Six Filipinos, who claimed they were human trafficking victims in Myanmar where they were reportedly forced to work as cryptocurrency scammers, have filed criminal complaints against their recruiters before the Department of Justice (DOJ). The press statement issued by the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT) did not name the complainants and the recruiters they charged. IACT said that the recruiters were three Filipinos and one Chinese national. It said the complaints were filed last May 15.  “The six victims were assisted by PNP-WCPC (Philippine National Police-Women and Children Protection Center) and the DOJ-IACAT in filing a complaint against their recruiters (3 Filipinos, 1 Chinese) for violation of Republic Act No 9208 (Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003), as amended by Republic Act. No. 10364,” the expanded anti-trafficking law. Due to the latest trafficking complaints, IACT warned the public “to be wary of online job offers abroad, particularly in ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) regions.” “We advise to check the legitimacy of the job offer abroad and the recruitment agency with the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) to avoid becoming victims of human trafficking,” the IACAT said. It said the public should not hesitate to report “any information that may help us rescue or assist victims and investigate perpetrators.” In the case of the six complainants, IACT said that they “were recruited as ‘Customer Service Representatives’ (CSR) online to work in Thailand, but were actually brought to Myanmar to lure foreigners into the cryptocurrency scam.” “According to the victims, their employer demanded that they pay $7,000 each in cash for breach of contract if they would like to return to the Philippines,” it said. “They were locked out in separate rooms, their passports and cellphones confiscated, subjected to physical harm by hitting their buttocks and lower legs, hogtied, and starved,” it also said. It said the six complainants “contacted their families and paid the Chinese employer in Myanmar.” “Five of six complainants paid P300,000 each, while the other one was only able to raise less than the demanded amount, but the employer also set her free together with the others,” it also said.