Father loses 8.7 million baht in fake modelling agency scam

A father from Phrae province sought help from Sai Mai Must Survive after being scammed by a fake modelling agency that claimed his daughter would star in an advertisement alongside Lisa from BLACKPINK. He transferred money 42 times, totalling over 8.7 million baht.

The victim recounted that earlier this year his wife got acquainted with a woman called Namphueng through Facebook. Namphueng presented herself as a talent scout for advertisements and TV dramas. Her convincing profile led the family to believe she could truly help their 11 year old daughter break into the entertainment industry.

On May 16, he contacted Namphueng, who requested a payment of 17,000 baht for acting classes, promising future advertising gigs. After transferring the money, before the daughter even attended the classes, Namphueng invited her to an advertisement shoot for a famous brand of sour milk at a studio in Bang Yai, Nonthaburi, on May 25.

Upon attending the shoot, the father observed a genuine production with other participants. Approximately one month later, he received a payment of 19,000 baht, reinforcing his trust in the scheme. Encouraged, he paid for additional acting classes for his 10 year old daughter.

Namphueng continued to propose various advertisement opportunities, each time requiring a different amount for a security deposit, ranging from thousands to hundreds of thousands of baht. Convinced by the previous payment, the father continued to transfer money.

On one occasion, Namphueng claimed she would arrange for the daughter to star in an advertisement alongside Lisa from BLACKPINK, promising a payment of 150,000 baht but requiring a 75,000 baht deposit. She even claimed to be close to Lisa, assuring the family they could all join the shoot.

The fraud

This promise led the family to travel from Phrae to Bangkok, where they checked into a hotel on July 11. Namphueng kept postponing, raising suspicion. Over time, the father realised he had been deceived, having transferred a total of 8.734 million baht, including borrowing over 2 million baht from relatives. Despite the fraud, Namphueng continued to post on Facebook seeking actors for advertisements.

The father contacted Namphueng, who promised to return all the money by July 28 but has since been unreachable. Ekaphop Luangprasert, the founder of the Sai Mai Must Survive group, stated that they would assist the victim in filing a complaint with the police. He believes there are likely more victims. Namphueng’s Facebook page was still active as of July 26, continuing to recruit actors.

Namphueng later called the victim, promising to start refunding some money on August 1 but did not guarantee full repayment. Regarding the tickets for a supposed advertisement shoot in South Korea with Lisa from BLACKPINK, she claimed to be coordinating the details and would provide updates periodically, reported Khaosod.