Bangkok: Cyber police have successfully dismantled a fraudulent network that posed as close family members to defraud investors, resulting in damages exceeding 12 million baht. Nearly 500,000 baht was recovered and returned to the victims.
According to Thai News Agency, Pol. Lt. Gen. Trairong Phiwpaen, Commissioner of the Technology Crime Suppression Division (TCSD), announced the arrest during a press conference titled 'MONEY CASH BACK Closes Accounts, Hunts Down the Horse, Gets the Money Back EP.26.' The network, which falsely claimed to be a close friend's nephew, lured individuals into investing and repeatedly defrauded them. The operation led to the seizure and return of approximately 500,000 baht to the victims.
The crackdown is part of the ongoing 'MONEY Cash Back Closes Accounts, Hunts Down the Horse, Gets the Money Back' initiative, which has previously led to the arrest of multiple online fraud networks and the recovery of over 230.6 million baht. Pol. Lt. Gen. Trairong emphasized that the latest case involved a victim who was contacted via Facebook by a perpetrator with a misleading profile picture, claiming to be a nephew of a close friend.
The perpetrator engaged the victim in conversation, eventually moving to the Line application and persuading the victim to invest in foreign currency. Trusting the perpetrator, the victim transferred funds 26 times, culminating in a loss of over 12,300,000 baht. Following the incident, a complaint was lodged, prompting Sub-Division 4 of the Technology Crime Suppression Division 1 to track down the suspects.
Charges were filed for jointly defrauding the public, impersonation, and entering false computer data likely to cause public harm. The police managed to coordinate with the bank to freeze 494,124 baht in the account of Mr. Wela, one of the accused individuals. Mr. Wela stated he had no involvement with the frozen funds and consented to return the amount to the victim.
In a significant development, Pol. Lt. Gen. Trairong and his team returned 494,124 baht to the victims, reinforcing the project's commitment to recovering defrauded funds. He also cautioned the public to be wary of online contacts claiming to be friends or acquaintances, urging skepticism toward such interactions to prevent falling victim to scams.