South Korean man held in Thailand for laundering crypto into gold
Dazzling fortune seized as high-stakes laundering scheme unmasked
Thai police have detained a 33 year old South Korean man accused of laundering cryptocurrency for call centre gangs by converting it into gold bars, with transactions exceeding 1.6 billion baht over three months.
Officers from the Technology Crime Suppression Division (TCSD) and the Immigration Bureau captured the suspect, identified as Han, at Suvarnabhumi Airport yesterday, August 23. Han was wanted under a Criminal Court arrest warrant for charges including fraud, impersonation, and money laundering, according to TCSD commander Police Major General Athip Phongsiwapai.
The arrest followed an investigation into complaints from February last year, where people were deceived into online investment scams disguised as part-time jobs, such as boosting likes and followers. Initially, these victims received payouts but later faced frozen investments, prompting them to report to the police.
The investigation resulted in the arrest of 10 suspects, including five people who laundered money for call centre scam networks and another five who maintained mule bank accounts.
Further investigations revealed that Han, a significant member of the operation, was due to arrive in Thailand on a flight from South Korea. Police and immigration officials detained him at the immigration checkpoint. Police seized a mobile phone containing multiple cryptocurrency accounts and evidence tied to money laundering.
During interrogation, Han disclosed that he had studied in China for six years before working with a South Korean group specialising in laundering digital assets into gold for call centre gangs. His responsibilities included opening cryptocurrency accounts, receiving digital funds, and purchasing gold bars from overseas companies for delivery to the scam networks.
The investigation indicated that each conversion involved at least 10 kilogrammes of gold, valued at approximately 34 million baht (US$1 million) at current prices. Between January and March 2024, Han’s accounts received various digital assets valued at 47.3 million USDT, or about 1.6 billion baht (US$4 million), believed to have been laundered into gold for the scam gangs, reported Bangkok Post.
The suspect has been transferred to TCSD Subdivision 2 for further legal proceedings.
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