Thirty Bangladeshis who were detained at an immigration centre in Cambodia after attempting to return home from alleged cyber scam operations arrived in Dhaka on Tuesday, more than six weeks after their detention.
They landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport around 12:30pm on Thai Airways flight TG-321, said Al Amin Nayon, president and co-founder of Anirban Survivor Voice Foundation.
The returnees subsequently underwent forensic examinations by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which checked their mobile phones and other belongings because they had been held at cyber scam centres in Cambodia, Nayon said.
The Bangladeshis were among 32 people detained by Cambodian immigration police at Phnom Penh airport on September 3 while attempting to return home.
Brokers had reportedly lured them to Cambodia with promises of lucrative jobs, but many were later confined in cyber scam centres and forced to participate in online fraud. Some allegedly faced torture when they tried to escape.
After Cambodia offered an opportunity to return home without paying overstay penalties, the Bangladeshis registered for repatriation and gathered at the airport.
However, immigration police detained all 32 over irregular immigration status and other complications.
Two were subsequently released, while the remaining 30 were held at an immigration detention centre.
They were released on Friday afternoon following prolonged negotiations involving the Bangladesh Embassy in Thailand and appeals by Anirban Survivor Voice Foundation.
Zahir Imam, first secretary (labour) at the embassy, earlier told The Daily Star that Cambodian authorities released the detainees following repeated requests from the mission. The returnees purchased their air tickets at their own expense, he said.
Meanwhile, hundreds of other Bangladeshis remain stranded in Cambodia, many facing expired visas, financial hardship and complications with immigration clearance.
Imam earlier said the mission had received requests for assistance concerning 1,796 Bangladeshis, of whom around 350 to 400 had returned home since July.
However, the mission had been unable to independently verify all the names or establish the whereabouts of everyone seeking assistance.
Anirban Survivor Voice Foundation estimates that more than 2,000 Bangladeshis remain stranded in Cambodia. Of them, around 1,800 are facing uncertainty over an October 31 deadline related to immigration overstay penalties.
The organisation has called for a coordinated repatriation mechanism, assistance for trafficking victims and action against recruitment and human trafficking networks.
According to figures from the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET), a total of 15,963 Bangladeshis received employment clearances for Cambodia between January 1, 2025, and September 30, 2026.