NAKHON SI THAMMARAT – Thai cyber police, in collaboration with prosecutors, raided seven locations in the districts of Chawang and Thung Song, Nakhon Si Thammarat province on Monday, as part of Operation Takedown Scammer Ep.2. The operation aimed to apprehend a cross-border call center network involving a local politician.
A key location was the residence of Ms. Rewadee, 51, also known as “Jea Lek,” the deputy mayor of Chandi Municipality, and her husband, Mr. Lin, or “Go Yang,” 62, located in Chandi Grand Villa Village, Chandi Subdistrict, Chawang District, Nakhon Si Thammarat Province.
However, the couple was not present at the time of the raid on May 13, and only caretakers were found. Officers seized company documents, land titles, bank account books, and bank statements for further investigation.
Arrest warrants have been issued for Ms. Rewadee and Mr. Lin on suspicion of public fraud, jointly entering false or distorted computer data into a computer system by fraudulent or corrupt means, jointly forming a secret society or gang, and jointly participating in a transnational criminal organization.
Another house that was searched was in the same village and belonged to Ms. Atthitaya , 23, the daughter of Ms. Rewadee. Ms. Atthitaya was also not at home, only Mr. Yang, a Chinese national and Ms. Atthita’s father-in-law. The officers confiscated documents and account books for verification.
The next location was the Jinheng Hotel in Chawang district, where officers arrested Mr. Ayue, 37, on a warrant from the Thung Song Provincial Court for the same offenses. They also confiscated desk phones, routers and other equipment.
The officers also arrested network suspects Ms. Thanyaporn, 44, and Ms. Laksika , 51, in Chawang district and Ms. Nattakan, 23, in Surat Thani province, who were all wanted on warrants for the same offenses. All suspects were taken to Thung Song police station for questioning.
Pol. Maj. Ge. Wiwat Kamchamnan, deputy commissioner of the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB), explained that Takedown Scammer Ep.2 was a continuation of Ep.1, which took place in late March. In this operation, cyber police together with DSI officers, detectives from Region 8, Immigration Police and NBTC officers, more than 100 people in total, conducted raids on four targets in Nakhon Si Thammarat province and dismantled a large Chinese call center gang operating illegally in Thailand and defrauding Thai, Chinese, Russian and Japanese citizens.
Ninety suspects, including Chinese nationals and Thai and foreign accomplices, were arrested and various items were seized, including 192 computers, 854 cell phones and SIM cards, 22 signal distribution routers and 342 bank accounts of couriers. The investigation revealed that the gang was linked to Ms. Rewadee, who owned the premises used by the Chinese call center and benefited from their rental payments.
It was also found that money was transferred from the bank accounts of Mr. Lin, Ms. Rewadee’s husband, for the purchase of computers and telephones for the Chinese call center and he also made payments to Thai employees. Ms. Atthita, Ms. Rewadee’s daughter, was a nominee and her name appeared in companies that served as fronts for the Chinese call center.
Four suspects are currently at large: Ms. Rewadee, her husband and daughter, and Ms. Dusadee, 44. Security officials have been ordered to tighten controls and arrest them along the border and natural crossings to bring them to justice.
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