BANGKOK — Thai police arrested suspects in two major scam operations this week, detaining five people linked to a call center gang in Pattaya and 20 Chinese nationals accused of running an online fraud scheme from a luxury villa in Chiang Mai.
Pol. Lt. Gen. Siam Boonsom, commander of the Metropolitan Police Bureau, said on October 30 that officers from Crime Suppression Division 1 arrested five suspects connected to the “Xu Jinting KN Village Poipet” network, which allegedly recruited people through Facebook to open or sell mule accounts for use in online scams.
Investigators said the group posted on a Facebook page called “Looking for Guarantors, Car Applicants – All Provinces” to buy and sell deposit accounts used to receive money from fraud victims.
Surveillance teams tracked the suspects to a som tam restaurant on Phothisamphan Road in Pattaya’s Na Kluea area, where they were arrested. Police seized five bank account books, five ATM cards, and five mobile phones.
Among those detained were two Chinese men — Lin Jinkun and Zhou Jinting — and three Thai nationals: Aritsara, Saranyapong, and Pong.
Investigators said the group worked under the direction of Xu Jinting, who frequently traveled between Thailand, Vietnam and neighboring countries. Xu allegedly based his operations in Poipet, Cambodia, housing associates in luxury properties and managing funds using facial recognition instead of bank withdrawals.
Police said the suspects had relocated from Bangkok to Pattaya to evade recent crackdowns.
Three suspects were charged with facilitating the purchase, sale, or rental of deposit and electronic accounts for criminal use, as well as running illegal gambling operations. Two others were charged with opening or allowing others to use their accounts for illicit purposes.
Chiang Mai Operation
In a separate operation, Pol. Lt. Gen. Kritthapon Yisakhon, commander of Provincial Police Region 5, said officers raided a luxury pool villa in Mae Rim District, Chiang Mai, and arrested 20 Chinese nationals accused of operating a phone scam targeting victims in China.
Police said 14 men and six women were detained. One woman broke her leg while trying to flee by jumping from the building.
Investigators said most suspects entered Thailand on one-month tourist visas that were repeatedly renewed, while others used student visas to enroll at local universities. The group allegedly rented the villa for 120,000 baht ($3,200) per month and used it as a call center.
Police said the suspects pretended to be delivery agents, claiming victims’ parcels were held in customs to trick them into transferring money. Each scammer reportedly earned up to 100,000 baht ($2,700) per month.
Kritthapon said the group had been arrested twice before in Hang Dong and Mae Rim districts but continued to use Chiang Mai as their base of operations.
He warned homeowners and real estate agents to be cautious of tenants renting large houses for high prices, rarely going out, and ordering food deliveries in bulk. Anyone found to be knowingly assisting such operations could face prosecution, he said.
Police said further investigations are underway to locate additional suspects and dismantle connected networks.
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