Bangkok—
At 9:30 AM, on May 5th, 2024, Din Daeng police and relevant agencies held a press conference on a case of five Chinese people who were held against their will for 2.5 million baht by a group of Thai individuals including police officers in Bangkok.
According to Thai national media, five Chinese businessmen were reportedly held against their will by four Thai men at a hotel room in Bangkok and forced into prepared cars on April 25th. The four men reportedly then extorted the Chinese businessmen for 2.5 million baht.
Upon further police investigation, the police requested arrest warrants from the Thai criminal court on seven suspects including two police officers, one former police officer, and four civilians. However, there were four other suspects that the police were still investigating to discover their identities as of press time.
As of press time, the police were able to capture five individuals, publicly identified only as Pol. Sen. Sgt. Maj. Atthawut, a 52-year-old former Khan Na Yao police officer and alleged gang leader, Mr. Theerachai, 36, Mr. Nophasin, 39, Pol. Sgt.Phuwadet, 28, and Ms. Jarunet, 33.
One of the still wanted suspects according to the criminal court, 1SGT. Virayuth, a 28-year-old Phaya Thai police officer, was currently on the run and allegedly played a crucial role in the ransom scheme. One of the victims was publicly identified only as Mr. Yang, a Chinese person who allegedly traded digital currency into 65,000 USD or 2.5 million baht.
According to the police, Ms. Jarunet, one of the suspects, reportedly confessed to the police that she was ordered to meet the Chinese group for cash exchange from a digital currency card swiping machine. The Chinese group reportedly wanted to trade digital currency into Thai baht and had looked for an agent.
Jarunet then reported the details to 1SGT. Virayuth. After that, Jarunet was told to portray a victim to deceive the Chinese businessmen and pretend to be arrested by the group of suspects who pretended to perform their duty as police officers.
However, the whole operation was staged and the suspects extorted money from the Chinese businessmen, originally trying for 5 million baht and finalizing the number to 2.5 million baht. After receiving the transaction, the suspects divided the money into 11 parts according to their roles, said the police.
Currently, the police were able to identify two other suspects, request arrest warrants from the Thai criminal court, and investigate further to determine the remaining suspects to hold them accountable for their crimes.
