Kuching teen allegedly deceived by friend into illegal activities in Taiwan

KUCHING (Jan 29): An 18-year-old boy here was allegedly misled by a friend into travelling to Taiwan, where he became involved in illegal activities, authorities said.

According to George Lam, special assistant to Bandar Kuching MP Kelvin Yii, the incident began when the victim was originally scheduled to travel to Kuala Lumpur on 17 January.

Without his family’s knowledge or consent, he was instead persuaded by a friend to travel to Taiwan.

“The mother, Liew, informed that the friend not only assisted in purchasing the flight ticket, but also allegedly used a job opportunity to induce the victim, which eventually led the teen to become involved in illegal activities and is now being detained by the authorities in Taiwan,” he told a press conference at Sarawak Democratic Action Party (DAP) headquarters here.

Lam added that after the mother’s last video call with her son, she lost all contact on 22 January.

His messaging accounts were also deleted, leaving the mother deeply distressed and under immense emotional pressure.

Upon receiving the case, Lam assisted the mother in lodging a formal report with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and submitted information regarding the friend involved to the police to facilitate further investigation.

“The friend who bought the flight tickets is now being hunted down. Contacts to the victim’s friend were futile as the number had since been defunct and we believe that the person may change his phone number.

“This case must be treated seriously. Even when flight tickets are purchased by friends or when overseas job opportunities are introduced by acquaintances, the public must remain vigilant – especially when the activities involved are unclear or illegal in nature,” he said.

Lam noted that criminal syndicates increasingly exploit friendships and trust to lure young people abroad, often trapping victims before they realise the danger.

He urged the police, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and all relevant authorities to continue following up on the case, engage actively with Taiwanese authorities, and safeguard the safety and legal rights of Malaysian citizens, including facilitating the victim’s return home.

“l also wish to remind the public, particularly young people and parents, to remain highly cautious about overseas job offers and sudden travel arrangements.

“Any suspicious circumstances should be reported immediately to the authorities to prevent similar incidents from recurring,” he said.