BANGKOK – Metropolitan Police have arrested four people and seized gold bars worth 2.7 million baht ($82,625) in a major operation targeting a cross-border scam network led by Chinese nationals.
The arrests took place on October 10 at Seacon Square shopping mall following intelligence from the Royal Thai Police headquarters about suspicious gold purchase transactions.
Officers detained three Thai nationals—Mr. Sombat, 53; Ms. Chanyyanuch, 44; and Ms. Wannipa, 45—along with a Chinese national identified as Mr. Xiong at the shopping center’s gold shop and a nearby coffee shop.
Police said the suspects were part of a sophisticated operation that recruited money mules, converted fraud proceeds into gold, and transported assets across the Thai-Cambodia border through unofficial crossing points.
Under interrogation at Prawet Metropolitan Police Station, Wannipa and Chanyyanuch confessed to recruiting Thai nationals to open bank accounts for receiving scam money, then converting the funds into gold for delivery to network leaders. Wannipa allegedly coordinated the smuggling of money mules and banking credentials into Cambodia.
Sombat told police he was recruited by a friend and paid 3,000 baht ($91.8) per transaction to purchase gold.
Checks against the Royal Thai Police’s online reporting system revealed 95 fraud cases linked to the network, with total damages exceeding 10 million baht ($306,015). Nineteen cases occurred in Bangkok, involving losses of over 1 million baht ($30,600).
All four suspects face charges of conspiracy to commit fraud, introducing false data into computer systems, and money laundering.
In addition to the gold bars weighing 724.09 grams, police seized two vehicles—a Toyota Fortuner and a Hyundai H-1—along with other evidence.
The investigation continues as authorities work to identify additional victims and dismantle the broader criminal network.
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