With the increase in strictness and arrests in countries like Cambodia and Myanmar, the base of organized digital fraudsters running scam centers is now shifting to Sri Lanka, according to international media. A large number of Nepalis are also getting trapped in scam centers in various countries, and last month, Sri Lankan police arrested 192 Indians, including 29 Nepalis, in a raid in the Galle and Matara districts.

According to Vijay Kumar Raut, acting ambassador of the Nepali Embassy in Colombo, a total of 34 Nepali citizens were arrested and sent to jail in May alone on charges of cybercrime and operating illegal call centers. They were kept in jails in Galle, Bussa and Matara. So far, the court has ordered the release of 30 people on bail. “Ten people were arrested in Matara,” Embassy Information Officer Sagar Bhandari told Kantipur. “They had come into contact with us.” The embassy said that further studies are yet to be done to determine the number of Nepalis reaching such centers in Sri Lanka.

“Cyber ​​fraud and call center activities have increased significantly in the southern coastal region of Sri Lanka in recent times,” the embassy said in a statement. “On May 12 and 13, 2026, 24 Nepali citizens were arrested for computer-related offenses. They were initially sent to Galle Jail. The Nepalis had not made any formal contact with the embassy.”

Meanwhile, the embassy said that 10 other Nepalis were also arrested in a place called Matara. “They are being held in Matara Jail and the nature of their case has not been made clear yet,” the statement said. “However, the embassy understands that this may be an operation linked to cybercrime.” The Nepalis in Matara contacted the embassy by telephone, and on June 1, embassy officials visited both prisons and coordinated consular access.

While 10 Nepalis were found in Matara, the 24 in Galle were transferred from there to Bussa Jail and the court ordered their release on bail on June 5, the embassy said. Although six out of the 10 in Matara Jail were also ordered to be released on bail, a formal letter of bail approval has not been received.

According to the embassy, ​​the Nepalis in Matara Jail have claimed that they are not involved in cybercrime. They said they came to Sri Lanka from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) after the crisis in the Middle East. They have said that they used to work as cooks in various places in the UAE.

It is claimed that their passports are in the process of getting a work permit for the same job in Sri Lanka. They have said that they are not involved in such crimes as they do not even know how to use a computer. On June 8, embassy officials again reached Matara Jail and provided necessary materials to the Nepalis there.

After the rapid arrests and surveillance in Southeast Asian countries, transnational cyber fraud networks have now started making Sri Lanka their new base. Investigations, action and policy pressure have increased against such activities in countries including Cambodia, Thailand, and the United Arab Emirates. 'As Nepalese people also started facing many problems, we also sought diplomatic solutions with Southeast Asian countries,' said Lok Bahadur Poudel Chhetri, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. 'The issue of Sri Lanka is new, we are studying it.'

Citing police and analysts monitoring the regional online fraud industry, Bloomberg reported that cybercrime involving foreigners has increased significantly in Sri Lanka in recent times. Sri Lankan police said that 430 foreigners were arrested from such scam centers in 2024, less than that in 2025 and more than 1,000 foreigners in the first five months of 2026.

In an interview with the Singaporean media outlet ‘Straits Times’, Sri Lankan police spokesman Frederick Wutler said that most of those arrested were citizens of China, Vietnam and India. Wutler also mentioned that 29 Nepalis were arrested during the arrests made by the police. According to him, 280 more foreigners were arrested during raids in the capital Colombo in the third week of May, while 135 Chinese citizens were caught from the same scam center in March.

Scam centers have been defrauding internet users by luring them into fake love relationships, cryptocurrency investments, and betting activities. Young people from different countries have been lured to work in such centers. Fake offers are made claiming to be high-paying ‘IT’ or ‘call center’ jobs. Most of the youth have been trusted by agents based on their acquaintances or conversations on social media like Facebook and WhatsApp. 

Organized gangs of human traffickers have been transporting young people to such scam centers via India, Bangladesh, Thailand, and Myanmar, according to the police.  ‘We have not received any official information about the Sri Lanka incident so far,’ said Yogendra Khadka, Superintendent of Police of the Central Investigation Bureau of Nepal Police. ‘We will inform you if any details come to us.’

Recently, Sri Lanka has provided free 30-day tourist visas and online permits to citizens of 40 countries, including Nepal. International media outlets believe that scammers are using this to reach there. Such networks have spread rapidly after the COVID-19 pandemic. While news is constantly being published about the arrest, deportation and raids on suspected scam centers in Cambodia and the Myanmar-Thailand border areas, thousands of people have been arrested, deported and suspected scam centers have been raided, such gangs have been running scam centers from new addresses.

Experts suspect that such scam networks have been able to adapt quickly to the situation, looking at recent activities. Rather than disappearing completely, they are fragmenting and moving to areas with less surveillance, easier access or suitable digital infrastructure, says journalist Dilrukshi Handunetti, director of the Sri Lankan Center for Investigative Journalism. “Criminals are found to be abusing Sri Lankan tourist visas to operate their activities,” she told Bloomberg. “The police should crack down on or arrest such illegal companies (scam centers) as necessary.”