DSI raids fake call centre, arrests 71 people including 52 Chinese nationals
The Department of Special Investigation (DSI) busted a suspected call-centre gang operating from Nakhon Si Thammarat province that allegedly preyed on victims in Thailand, China, and Russia, DSI acting director-general Pol Major Yutthana Praedam said on Friday.
A total of 71 suspects – 52 of them Chinese nationals and 19 Thais – were arrested on Thursday when DSI officers raided three locations in the southern province, Yutthana said.
A large number of equipments and items used by the suspected scammers was also confiscated. These included 223 computers, 1,001 smartphones, 14 iPad tablets, 298 SIM cards, and 86 bank books, according to the DSI chief.
He was speaking at a press conference held at the Chawang District Police Station in Nakhon Si Thammarat. Also attending the press conference were Pol Captain Khemchat Prakaihongmanee, director of the DSI’s Information Technology Cases Division, and representatives from the National Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission (NBTC) and the Personal Data Protection Commission.
According to a DSI press release, Khemchat led the raid on Thursday along with officers from the Immigration Bureau and officials from NBTC and the Department of Employment.
The main focus of the operation was a hotel in Chawang district, where dozens of Chinese and Thai nationals were found working for the call-centre gang. Some of the workers told the arresting officers that they were duped from China and coerced into working for the gang, according to the press release.
A source familiar with the matter said earlier that in addition to the hotel, separate raids were also conducted in a luxury house located about 3km away and a nearby shophouse. About two dozen Chinese nationals were found at the house, which had been turned into an office, and many more were at the shophouse when it was raided.
The call-centre gang came under the police’s radar in November last year following numerous complaints, according to the source. It was found that the victims were scammed into investing in cryptocurrencies, online gambling, and online shopping, with total damage estimated at 100 million baht.
The people working for the call-centre gang were found to chat with their prospective victims in Chinese, Russian, and Thai, according to the DSI. It was also found that the passports of many Chinese nationals arrested showed records of their frequent travels to Cambodia.
The arrested Chinese nationals were initially charged with violating laws on immigration, engaging in work prohibited for aliens, and technology crimes.
