内容摘要：Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, right, stands and looks at jurors as they file into the jury box at the start of jury selection at Manhattan federal court, Monday, May 5, 2025, in New York. (Elizabeth Williams via AP)

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, right, stands and looks at jurors as they file into the jury box at the start of jury selection at Manhattan federal court, Monday, May 5, 2025, in New York. (Elizabeth Williams via AP)

BANGKOK (AP) — Transnational organized crime groups in East and Southeast Asia are spreading their lucrative scam operations across the globe in response to increased crackdowns by authorities, according to a U.N. report issued on Monday.For several years, scam compounds have proliferated in Southeast Asia, especially in border areas of

, shifting operations from site to site to stay a step ahead of the police.More recently, scam centers that have bilked victims out of billions of dollars through false romantic ploys, bogus investment pitches and illegal gambling schemes are now being reported operating as far afield as Africa and Latin America.Asian crime syndicates have been expanding operations deeper into remote areas with lax law enforcement that are vulnerable to the influx, according to the report issued by the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime or UNODC. The report is titled “Inflection Point: Global Implications of Scam Centers, Underground Banking and Illicit Online Marketplaces in Southeast Asia.”

“This reflects both a natural expansion as the industry grows and seeks new ways and places to do business, but also a hedging against future risks should disruption continue and intensify in Southeast Asia,” Benedikt Hofmann, UNODC’s acting regional representative for Southeast Asia and the Pacific, said in a statement.UNODC estimates that hundreds of industrial-scale scam centers generate just under $40 billion in annual profits.

The trend to hedge beyond the region has been consistent with continued reports of crackdowns targeting Asian-led scam centers that have been found operating in Africa, South Asia, the Middle East and select Pacific islands, as well as related money laundering, people trafficking and recruitment services discovered in Europe, North America and South America.

has become a hot spot, with police raids in late 2024 and early 2025 leading to many arrests, including people from East and Southeast Asia suspected of cryptocurrency and romance scams. Zambia and Angola have also busted Asian-linked cyberfraud operations.Midwife Celena Brown speaks with Kayleigh Sturrup during a pregnancy checkup. Midwives at Commonsense Childbirth are striving to provide good, accessible care. (AP Photo/Laura Ungar)

“Nervous and excited,” the 31-year-old replied. “As it comes closer, I worry: Am I going to be able to cope with the pain?”“It’s normal to feel nervous,” Brown assured her. “You want to be open to the entire process. You got this. You can do it!”

Brown said she’s constantly awed by her patients’ strength. She recalled a teen just out of jail who overcame addiction and wound up giving birth vaginally without pain medication.Joseph has no intention of returning to Europe. She has started a midwifery school, put together training programs for other health care professionals and convenes a national group of professionals and advocates who share ideas to improve maternal health and eliminate disparities over videoconference.