Busted: Korean-Chinese call centre gang raided in Chon Buri
8 suspects arrested and scam gear seized in late-night raid after brutal assault alert
A South Korean man’s report of assault led officers to uncover an alleged Korean-Chinese call centre operation in Chon Buri, resulting in multiple arrests and the seizure of electronic equipment.
In a late-night operation yesterday, August 6 at 11.06pm, Thai Tourist Police, Chon Buri Immigration, and the South Korean Embassy launched a coordinated raid targeting a cross-border call centre scam network in Chon Buri’s Huai Yai and Na Jomtien areas.
The sting was triggered by a distress report from 31 year old South Korean national Hyunsub An, who told police he had been assaulted and feared for his life. Officers tracked him down to a single-storey house in Na Jomtien, where he was found battered and bruised with injuries to his face, head, and neck.
Leading the swift response were Tourist Police Commander Police Lieutenant General Saksira Phuak-am, Deputy Commander of Tourist Police Division 1, Police Colonel Songwut Chueplakij, and Chon Buri Immigration Superintendent Pol. Col. Napassapong Kosit Suriyamanee.
Investigators soon uncovered that Hyunsub An had previous links to a similar scam busted on June 21, where 22 South Koreans were arrested at a pool villa in Bang Lamung for running a loan-sharking and scam operation.
The follow-up investigation led authorities to two houses in a Bang Lamung estate. At one location, police arrested two South Korean men, one Chinese man, and a South Korean woman. The second house held four more South Korean men. All eight confessed to operating a call centre scam out of a commercial building in Huai Yai.
The building was rigged with 10 glass-partitioned rooms. Two served as “government office” sets used to deceive victims, while a large central room acted as the control hub, reported The Pattaya News.
Seized during the raid were:
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17 laptops and desktop computers
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15 mobile phones
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Multiple internet routers
The eight suspects were identified as Chinese national 23 year old Linhao Tian, 24 year old Damsik Lee (all South Koreans from here), 36 year old Joon Mo Ye, 25 year old Jiyoung Lee, 34 year old Sungeun Lee, 26 year old Soonbum Park, 31 year old Jindong Lim, and 21 year old Sangwoo Park.
All were handed over to Chon Buri Immigration for visa cancellation and legal action. The seized evidence was transferred to Huai Yai Police Station. Police are still hunting for additional suspects believed to have fled before the raid.
More to follow.
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