A monk was duped out of about 500,000 baht by an elaborate financial scam that was perpetrated by two major members of a fraudulent contact center business, according to two people arrested by Thai cyber police yesterday.
Thitiwatch, a 38-year-old man, and Ekapetch, a 52-year-old man, were detained in Bangkok’s Phaya Thai and Pleonchit districts in accordance with arrest orders 407,408/2023 issued by the Samut Prakan Provincial Court.
The Criminal Suppression Division (CSD) personnel under the command of Major General Worawut Watnakornbancha and Lieutenant Colonel Natthakorn Pranayanont, who headed Taskforce Unit 2 for the operation, worked together to conduct the investigation and make the ensuing arrests. This specific case was brought to light as a result of a complaint made by a monk who was conned into sending 408,723 baht to call center agents who claimed to be online loan debt collectors in order to pay off his mother’s debt in early 2022.
The victims were duped into registering for a loan by visiting a link given by the con artists. Victims would then receive notification that their registration had been authorized. However, they would need to bank in a specific amount of money before they could secure the loan because they had no prior borrowing history with the company.
The conned monk made 15 transactions totaling 408,723 baht as a result of falling for the con. When he requested a refund, he was instructed to make a new deposit before his money would be processed. The monk realized he had been duped at this point and reported the event to the police.Thitiwatch and Ekapetch were discovered to be collaborating with four other people who have not yet been arrested after the investigation led police to them. Both refuted the claims when questioned. According to KhaoSod Online, Thai cyber police are still looking for the other alleged scammers who may have been engaged in the scheme.
In related news, a con artist used a phony 1,000 baht bill to buy groceries in northeast Thailand. The con artist wore a helmet to conceal his identify and fled without disclosing his license plate or location.
