Call centre scam
- Thailand News
Cyber police nab call centre gang for 1.5 million baht scam
The Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB) led an operation to apprehend a call centre gang, that swindled a doctor’s wife out of 1.5 million baht through account manipulation. The behaviour of the gang was exposed, and a key arrest warrant was issued today. Police Lieutenant General Worawat Watnakornbuncha, Chief of the Special Operations Division, directed Police Lieutenant Colonel Satra Sukhanusas,…
- Thailand News
Anti scam centre freezes 2,500 bank accounts in fight against fraud
In a significant move against call-centre scams, the Anti Online Scam Operation Centre (AOC) froze 2,671 bank accounts in its initial two weeks of operation. Government spokesman Chai Wacharonke shared these statistics, highlighting the effectiveness of the centre, which was launched on November 1 to combat such fraudulent activities. The centre received a staggering 38,564 distress calls from victims within…
- Thailand News
Thai man jailed for killing Chinese scammer in Cambodia dies in prison
A Thai man jailed for killing a Chinese member of a call centre scam gang in Cambodia has died in prison. The government was urged to help Thai people lured into working for unscrupulous scam gangs in Southeast Asia. The 40 year old mother of the deceased, Boonraem Boonme, travelled from the central province of Sukhothai to the eastern province…
- Thailand News
Fake cops dial up the drama: Thai woman’s 800,000 baht loss to scam gang
A Thai woman cried foul to the Royal Thai Police (RTP) following a near loss of 800,000 baht to fake cops part of a call centre scam gang. The gang members, posing as fake cops and officials from the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB), threatened the grade C7 female public servant with involvement in a mass murder case…
- Thailand News
Yangon sees surge in scam call centres amid economic depression
Scam call centres, previously primarily associated with Myanmar’s lawless border regions, are making their way into Yangon, the country’s commercial hub, as reported by Radio Free Asia (RFA). The operators are exploiting the economic depression, using the surplus of inexpensive office spaces and the considerable pool of educated, unemployed locals in Yangon. RFA’s investigation reveals that, unlike the call centres…
- Crime News
Land Department scam dupes dentist out of 300,000 baht
A renowned dentist in Ubon Ratchathani was targeted by a fraudulent group claiming to be from the Land Department. The fraudsters duped him into confirming land ownership through the LINE application, leading to a loss of over 300,000 baht. The dentist revealed this incident today while issuing a musical warning about such scams. While working with a patient, Mohal Sakbhuakeaw…
- Crime News
Thai Police bust call centre gang linked to triple-murder case
The Royal Thai Police (RTP) yesterday made significant progress in cracking down on an infamous call centre gang, implicated in a shocking triple-murder case that sent shockwaves through the community of Pak Nam. The call centre gang is accused of defrauding a Thai man, leading him to murder his family and himself. Twenty-two warrants have been issued, with ten arrests…
- Thailand News
Russian man arrested for money laundering linked to scam call centre
Police arrested a Russian man for his involvement in a money laundering scheme for a scam call centre gang at a hotel on Koh Samui island in the southern province of Surat Thani. The arrest, on Sunday, September 3, followed the death of three people at a house in the central province of Samut Prakarn which was reported on August…
- Thailand News
Forest refuge: Thai locals lend hand to Vietnamese man’s escape from scam gang
Kindhearted locals helped a Vietnamese man after he escaped from a scam call centre gang in Cambodia and hid in a forest in the Isaan province of Surin in Thailand. Locals encountered the 18 year old Vietnamese man, Ngo Dong Hao, in the forest yesterday morning and took the teenager to Surin Provincial Immigration Bureau. He did not have a passport…
- Thailand News
Thai scam gang member arrested trafficking Chinese man
Police yesterday arrested a Thai man for his involvement in a human trafficking operation in the Isaan province of Sa Kaeo. He attempted to traffic a Chinese man from Cambodia to a scam call centre gang in Myanmar. Lamlukka Police Station officers in Pathum Thani province near Bangkok rescued the 41 year old Chinese man, Liw Haicook, from a highway…
- Thailand News
Two Thais arrested for defrauding Bangkok monk of 500,000 baht in online scam
Thai cyber police yesterday apprehended two key members of a fraudulent call centre operation which orchestrated an elaborate financial scam, defrauding a monk out of almost half a million baht. Named Thitiwatch, aged 38, and 52 year old Ekapetch were arrested in Phaya Thai and Pleonchit districts of Bangkok under arrest warrants 407,408/2023 from Samut Prakan provincial court. The investigation…
- Crime News
Thai woman loses 700,000 baht in telephone scam by fake police
A 47 year old woman in Udon Thani province, Thailand, has fallen victim to a gang posing as police officers, losing more than 700,000 baht (US$20,000) she had saved over 10 years through a telephone scam. The money was earmarked for paying off debt owed on machinery and bank loans. The victim urged the police to apprehend the culprits and recover…
- Crime News
Thai woman ‘clicks one link’ and loses 40 years of savings in terrifying tax scam
A 63 year old woman from Trang province in southern Thailand says she “clicked one link” on Tuesday morning and lost her life savings of 1.5 million baht in the blink of an eye. Nis went from having millions in her bank account – which she saved up by selling pork at a market for 40 years – to just…
- Crime News
Chinese kingpin of transnational call centre gang arrested at Bangkok airport
A Chinese man wanted for trafficking Chinese people across borders to work in call centre gangs in Laos and Cambodia was arrested at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok on Saturday. Chief of Police Suwat Chaengyordsook received a call on Friday, July 22, warning him that a Chinese fugitive wanted on an Interpol ‘Red Notice’ would be travelling to Suvarnabhumi Airport in…
- World News
Dozens of call centre scammers caught in Thai-Cambodia net
Dozens of Thai scammers have been arrested and illegal call centres shut down after a sophisticated months’ long Thai-Cambodian law enforcement operation closed the net on their fraudulent activity. According to different reports, numbers between 15 to 89 Thai scammers took part in a number of illegal activities in Cambodia to extort money by false means in everything from romance…
- Crime News
Stop scam calls or be charged 1 million baht per day
A daily fine of 1 million baht has been issued by the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission for any mobile phone carrier that refuses to assist the government in tackling the growing problem of phone scammers. According to an NBTC survey, several people have already registered more than 5 phone numbers of phone scammers, but carriers failed to verify or…
- World News
Thai and Cambodian officers raid two offices of alleged call centre scams
Thai and Cambodian authorities raided two offices of an alleged call centre scam operation in Cambodia. 61 Thai and Chinese suspects were arrested. The officer also found a dialogue or conversation script that each scammer followed and used to lure victims into transferring money. Yesterday, the Thai Police Cyber Taskforce and officers in Cambodia raided two suspected scam call centre…
- Thailand News
Department of Special Investigation releases music video to warn about call centre scams
A music video was released by Thailand’s Department of Special Investigations, warning people about call centre scams and advising them to think before they transfer money. But the video, featuring celebrities, has drawn criticism from Thais. Many have been questioning why the DSI, which is known to be Thailand’s counterpart to the FBI in the US, is spending time and…
- World News
Thailand and Cambodia agree to intenstify crackdown on call-centre scams
Thailand and Cambodia are reportedly working together to combat transnational online scams. Officials from both Southeast Asian countries met via video conference to discuss intensifying crackdowns on deceptive call centres and investment scams that have extorted money from citizens of both countries. During the virtual meeting with Cambodia’s Minister of Posts and Telecommunications Chea Vandet, Thailand Digital Economy and Society…
- South Thailand News
Police arrest suspects who defrauded monk out of 140,000 baht
Police have been making progress in tracking down members of a call centre group that defrauded a monk in the south of Thailand out of 140,000 baht. Another arrest was made by cyber police, this time a 45 year old woman from Roi Et, whose bank account received payments from the monk. The group of scammers had tricked a monk…
- World News
Covid-19 sees a rise in dangerous scams in India
While Covid-19 was wreaking havoc across India, some devious scammers saw the desperation of a pandemic crisis as an opportunity. India has frequently been known to be a hotbed for ripoffs and scams, and the Coronavirus pandemic has only worsened the situation. In December an Indian call centre made US $14 million by cheating 4,500 Americans whom they tricked into…
- Crime News
2 more alleged call centre scam suspects arrested in Japan
Two men arrested in Japan yesterday stand accused of operating a large-scale call centre scam based in Thailand, bringing the total number of arrests in the case to 28. Japanese police believe 36 year old Kengo Yasutake and 34 year old Shimpei Hirata operated a luxury home in Pattaya, where a team of Japanese men would call people across Japan…