CEO of Kong Salak Plus Lottery faces money-laundering probe
The CEO of Kong Salak Plus online lottery platform, Phantawat Nakwisut, has been summonsed by the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) over evidence the company received millions of baht from a money laundering gang.
The DSI’s narcotics branch has been investigating a gang that uses nominee bank accounts to receive money from customers of drug dealers and gambling websites, as well as victims of call centre scams. The gang launders the money and transfers it back to criminal gangs in exchange for a fee.
The DSI said a gang leader arrested on December 10 had revealed a list of customers that the gang has been transferring the cash to. Kong Salak Plus was among the recipients listed, with evidence it had received tens of million baht, according to the DSI director Triyarith Temahivong.
The DSI chief said the money-laundering gang also provided a debt-collecting service and took video clips of assaults on victims who failed to make payments and forwarded them to the criminal gangs.
Triyarith also warned people not to accept any invitation to open a bank account in exchange for a fee, as they could find themselves involved in money laundering.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha ordered a probe of Kong Salak Plus on December 29 after the company boasted a whopping 18 billion baht in sales this year.
The 15-day investigation by the Government Lottery Office, Anti-Money Laundering Office and Department of Special Investigation is focusing on the operations and tax filings of the popular lottery ticket seller, owned by tycoon Phantawat.
Phantawat on Wednesday denied his company is a customer of the money laundering gang and said he was ready to explain everything to the DSI.
“However, this gang could be using their money to buy lottery tickets from us,” he wrote on Facebook.
