3 victims report vehicle theft and conning involving nearly 2 million baht

Three people reported a case of fraud and vehicle theft to the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) today. The case involved a hustler who claimed to be associated with local law enforcement in the Pak Chong district of the northeast Nakhon Ratchasima province.

The accused is alleged to have borrowed vehicles since 2020 under various pretences before running away with the vehicles. The fraud victims have tried to locate the accused without success. They are seeking police support for the arrest, and possibly the recovery of the vehicles. Cumulative losses amount to nearly 2 million baht (US$58,754). The accused is known as ‘Police Captain Ji’ or ‘Police Captain Jon.’

One man conned is a relative of the accused, who lent him a Mitsubishi Mirage in April based on a plea that his wife needed transportation for her childbirth-related errands. The lender later contacted him for the return of the vehicle, but the requests were evaded, leading to the eventual severance of communication.

Another victim, a soldier, was tricked similarly. The accused had posted on Facebook seeking vehicle bailouts. Upon contact, the soldier agreed to the terms and handed his car over. However, five months later, the vehicle was not returned, and several creditors of the accused were haunting the soldier for money. The accused deflected the inquiries before subsequently cutting off communication.

The accused wormed his way into another victim’s life through their sister, after which he borrowed a Toyota Yaris under the pretext of running an errand. The victim’s numerous attempts to reclaim the vehicle were to no avail, leaving the three victims burdened with the financial struggle to repay the vehicles’ finance agencies, reported Sanook.

Initially, the victims sought help from the precinct that the impersonator claimed allegiance to. This approach hit a dead-end when the chief officer disavowed any knowledge of the accused being on their team. The victims learned the accused had been relieved of his duty since 2016, prompting their attempt at the CIB to have the fraudster arrested and recover the stolen vehicles, Sanook reported.

Furthermore, a teacher from a school in the Don Mueang area in Bangkok was swindled by the accused. The teacher had pawned her car for 50,000 baht (US$1,470) on March 10 to a man known as Kai. After repaying her debt, she sought to retrieve her vehicle. However, it was claimed that it could not be released from the warehouse due to the Songkran festival and later because of the general elections. The accused cut off all communication afterwards.

Over four months have passed, yet the victims feel their case has been neglected as they note that neither arrest nor restraining orders have been issued against the accused. Thus, they request the CIB’s assistance to apprehend the fraudster, return their vehicles, and look into the pawnshop operator who refused to turn up despite being summoned by the police, supposedly due to his powerful local connections. They believe the pawnshop operator has many warrants issued against him for fraud.