Suranaree students swindled by scam, dialing up 3 million baht loss

Suranaree University of Technology, located in the Isaan province of Nakhon Ratchasima, reported that more than 200 students fell victim to a call centre scam gang, with an estimated loss of about 3 million baht.

Following reports about fake kidnappings for ransom, operated by the call centre scam gang, Pho Klang Police Station and Suranaree University of Technology organised a seminar to educate students on how to protect themselves from such scams.

Auttawut Phukhamwong, the advisor to students in the university dormitories, reported during the seminar that over 200 students were scammed between August 1 and September 30 this year. Auttawut explained the methods used by the scammers to deceive students.

Firstly, the scammers posed as police officers and accused each victim of involvement in various criminal activities, such as distributing pornography or running gambling websites. They instilled fear of legal consequences until the victims agreed to comply with their demands.

The scammers then tricked the victims into leaving their homes to stay alone in rented rooms, instructing them not to share the situation with anyone.

Next, the scammers coerced the victims into staging their own kidnapping and demanded ransom money from their parents or guardians. Some families, fearing for the victims’ safety, immediately transferred money to the scam gang.

Auttawut revealed that one family lost over 500,000 baht, and three students fell victim to this scam on the same day, 27 September. In this case, the total loss amounted to over 6.9 million baht.

More than 200 victims were reported from Suranaree University of Technology alone, with hundreds of students from other universities in the province also affected.

Police officers urged students not to fear legal consequences for the minor infractions claimed by the scammers. They emphasised that it is not police policy to contact suspects by phone to inform them of alleged criminal activities.

The police also encouraged students to visit their nearest police station if they had concerns and to provide the scammers’ phone numbers for further investigation