoid causing it “further embarrassment” after newly released US documents revived scrutiny of his connection to late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Mandelson, 72, who was sacked as Britain’s ambassador to the United States last year over his ties to Epstein, allegedly received several payments from Epstein in the early 2000s, according to documents released on Friday by the US Department of Justice... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3342020/sacked-uk-ambassador-mandelson-has-no-recollection-us75000-payments-epstein?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3342020/sacked-uk-ambassador-mandelson-has-no-recollection-us75000-payments-epstein?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Feb 2026 17:09:16 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Britain’s former prince Andrew was again engulfed by the Epstein scandal on Saturday, after newly released files included photographs of him kneeling on all fours over a woman lying on the floor. The images were among millions of new documents disclosed Friday by the US Justice Department from the Jeffrey Epstein files, which also featured the late sex offender proposing in 2010 that the then prince meet a Russian woman. That was two years after the disgraced US financier had pleaded guilty in... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3341967/uks-ex-prince-andrew-dogged-again-epstein-scandal-new-photos-surface?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3341967/uks-ex-prince-andrew-dogged-again-epstein-scandal-new-photos-surface?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 31 Jan 2026 16:56:36 +0000 Reuters Reuters The US Justice Department on Friday published millions of ‌new files related to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, including emails that show Howard Lutnick, President Donald Trump’s commerce secretary, apparently visited Epstein’s private island for lunch years after he claimed to have cut off ties. Todd ‍Blanche, the US deputy attorney general, said Friday’s massive batch of documents marked the end of the Trump administration’s planned releases under a law passed in November that... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3341898/us-justice-department-releases-3-million-more-pages-epstein-files?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3341898/us-justice-department-releases-3-million-more-pages-epstein-files?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 30 Jan 2026 16:32:05 +0000 Aisyah Llewellyn Aisyah Llewellyn Concerns about baby trafficking networks in Indonesia have resurfaced amid renewed scrutiny of cross-border adoptions involving Singapore, with experts warning that illegal syndicates continue to exploit economic vulnerability and gaps in enforcement. The issue has drawn particular attention in Singapore following allegations that infants were trafficked from Indonesia into the city state for adoption, prompting authorities on both sides of the border to review existing safeguards and... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3341579/why-rampant-baby-trafficking-growing-concern-indonesia-singapore?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3341579/why-rampant-baby-trafficking-growing-concern-indonesia-singapore?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 29 Jan 2026 03:00:10 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Hundreds of migrants may be missing at sea or feared dead following reports of multiple deadly shipwrecks in the central Mediterranean in recent days, the UN’s migration agency warned on Monday. The International Organisation for Migration said it was “deeply concerned” by the reports, which it was currently verifying. “Several boats are believed to have been involved over the past 10 days, with preliminary information suggesting that hundreds of people may be missing at sea or feared dead,” a... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3341356/hundreds-feared-missing-or-dead-mediterranean-shipwrecks-un-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/europe/article/3341356/hundreds-feared-missing-or-dead-mediterranean-shipwrecks-un-says?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 27 Jan 2026 05:55:18 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Dozens of South Koreans allegedly involved in online scams in Cambodia were returned to South Korea on Friday to face investigations in what was the largest group repatriation of Korean criminal suspects from abroad. The 73 South Korean suspects allegedly scammed fellow Koreans out of 48.6 billion won (US$33 million), according to a South Korean government statement. Upon arrival in South Korea’s Incheon Airport aboard a chartered plane, the suspects – 65 men and eight women – were sent to... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3341017/73-south-koreans-repatriated-cambodia-face-probe-over-online-scams-involvement?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3341017/73-south-koreans-repatriated-cambodia-face-probe-over-online-scams-involvement?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 23 Jan 2026 09:50:08 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk Indonesian police have dismantled an alleged baby trafficking ring that used social media to sell newborns in Medan after neighbours reported suspicious activity at a rented house. Medan police chief Jean Calvijn Simanjuntak said nine people had been arrested and three others were being sought, according to a report by The Jakarta Post on Tuesday. The suspects were believed to have sold at least two babies for between 9 million and 25 million rupiah (US$530 to US$1,475) each and were preparing... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3340713/indonesia-police-arrest-9-medan-baby-trafficking-case-linked-social-media?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3340713/indonesia-police-arrest-9-medan-baby-trafficking-case-linked-social-media?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 21 Jan 2026 10:57:56 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Cyberscam networks in Cambodia have freed more than 400 Indonesians this month, Jakarta said on Monday, after Phnom Penh announced a fresh crackdown on the illicit industry. Scammers working from hubs across Southeast Asia, some willingly and others trafficked, lure internet users globally into fake romances and cryptocurrency investments, netting tens of billions of dollars each year. Some foreign nationals have left suspected scam compounds across Cambodia this month as the government pledged... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3340465/cambodias-cyberscam-crackdown-frees-400-indonesians-criminal-networks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3340465/cambodias-cyberscam-crackdown-frees-400-indonesians-criminal-networks?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 19 Jan 2026 13:48:57 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg Thailand’s ruling party, which is seeking to retain power in next month’s election, has vowed to resolve the country’s conflict with Cambodia and clean up its image as a transit hub for trafficked scam victims. The conservative Bhumjaithai Party, which took power in September, has cast itself as the most suitable defender of Thai sovereignty during the border dispute between the two Southeast Asian countries. Clashes erupted for five days last July and reignited in December before a... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3340252/thai-ruling-party-courts-voters-vowing-end-cambodia-conflict-close-scam-hubs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3340252/thai-ruling-party-courts-voters-vowing-end-cambodia-conflict-close-scam-hubs?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 17 Jan 2026 07:30:10 +0000 SCMP’s Asia desk SCMP’s Asia desk A Chinese national suspected of running a Cambodia-based scam operation linked to the killing of a South Korean university student has been arrested during a raid on a luxury house in Thailand, authorities said. The suspect, identified by South Korean officials as Han Mo, was captured in Pattaya by a joint Thai–South Korean task force formed after the discovery of the student’s body last year sparked international outrage. “In close cooperation with Thai authorities, we arrested Han Mo, 42, a... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3339767/suspected-scam-boss-linked-south-korean-students-brutal-killing-arrested-thailand?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3339767/suspected-scam-boss-linked-south-korean-students-brutal-killing-arrested-thailand?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 13 Jan 2026 12:05:32 +0000