According to victims of the alleged scam, the proprietor of a Yangon-based employment agency recently absconded with more than 2 billion kyat (more than US$950,000) in fees paid by Myanmar workers who had hired the company to seek jobs in neighboring nations.
A third-party agent and a victim of the fraud accused the Su Paing Win Myint agency of taking many of the “service charges” of 1.5m to 2m kyat ($713-$250) provided to the company by more than 2,000 potential migrant workers in formal complaints filed with several junta departments.
The workers were looking for work in Thailand and Malaysia and had paid the agency to locate them work; others allegedly used their land and residences to cover the company’s finder’s fees.
Su Paing Win Myint victimized a woman from Bago Region, who told Myanmar Now she thought she had been cheated after not hearing from the agency for three months. Her price was 1.5 million kyat, and she had also surrendered her passport.
“Months passed, and I became skeptical. “They kept stalling and postponing it when I asked for my money and passport back,” she stated on the condition of anonymity. “They promised to pay me back in March, so I waited.” However, the company later appeared to have been closed down, and I was unable to contact them by phone.”
She complained to three junta entities: the human trafficking prevention department, the police, and the ministry of labor.
The woman explained that she had assisted 100 other villagers in applying for employment assistance through the Su Paing Win Myint agency, meaning that they had also lost the money they had given to the organization.
Another victim of the scam, from Yangon, reported that the agency was still holding her passport and the total of two payments—300,000 kyat ($142) and 1.5 million kyat.
The Su Paing Win Myint agency has an office in South Dagon Township and is registered with the Department of Investment and Companies. Despite not being certified for foreign recruitment, it was well-known for its job connections to Thai and Malaysian fisheries, confectionary companies, and power plants.
Su Paing Win Myint and Sa Aung Myo Kyaw, its directors, are also listed as directors for another firm named after the second individual. Both were registered on the same day at the same address.
Su Paing Win Myint, who is currently on the run, told Myanmar Now that her agency could no longer transfer personnel abroad due to reported issues with another organization, Star High. They had applied for migrant worker registration through this business, she alleged, but Star High had “conned” them and departed with the money.
She admitted that her agency had closed in February, but she said she had kept in touch with employees who had paid payments and entrusted their passports to her.
Su Paing Win Myint claimed that the entire sum owing from 1,000 workers was “just over 600m kyat” ($285,313), with only 200 persons left to pay back.
Source: Myanmar Post