CHACHOENGSAO — Two Chinese men commit cunning theft using a remote signal jamming device at motorway rest stops. Police caught them red-handed and discovered a method of draining money from credit cards linked to call center gangs.
Chachoengsao police received multiple reports of thefts at the Bang Pakong motorway rest area, where cars were broken into and valuables, especially credit cards, were stolen from inside. This caused significant distress to motorists using this route.
Bang Pakong police in Chachoengsao province coordinated with central investigation police to urgently track down the criminals. They found crucial leads from CCTV footage at each crime scene.
The suspects appeared to be Chinese and often used similar crime patterns, operating as an organized group with clear role division between Mr. Zhang, 38, and Mr. Zheng, 31.
On September 15, they spread out to observe the suspects at the crime scene and jointly arrested the two Chinese suspects at the motorway rest area in Khao Din subdistrict, Bang Pakong district, Chachoengsao province.
The officials, aware of the criminals’ clear modus operandi, spread out to observe the area. When the two appeared, the police waited for them to attempt to break into two cars before revealing themselves and making the arrest.
They then searched their room and found equipment used for the crimes, including 1 remote signal jammer, 3 mobile phones, 1 shoulder bag. They also seized 1 car key and 1 car as evidence.
Both were charged with “joint attempted theft using a vehicle” and “being an alien entering and residing in the Kingdom without permission”. Zhang denied the charges, while Zheng confessed. They were then handed over to the Crime Suppression Division investigators.
The investigation revealed that this gang would lurk near parking spaces at motorway rest areas. When they saw a victim park and about to exit their car, the first group of thieves would use a signal jammer to block the remote control signal, preventing the car from locking.
Another group would then approach to distract the victim by talking on the phone nearby, so the victim wouldn’t notice their car was unlocked. Once the victim walked away from the car, another group of criminals lying in wait would open the car door and steal the valuables inside.
Furthermore, it was discovered that a Thai woman, later identified as Ms. Ketfa Theeranat, aged 20, who is Mr. Zheng’s girlfriend, had been in the same car as the suspects before being dropped off at the motorway rest area.
When searching Ms. Ketfa Theeranat’s room at a condominium in the Rama 9 area, ketamine was found. She was additionally arrested on charges of “possession of psychotropic substances (ketamine) without permission” before being sent to Makkasan Police Station.
Meanwhile, officials discovered the method the suspects used to withdraw money from the victims’ credit cards. They used card readers, which are suspected to be linked to stores or usage areas abroad. This aligns with investigative information suggesting that this criminal group might be connected to call center gangs that have defrauded money from many networks.
The case will be further investigated to expand on these findings.
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