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POLICE have crippled an online sex extortion and blackmail syndicate following the arrest of nine suspects, including two women and a teenager, in an operation spanning from June 20 to July 1.
The suspects, all Malaysian nationals aged between 17 and 50, were detained during 'Op Bugil' carried out in the Johor Bahru and Kulai areas.
Johor Police Chief, Datuk M Kumar, stated that the syndicate, which had been operating since November last year, began by creating fake social media accounts. Women would then impersonate individuals to lure victims into engaging in explicit video calls.
"At the same time, the syndicate would send a link to the victim's mobile phone, and once the victim clicked on it, the syndicate could access the contact list and photo gallery on the victim's phone," he said during a press conference at the Johor Contingent Police Headquarters.
"During the explicit call, the syndicate would persuade the victim to engage in lewd acts, and all of this would be recorded for the purpose of extorting money from the victim."
According to Kumar, victims were threatened to pay between RM500 and RM1,000 each time they were forced into an explicit video call. If they refused, the syndicate threatened to distribute the explicit videos to their entire contact list, including family members.
Meanwhile, Kumar also revealed that during the raids, police rescued three victims of sexual exploitation: two teenagers aged 15 and 16, and an adult male.
"This syndicate recruited out-of-school Malaysian teenagers through social media to work for them with salaries ranging from RM2,200 to RM4,000. They would be trained until they were skilled before being forced to work abroad in countries such as Indonesia, Laos, and Thailand."
"These teenage victims had no choice. They would be confined and forced to work as syndicate members for 12 hours a day and would be beaten if they did not cooperate."
"The victims were given a break after two weeks, but their movements were controlled. Mobile phones and identification cards were taken, so the victims were afraid to ask for help. If the victims did not want to work, they were forced to pay RM30,000 to be released," he added.
During the raids, police confiscated 27 mobile phones, personal documents, airline tickets, money exchange receipts, and RM140 in cash, along with foreign currency, laptops, 49 SIM cards, modems, job ledgers, a car, and a remote-control device.
Kumar stated that all suspects, including the mastermind behind the syndicate, are being investigated under Section 5, Section 10, and Section 15(f) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017; Section 12 and Section 14 of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007; Regulation 25(1)(o) of the National Registration Regulations 1990; Section 12(1)(F) of the Passport Act 1966; Section 324 of the Penal Code; and Section 43 of the Societies Act 1966. - July 14, 2025