Udon Thani clothing traders fall victim to 1.3 million baht online share scheme fraud

Clothing traders in Udon Thani reported a 38 year old woman known as ‘Som Priao‘ for defrauding over 30 people in an online share scheme and escaping with 1.3 million baht (US$37,700). The victims claim she now lives a luxurious life at their expense, as they face financial difficulties, and urge the police to help recover their funds.

One victim, 38 year old Pha (full name withheld), revealed that she got to know Som Priao when she became a regular customer at her clothing store, where they eventually became close acquaintances. Recently, Som Priao invited her and other merchants to join an online share scheme called “Online Share House By Som Priao.” Trusting her, many of the merchants invested various amounts, ranging from a few thousand to 300,000 baht (US$8,700). However, it soon transpired that Som Priao had fled with over a million baht.

The victims claim that now, Som Priao lives a comfortable life, dressing in expensive designer clothes, a stark contrast to her previous shopping habits of requesting credit for 500 baht (US$15) purchases. Initially, she agreed to make instalment payments every 15 days, amounting to 8,000 baht (US$230), but after three months, she went silent and stopped answering their calls. As a last resort, the group of merchants decided to file a complaint at the police station, hoping that Som Priaoe would show some sympathy and return their money.

The merchants explained that they merely wanted additional income from the share scheme to reinvest in their businesses, rather than resorting to illegal lottery sales out of fear of being caught by the police.

Stories of scams regularly make headlines across Thailand.

On Saturday, residents of Lopburi province reported a well-known local entrepreneur for allegedly defrauding them of millions of baht under the guise of a charitable investor. The victims claim they were lured into investing and purchasing shares in the perpetrator’s ventures, but were left with unpaid debts and empty promises. Read HERE.