BANGKOK — Police have arrested a Thai man for deceiving foreigners by offering to produce Thai passports for them. He used his father’s bank account to receive the nearly 2 million baht he fraudulently obtained from one foreigner.
On June 8, Bangkok Metropolitan police officers arrested Thanitphong, 48, a suspect under an arrest warrant issued by the Southern Bangkok District Cour, dated May 24, 2024, on charges of “jointly committing fraud.” The arrest took place at a parking lot of a luxury condominium in the Ramkhamhaeng area, Hua Mak Subdistrict, Bang Kapi District.
In this case, the police received a complaint from a victim of fraud residing in Bangkok. The victim stated that he was advised that Mr. Thanitphong could provide him with a Thai passport for a processing fee of 600,000 baht. He then transferred the money to a bank account named TENGYONG on October 6, 2023.
Later, Mr. Thanitphong informed the victim that if he wanted to expedite the process, he would need to pay an additional amount. The victim then transferred 1,300,000 baht to the TENGYONG bank account on October 19, 2023, totaling 1,900,000 baht. However, after that, he could not contact Mr. Thanitphong and believed he had been deceived. He then filed a complaint with the investigating officers to pursue legal action.
Mr. Thanitphong confessed to all the charges, claiming that before the COVID-19 pandemic, he had been involved in producing passports and changing nationalities for foreigners who wanted to obtain Thai citizenship, even though they could not sing the Thai national anthem, write in Thai, or have a Thai spouse. He would charge a processing fee of 2.5 million baht per person.
Subsequently, the Thai government cracked down on groups of foreigners who falsified Thai nationality to conduct illegal businesses, known as the “Grey Chinese” group. This made it impossible for him to continue his previous operations. Additionally, he was facing bankruptcy, so he resorted to deceiving people who thought he could still carry out the illegal business as before.
After being arrested, Mr. Thanitphong learned that his father had also been issued an arrest warrant. He pleaded with the police officers to take sole responsibility because he had used his father’s bank account without his father’s knowledge. The reason he used his father’s account was that he had been sued for bankruptcy and feared that the money obtained through fraud would be seized.
Police Major General Teeradej Thammasuthi, commander of the Metropolitan Police Bureau’s Investigation Division, stated that criminals are constantly evolving and developing new methods. He urged the public and foreigners to live cautiously and not fall for scams involving obtaining Thai citizenship.
Normally, the Department of Provincial Administration, Ministry of Interior, has announced the criteria and procedures for applying for Thai nationality and verifying the qualifications of applicants. Therefore, applications for Thai nationality must comply with this announcement.
______
Related coverages:
