Call centre scammers caught red-handed in bank bust
Two Thai women were arrested in Tak province yesterday after police disrupted a call centre scam that tricked a retired teacher into transferring 500,000 baht, believing she was accessing welfare benefits.
The suspects were apprehended at a bank in Mae Sot district, where they were attempting to withdraw cash. Officers from the Police Cyber Taskforce under Provincial Police Region 6, in coordination with local police, made the arrests based on warrants issued by the Buriram Provincial Court on January 16.
The charges include fraud and importing false information into a computer system with the intent to cause public or individual harm.
The case came to light after a retired teacher in Buriram province filed a police report on January 12. She told officers she had been contacted by someone claiming to represent the Buriram Teachers’ Savings Cooperative. The caller instructed her to download a mobile application, claiming it was needed to receive government welfare.
Believing the caller, she followed the instructions and eventually transferred 500,000 baht. The bank later detected irregularities with her account and notified her, leading her to realise she had been scammed.
The police then identified two suspects: Sudarat, the bank account holder, and Jirapatchara, who was caught withdrawing cash. Officers confiscated 945,000 baht in cash, believed to include funds from other victims, as well as a bank book. A further 55,000 baht in the account was frozen.
During questioning, Sudarat reportedly admitted to opening the account and making withdrawals on behalf of Jirapatchara, who paid her 1,500 baht for the task, reported Dailynews. Officers are now expanding the investigation to track down the wider criminal network behind the operation.
In similar news, Bang Phli police rescued a 20 year old university student who was tricked into transferring money and locking himself in a rented room to stage a fake arrest, as a gang attempted to extort more money from his family.
