Royal flush: Thai cops deal out arrests in billion-baht gambling bust

Royal Thai Police (RTP) swooped on a gambling website with over five billion baht in circulation and arrested two Thai men behind the operation. One of them, the son of a former senator, was arrested during a Dhamma retreat.

Officers from the Crime Suppression Division (CSD) and the Technology Crime Suppression Division (TCSD) launched Operation Shutdown, targeting two e-payment service providers, Ask Me Pay and Heng Pay, on the gambling website, 69pgslot.com. Three suspicious locations in Bangkok were raided as part of the operation.

The Commander of the TCSD, Athip Pongsiwaphai, reported that officers discovered the 69pgslot gambling website and found it facilitated gamblers by offering automated deposit and withdrawal services. The e-payment service had a specific system designed to bypass Thai banks’ facial recognition security systems.

The two main bank accounts used in this payment service belonged to Ask Me Pay and Heng Online 888 companies, also known as Heng Pay.

The gambling website had been operational for over three years and had over five billion baht in circulation, but the e-payment services had only been running for seven to eight months.

Police conducted a thorough investigation into the website and identified 14 suspects involved in the online gambling operation. The two main suspects, who owned the website and e-payment systems, were 39 year old Narayut and 33 year old Naroj.

ThaiRath reported that Naroj is the son of a Thai senator, prompting police to suspect the senator’s involvement in the illegal business.

Three locations in Bangkok were raided as part of the operation, including three houses in the Bang Kapi, Phra Khanong, and Khlong Samwa districts.

Officers seized 118 items related to the gambling operation and the suspects’ valuables obtained through the illegal business. These included two computers, one laptop, 14 mobile phones, 21 bank accounts, 53 debit cards, and four luxury cars including a Ferrari 296 GTS, Aston Martin Vantage Roadster, Lexus, and Subaru.

Commander Athip told ThaiRath that the two men lived a luxurious lifestyle and operated multiple businesses both for their image and to launder money. Naroj frequently attended Dhamma retreats, which helped bolster his public image.

Naroj was reportedly arrested while attending a Dhamma retreat with his girlfriend. A picture shared by the police showed Naroj wearing all-white clothing typical of Dhamma retreats.