Thai-Chinese couple arrested for mule account operation in Pattaya
Police arrested a Chinese man and his Thai girlfriend in Pattaya after they allegedly attempted to harm a Thai man who froze a mule account after realising he was tricked.
The 18 year old Thai man filed a complaint with Mueang Pattaya Police Station, saying he narrowly escaped from the suspects, later identified as 27 year old Chinese national Li Liang and his girlfriend, 26 year old Thai woman Thidachom.
According to the victim, he was looking for extra income and searched for part-time work online. He came across a job post shared by Thidachom and contacted her to apply. Shortly afterwards, Thidachom and her Chinese boyfriend picked him up from his home.
The teenager said he was taken to the couple’s condominium, where they instructed him to open an online wallet using a mobile application and forced him to hand over his bank accounts. The suspects allegedly seized his mobile phone and identification card before allowing him to leave.
The victim said he received 1,500 baht in exchange for the online wallet and bank account. At the time, he claimed he did not realise his accounts would be used as mule accounts for scam operations.
Several days later, about 400,000 baht was transferred into his bank account. Realising he had been involved in a mule account scheme, the teenager immediately went to a bank to freeze the account which angered the suspects.
The couple returned to the victim’s home and took him back to their condominium, forcing him to cancel the account suspension. The teenager told police he was threatened with harm to himself and his family, prompting him to attempt to escape.
CCTV footage from the condominium’s car park showed the Chinese man grabbing the victim and trying to drag him towards the building. The teenager struggled but was unable to break free. He was later rescued after nearby residents witnessed the incident and intervened.
Police raided the condominium room and arrested both suspects yesterday, January 4. During the search, officers seized around four grammes of ketamine, drug paraphernalia, several bankbooks, and a laptop. Investigators also discovered that Liang had overstayed his visa by more than five months.
Police said both suspects cooperated during questioning. Liang was initially charged with overstaying his visa, while officers said the investigation would be expanded to cover his alleged involvement in mule accounts and suspected scam operations.
