A TOTAL of 15 Malaysians who fell victim to job scams in Cambodia and Laos were brought home in two separate flights today, Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah said.

According to the minister, eight people arrived from Cambodia this evening and seven arrived from Laos tonight.

He added that six more who were rescued in Cambodia will arrive at midnight.

“A total of 273 victims have been rescued in Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Myanmar to date, out of the 401 cases reported to us.

“Of those, some are still being detained in the respective countries,” he said at Kuala Lumpur International Airport today.

Saifuddin said Malaysian authorities, in co-operation with their counterparts in the countries concerned, were actively tracking another 128 victims.

“We are collaborating with the authorities from the countries concerned to track down the others, (while) those who have been rescued and, after (completing) the countries’ legal processes, will be brought home as soon as possible.

“As a nation that respects the law, we must accept and allow those countries involved to carry out the necessary processes,” he said.

Meanwhile, Saifuddin, advised victims to lodge police reports in the countries concerned to facilitate the police there to carry out investigations.

“My advice is that we must be very careful if making any statements regarding such issues, the best is that if we have information to give it to the police because that is more useful.

“This is also because we are concerned that if the statements are made, they could interfere with police investigations and, if the words used are misinterpreted, they could affect the diplomatic ties between Malaysia and the country concerned,” he said. – Bernama, October 6, 2022.