SA KAEO — Three Chinese men carrying six mobile phones who were arrested by Thai Eastern Command forces early Friday morning, claimed they had fled scam operations in Cambodia’s Poipet. Investigators remain skeptical of their claims due to inconsistencies in their testimony and the suspicious number of phones in their possession.
Thai Army’s Burapha forces arrested three Chinese men aged 20, 21, and 29 while they were illegally crossing the border on foot into Thailand near Ban Khok Sabaeng village in Tha Kham subdistrict, Aranyaprathet district, Sa Kaeo province, around 2 a.m. on Friday.
The trio carried no identification documents but possessed six mobile phones. They claimed they traveled from Yunnan Province, China, through Myanmar before illegally entering Thailand. They alleged that an unidentified Thai person drove them to cross into Poipet, Cambodia for work, but upon arrival, they discovered they had been deceived into working for scammers and decided to escape.
However, authorities remain skeptical of their testimony. When questioned about crucial details such as company names, travel expenses, or the nature of work initially agreed upon, all three claimed ignorance, stating that everything was arranged for them. This contradicts their earlier claim that the “work didn’t match the agreement.”
This suspicious inconsistency, combined with the unusually high number of mobile phones—key tools used in call center scam operations—has led officials to question whether they are truly victims or possibly operational members of scamming networks attempting to infiltrate Thailand.
The three suspects have been transferred to investigators at Khlong Luek Police Station for detailed interrogation and verification of their entire cross-border travel route. Authorities expect to potentially expand the investigation to expose larger networks involved in these operations.
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