BANGKOK — After being ordered by their two leaders to suppress call center scamming networks, Thai and Cambodian police have joined forces to crack down on call center gangs, with a plan to extradite 100 suspects.
On July 25, Pol. Gen. Torsak Sukwimol, Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police, along with Pol. Gen.l Kittirat Phanphet, Deputy Commissioner-General and Director of the National Drug Control and Suppression Center (NDCSC), and other relevant officials, held a meeting to discuss measures to crack down on call center gangs that have been defrauding the public.
The teleconference meeting was attended by Police General Sao Sokha, National Police Commissioner of Cambodia, while Thai representatives from related agencies were present at the Royal Thai Police Headquarters in Bangkok.
This meeting followed an agreement between Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin and Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet to take serious action against fraudsters. They tasked the national police commissioners of both countries with finding solutions and achieving results within 60 days.
After the meeting, Pol. Gen. Kittirat said that the heads of state of both countries had discussed measures to suppress call center gangs, which posed a serious threat to the public in both countries. Therefore, the national police commissioners of Thailand and Cambodia were instructed to hold urgent talks.
Today’s meeting was about sharing information about recent events and the changing context of the threat posed by call center gangs. They discussed specific locations in Cambodia where these gangs are believed to operate, as well as information on foreign nationals involved in call center activities.
This information is intended to facilitate joint investigations and operations, and Cambodia has expressed its willingness to cooperate.
In addition, there were discussions about Thai criminals who had fled to Cambodia and used it as a base to defraud Thai citizens. Thailand requested Cambodia’s cooperation in extraditing more than 100 Thai nationals who had arrest warrants related to call center gangs to Thailand to face trial.
Following this, a joint working group will be set up between the two countries to share information and cooperate in the investigation and suppression of call center gangs. The next meeting, which will focus on call center gangs, will take place next week in Cambodia.
Both countries are in the process of nominating police officers for the working group. Thai officials are ready to accept Cambodia’s cooperation proposals on trafficking suppression and other matters to be forwarded to the relevant authorities in Thailand.
On 24 July 2024, Prime Minister Srettha mentioned during a visit to Chiang Saen district in Chiang Rai Province that he had ordered the cutting of telephone signals and the destruction of “poles, lines and SIM cards” along border areas used by criminals to deceive the public. The first measures began in the King’s Romans area of Laos.
Security officials then launched Operation “Bridge Destruction” to disrupt the King’s Romans’ scammers’ network. They reported that telecommunication signals would be checked weekly and the drop in fraud cases in the Chiang Saen area would be assessed.
The Immigration Department is also working on a database of Thai nationals at risk of working in call center gangs, as well as foreign nationals, to expand arrests.
“Importantly, the military’s Border Coordination Committee will negotiate to bring Thai nationals working in call center gangs back to Thailand for prosecution. Our goal is to ensure that there are no more call center gangs cheating Thai citizens in neighboring countries,” the Prime Minister said.
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