42 Vietnamese escape casino, Cambodia requested to investigate case
VOV.VN - A Vietnamese Foreign Ministry spokesperson has requested that Cambodia launch a probe into a case in which 42 Vietnamese citizens escaped a Cambodia casino and risked their lives swimming across a river into Vietnam.
The incident happened on August 18 when the Border Guard Command of An Giang province detained 40 Vietnamese people illegally entering the Vietnamese territory from Cambodia.
The detainees were among a total of 42 Vietnamese citizens who were said to flee a casino in Sampeou Poun commune, Kaoh Thom district, Kandal province in Cambodia, and swim across the Binh Di River to return to Vietnam.
They confessed that they had previously fled to Cambodia to work at a casino where they were constantly forced to work overtime without any payment.
On hearing about the news, spokesperson Le Thi Thu Hang said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has directed Vietnamese representative missions in Cambodia to contact local authorities to clarify information, and at the same time request the Cambodian side to assist in the search for the missing as well as to investigate the cause of the incident.
The Consular Department under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is urgently coordinating with relevant agencies to quickly verify the identities of those who had already returned home, and find out information to implement further citizen protection measures, said Hang.
She also pointed out that many Vietnamese people have been scammed into working in Cambodia illegally, and requested relevant agencies and the media to raise public awareness about tricks played by opportunists.
