Fake NATO military doctor arrested for romance scam

Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB) officers arrested a Thai man involved in a romance scam. The swindler deceived victims by claiming he was a military doctor for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) looking to relocate to Thailand.

Several victims filed complaints with the police after they lost money to the romance scam gang. Following further investigation into the case, the CCIB uncovered evidence of another victim transferring money to a bank account linked to the scam gang. CCIB officers reached out to the victim on June 23 to tell her story.

The victim revealed to the police that she met the scammer on Instagram. The scammer told her that he was a Vietnamese doctor who worked for NATO. After she fell into the romantic trap, the scammer asked her to help him with a financial issue.

The scammer allegedly professed a desire to relocate and live with the victim in Thailand. However, he claimed that the United Nations (UN) required payment for the relocation process. Initially, he asked for 10,000 baht, but this amount gradually increased to 25,000 baht, with persistent pleas for additional funds. The victim eventually lost about 60,000 baht to the man.

The CCIB later arrested the scammer at a dormitory in the Bang Kapi district of Bangkok today, July 18. The scammer was identified as Narathip. The 31 year old scammer faces three main charges including:

• Section 342 of the Criminal Law: cheating or fraud by showing himself to be another person. The penalty will be imprisonment of up to five years, a fine of up to 10,000 baht, or both.
• Section 14 of the Computer Act: putting fake information into the computer system to cause damage to a person or the public. The penalty will be imprisonment of up to five years, a fine of up to 100,000 baht, or both.
• Section 9 of the Anti-Money Laundering Prevention and Suppression Act, entering into a conspiracy to commit money laundering. The penalty will be imprisonment from one to ten years, a fine from 20,000 to 200,000 baht, or both.