BANGKOK: The Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) arrested two key call centre suspects on Monday (Feb 3) under arrest warrants issued by the Criminal Court on several charges, including defrauding the public by impersonating another person.
The suspects were identified as Ramil Phanthawong, 31, and Thanawut Kanyaphan, 28.
Ramil was arrested in Sa Kaeo and Thanawat in Chonburi province.
CIB officer Pol Lt-General Jiraphop Phuridech said that the arrests followed a complaint from a victim, who claimed a person pretending to be a police officer had called accusing them of being involved in a money laundering and drug-related case.
The caller presented fake documents to instil fear and coerced the victim into transferring over 4 million baht to prove their innocence.
Further investigation, including data from online police reports, revealed that there were 163 others with similar experiences.
The authorities quickly tracked down the suspects, leading to the issuing of arrest warrants for Ramil and Thanawut, who had allegedly been posing as police officers to scam victims over video calls.
Investigators discovered that the call centre gang operated out of an 18-storey building in the Cambodian border town of Poipet.
The gang comprised 50 members and was based on the 13th floor. The two suspects said they had been recruited via social media, with promises of working as administrators for a gambling website.
Upon arrival, their passports and phones were confiscated and they were forced to work for the call centre gang.
Jiraphop said the government has been addressing the call centre gang problem, but due to its cross-border nature, it needs to cooperate with the Foreign Ministry to resolve it.
He said that the government was not idle but faced limitations, adding that it was necessary for the police and state agencies to collaborate.
As for the methods used by the suspects to scam victims, Jiraphop said that AI technology was being used to alter faces, making it tough for the authorities to identify the perpetrators.
Upon tracking down the money trail, it was discovered that the stolen funds were converted into digital assets before being laundered in the form of currencies, including the Thai baht and Vietnamese dong, before being distributed among the gang members.
The investigation will be expanded to track down the masterminds behind the operation.
Meanwhile, Ramil reportedly confessed during interrogation that he worked as a “first-line agent”, contacting victims through a system called the “Sim box”.
He would be presented with the victims’ data and a script from the Chinese boss and a Thai supervisor.
Once the victim was hooked, Ramil would hand them over to the “second-line agent” to proceed further.
Thanawut also reportedly confessed, admitting his role as a member of the call centre gang.
His job was to impersonate a police officer on video calls to deceive victims, including high-profile figures like actress Charlotte Austin and beauty queen Anchilee Scott-Kemmis, both of whom he successfully scammed.
He allegedly claimed that if he did not comply with orders, he would be physically attacked.
If he successfully convinced victims to transfer money, he would receive a share of the loot.
He also played the role of comforting the victims after their funds disappeared.
He claimed that he had tried to escape from the syndicate, but had been caught and beaten with a baseball bat.
He was later allowed to leave the gang after being diagnosed with a heart condition. He was given 40,000 baht in travelling expenses, he said.
Thanawut had returned to Bangkok just two weeks before his arrest.
He said Cambodian police frequently showed up to check, and when they arrived, the scammers would lock themselves in their rooms and make it appear as if nobody was around.
These checks occurred about four or five times a year.
After the interrogation, police officers took both suspects for further legal procedures before seeking court permission for extended detention. - The Nation/ANN
