Actor Ple Nakorn reports 6 million baht scam to cyber police
Thai actor Nakorn Silachai reported to the cyber police that his relative lost 6 million baht to a call centre scam. It is suspected that the group may be the same as the one that conned another Thai actor, Charlotte Austin.
Yesterday, January 14, at 12.55pm, Nakorn, also known as Ple Nakorn, accompanied by Ekpob Luangprasert, founder of the Saimai Must Survive Facebook page, met with Police Lieutenant General Trairong Phueanphan, head of the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau. They reported that close family members were victimised by a scam, losing a substantial amount of money.
Ple Nakorn detailed that the victims were his 71 year old uncle and 64 year old aunt, the parents of his younger brother. The incident took place on January 11, when a call was received on his uncle’s phone.
The caller, claiming to be a police officer, informed him that his name was linked to a money laundering case and requested to inspect his accounts.
During the call, his aunt joined the conversation. The scammers instructed both to lock themselves in separate rooms, threatening them not to inform anyone else.
A female police officer was purportedly involved in separate interrogations from noon to 8pm. They were then coerced into transferring money from all their accounts to the scammers for inspection, which amounted to 6 million baht (US$172,730) over 10 transactions (the uncle with 10 accounts and the aunt with one).
Police scam
They were assured that the money would be returned after verification. When their remaining balance was just 300,000 baht (US$8,635), the aunt became suspicious, and after discussing it with her uncle, they decided to disconnect the call and consult their son.
They subsequently reported the matter to Rat Burana Police Station and filed an online report at 1441.
Nakorn added that despite his uncle and aunt being aware of call centre scams, they fell prey due to the psychological manipulation during the call, feeling as though they were hypnotised.
Fear of criminal involvement led them to comply with the scammer’s instructions. He emphasised that anyone, regardless of profession, could become a victim.
Pol. Lt. Gen. Trairong stated that initial investigations confirmed the complaint was filed at Rat Burana Police Station, which coordinated with the 1441 centre. The cyber police will collaborate with relevant parties to find a resolution, reported KhaoSod.
If the case involves multiple sectors, it will be transferred to the cyber police for further handling. Preliminary investigations suggest that the modus operandi of this call centre gang resembles that of the group which deceived Charlotte Austin, but it remains uncertain if it is the same group.
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