Chinese call centre scam leader surrenders after 7 months in hiding

A leading Chinese member of a call centre scam gang in the southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat surrendered to Thai police after seven months in hiding.

The 33 year old Chinese man, Jiang Zhaitian, reached out to the Thai police via his lawyer, expressing his intent to turn himself in. Jiang was subsequently taken to the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB) in Bangkok yesterday, November 10.

Jiang was the subject of an arrest warrant following the raid of four call centre scam bases in Nakhon Si Thammarat on March 29. The scam gang, operated by a Chinese national, targeted victims from Thailand, Russia, Japan, and China.

During the raid, police arrested 90 call centre scammers and seized evidence including 192 computers, 854 mobile phones and SIM cards, 22 routers, and 342 bank accounts.

The scam headquarters were located on land owned by a 51 year old Thai woman named Raewadee Theeppaiboon, who was a deputy mayor of the Chandi sub-district in the province at that time. Raewadee was also charged with accepting financial benefits (rental fees) from the criminal operation.

Further investigation revealed that the gang’s leader, Jiang, managed to evade arrest. Jiang was responsible for transporting each scammer from their accommodation to the office for work. He successfully avoided capture and remained in hiding for over seven months before surrendering.

Jiang faces four charges, including:

• Section 211 of the Criminal Law: participating in a secret society or criminal association.
• Section 342 of the Criminal Law: committing fraud by impersonating another person.
• Section 14 of the Computer Act: importing false information into a computer system to cause harm to an individual or the public.
• Section 5 of the Prevention and Suppression of Participation in a Transnational Criminal Organisation: being a member of a transnational criminal organisation.

The penalty issued against Jiang will be discussed during a court session.

In a related case, three Chinese men were arrested in Chon Buri in April for operating an online gambling and call centre scam in the province. Officers discovered over 5.5 million baht circulating in their illegal operations.

In October, one of Thailand’s largest call centre scam gangs was raided in Bangkok. Two Thai nationals and one Chinese leader were arrested, and more than 18,000 pieces of evidence were seized.