BANGKOK — Thailand’s Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB) raided three locations linked to an online gambling network allegedly run by a Taiwanese suspect and five Thai accomplices, police said Thursday.
The operation, carried out on Nov. 5, targeted the website hrbx856, which authorities said had over 340,000 members and handled more than 100 million baht ($2.8 million) in monthly transactions. Police believe the site had been operating for over a year, offering illegal betting on lotteries, football, baccarat, and slot games.
Pol Lt. Gen. Surapol Prembutr, CCIB commissioner, said the network funneled money through a front company, The Luxury Store, registered in Bangkok’s Lat Phrao district under a Malaysian national. Although officially listed as an importer of luxury goods, the firm was allegedly used to launder gambling proceeds through multiple corporate and personal accounts.
Funds were first transferred to two companies managed by Taiwanese nationals before being passed to Thai “mule accounts” for cash withdrawals ranging from hundreds of thousands to millions of baht, he said.
Police obtained eight arrest warrants — one Malaysian, three Taiwanese, and four Thai suspects — and searched three sites in Bangkok and Chonburi province. The Malaysian suspect remains at large.
Investigators seized 700,000 baht ($21,500) in cash, 41 mobile phones, four computers, a laptop, 11 bank books, 10 ATM cards, and other electronic devices.
Among those arrested was Su, 32, a Taiwanese national accused of directing the Thai money mules from his residence in Chonburi. Five Thai suspects were also detained:
- Chutamat, 33, arrested in Bangkok’s Sathorn district, accused of withdrawing cash.
- Kasarin, 42, arrested in Samut Sakhon province, accused of opening mule accounts.
- Wissanu, 21, of Chonburi; Mantanana, 23, of Loei; and Sunisa, 20, of Khon Kaen — all accused of operating mule accounts.
Chutamat and Kasarin face charges of organizing online gambling and money laundering, while the other four are charged with promoting or facilitating illegal gambling through electronic media.
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