- Photo: The Nation/ANN
BANGKOK: Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Phumtham Wechayachai travelled to Sa Kaeo’s Aranyaprathet district on Wednesday (Feb 12) morning to oversee operations aimed at disrupting call centre scam gangs operating from Cambodia.
The mission focused on cutting off internet and mobile phone signals used by these criminal networks.
Phumtham arrived in Aranyaprathet via police helicopter, landing at the 13th Infantry Regiment before proceeding to the border opposite Cambodia’s Poi Pet town.
He was accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister and Digital Economy and Society Minister Prasert Chanthararuangthong, Tourism and Sports Minister Sorawong Thienthong, and Chatchai Bangkhuad, Secretary-General of the National Security Council.
High-level meeting on cross-border crackdown
At 10.30am, Phumtham chaired a high-level meeting where Sa Kaeo Governor Parinya Phosat provided an update on the Seal, Stop, Safe operation.
This initiative, led by the First Army Area, targets drug trafficking and call centre scam networks operating across the border.
Following the meeting, Phumtham and his delegation planned visits to key areas, including Tambon Thakham 1, 2, and 3, Tambon Pa Rai, and the Ban Klong Luek border checkpoint.
The team received briefings on measures to prevent the smuggling of internet cables and mobile phone signals that enable scam operations in Poi Pet.
Disrupting scam operations at the border
In the afternoon, Phumtham inspected operations at Benjawan Market in Tambon Ban Rai, where authorities are actively cutting internet cables and reducing mobile phone signal strength near the border.
These efforts aim to disrupt communication channels used by call centre scam gangs. He was scheduled to return to Bangkok in the evening.
Strategic shift to tackle scam hub in Poi Pet
Speaking to reporters, Phumtham revealed that he had initially planned to visit Sangkhla district in Kanchanaburi to monitor efforts to cut electricity supply to Payathonsu, a border town in Myanmar.
However, upon learning that a 25-storey building in Poi Pet was serving as a major hub for scam operations, he redirected his visit to Aranyaprathet instead.
He instructed the Office of the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) to ensure that no Thai mobile phone towers broadcast signals to Poi Pet and that no internet cables provide broadband access to scam networks.
Coordinated efforts to isolate call-centre gangs
The crackdown on call centre scams is being carried out alongside the Thai government’s broader initiative to cut off electricity and fuel supplies to five Myanmar border towns.
These coordinated actions aim to dismantle the infrastructure supporting illegal operations and protect Thai citizens from fraudulent schemes.- The Nation/ANN
