Human traffickers jailed for luring 5 Hongkongers into forced labour in Southeast Asia

Ma Che-hou, 32, and Joshua Cheung, 25, sentenced to nearly five years and three years respectively for ‘heinous’ and ‘nasty’ crimes

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A new building under construction at KK Park in Myanmar in July 2023. Photo: Alastair McCready

Published: 5:47pm, 1 Nov 2024Updated: 8:29pm, 1 Nov 2024

A Hong Kong court has sentenced two human traffickers to up to four years and eight months in jail for tricking five Hongkongers into forced labour and confinement in Southeast Asia in one of the worst cases involving residents’ safety overseas in recent years.

Ma Che-hou, 32, and Joshua Cheung Man-waai, 25, were sentenced on Friday on a joint charge of conspiracy to defraud for their roles in a well-crafted plot to lure people into travelling abroad, before the victims were held captive and forced to scam others online.

Judge Josiah Lam Wai-kuen said the case represented “one of the most abhorrent crimes one would come across in the District Court”.

He said the five victims, aged between 20 and 32, had been detained in Myanmar or Cambodia until they agreed to help with the racket’s cyber fraud scheme, or until their families paid a ransom for their release.

He highlighted the ordeal of Ng Sik-ming, 29, a mentally disabled man who was repeatedly assaulted after refusing to work.

“This is a very nasty case of human trafficking,” Lam said in sentencing.