Two Chinese arrested for international hybrid scam after searches on luxury homes in Prawet, Bangkok

BANGKOK (NNT) – The police have arrested two Chinese suspects who were allegedly involved in an international investment scam that has caused as much as 10 billion baht in damages worldwide. The arrests were made after a search of several luxury homes in Prawet district of Bangkok.

Officials from relevant agencies carried out the “Trust No One” operation involving searches in 19 locations in Bangkok. The search sites of particular interest were luxury homes in Prawet district. The values of the homes ranged from 35 to 60 million baht. During the searches, two Chinese suspects were arrested for defrauding the public and money laundering. 1.5 million baht of cash was seized, along with housing estate property deeds worth 60 million baht, condo title deeds worth 128 million baht, 14 Bearbrick figures, 6 iPhones, and a number of iPads, Macbooks, and brand-name purses.

Police officers also inspected 16 other sites in the housing estate where the target search locations were situated. Luxury cars, documents, property deeds, and cash were seized during these inspections.

The operation was initiated after police received information from victims, who alleged that scammers had used fake social media profiles to get acquainted with them. The scammers then encouraged them to invest in fake digital currency or assets trading platforms, in what is known as “hybrid scams”. According to the police, 35 million baht of damages have been incurred on Thai victims.

Thai officials have also coordinated with the US’s FBI, Secret Service, and Department of Homeland Security on the matter, as there are two cases in the US and one case in the UK that involved this network of scammers – the damage value from the 3 cases amount to about 1 billion baht. The officials believe there are many more victims and that the total value of losses has likely reached 10 billion baht.