[A photo of an online scam taking place. Photo Credit to Pxhere] 

The death of a 22-year old South Korean university student in a Cambodian online-scam operation has caused outrage in Seoul,  prompting intensified international efforts to dismantle these networks.

The student,  identified as Park Min-ho, was found dead on August 17, 2025 near Bokor Mountain in the Kampot province of Cambodia.

Local police were able to determine that Park had been severely tortured before suffering cardiac arrest, which was listed as his cause of death.

Authorities revealed that the student had reportedly been lured to Cambodia by a false job advertisement that promised high pay, which was later confirmed to be a scam center run by a multinational crime syndicate.

Public  outrage in South Korea reached  unprecedented levels in early October after details of the case were released nationally through local media.

On October 10, South Korea’s Foreign Ministry called upon Cambodia’s ambassador to criticize their government’s handling of the job-scam operations and pressured them to implement stronger safety measures for the Koreans that travel there.

Prime Minister of Cambodia, Hun Manet, responded by promising to cooperate with South Korea and has pledged to take action against online scam compounds.

Throughout October, police operations  successfully rescued dozens of people who were held against their will, with 64 South Koreans being repatriated.

South Korean officials later announced that 58 of the repatriated citizens will be put to questioning to determine if said individuals were coerced into participation or were willing to contribute to the operations.

Park’s death has brought attention to  the string of online fraud networks that  have been running rampant in countries such as Cambodia, Myanmar, and Laos since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Criminal syndicates use social media and employee recruitment platforms to lure victims, who are often young, job-seekers from countries like China, Malaysia, and South Korea.

These people are then stripped of their passports and forced to work in “pig butchering” schemes,  elaborate scams that are designed to defraud victims of their money over the course several weeks or months disguised as a romantic or investment opportunity.

“In a sense, they are both victims and offenders at the same time,” said Wi Sung-Iac, South Korea’s national security advisor.

Despite the pledges that the Cambodian government has made, many have pointed out that progress has not been very consistent, citing government corruption and the immense profits these networks generate as the cause.

Cambodian police have reportedly shut down several scam centers in the last few months, but many have simply relocated under new management.

This incident has also attracted international attention, with the U.S and the U.K releasing new sanctions aimed at finance and crypto frauds that are linked to southeast asian scam rings. 

In South Korea, the parents of Park Min-ho have demanded improved safety measures for Koreans working overseas, especially Cambodia.

Citizens of both countries have pressured the governments to act on their promises, protecting the victims of the scam networks and the scams themselves.

Officials in Seoul have ensured that those who are responsible for these crimes will be prosecuted and judged by a court of law.

Second Vice Foreign Prime Minister Kim Jina stated, “Our government will build and actively use an effective system to eradicate scams targeting South Koreans in Cambodia.”