BANGKOK – Thai cybercrime police officers have dealt a heavy blow to regional online fraud, arresting 14 South Korean suspects and three Chinese associates in coordinated raids on luxury condominiums in Bangkok.
The 17 suspects are accused of running a high-end call-centre scam that targeted South Korean investors and continued operations after the group slipped out of Cambodia earlier this year.
The gang first set up shop in heavily guarded compounds in Cambodia, where authorities have stepped up action against scam centres throughout 2025. As police there intensified arrests and sent hundreds of foreign suspects back to their home countries, core members quietly crossed into Thailand between May and October.
According to investigators, the group initially spread out across Pattaya, then regrouped in two upscale condominium blocks in Bangkok, one in the Rama III riverside area and another near Lumpini Park. The units were turned into compact call-centre floors, with rooms split into tiny cubicles fitted with headsets, phones, and computers for non-stop scam calls.
“These criminals believed Bangkok’s size and tourist traffic would hide them,” said Pol. Lt. Gen. Nattasak Chaovanasai, head of the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB), during a crowded press briefing on Monday. “Joint intelligence work with our South Korean counterparts helped us trace their movements within weeks.”
Sophisticated Investment Scam
Cyber Police say the group ran a well-planned investment fraud. Callers posed as staff of Genting Malaysia, the well-known resort and casino company, and offered exclusive investment deals linked to supposed expansion projects.
Victims were guided to slick fake trading websites, where on-screen portfolios appeared to grow by the day. When they tried to withdraw their money, the platforms froze, or the contacts vanished.
Investigators estimate that while based in Cambodia, the network stole more than 20.16 billion Korean won, around 15.7 million US dollars, from South Korean investors between October 2024 and May 2025. Officers believe more people may have lost money during the short period the group was active in Thailand, before the raids took place.
Officers executed search warrants late last week, forcing entry into the apartments and finding many suspects still on calls with victims abroad. The searches turned up a large amount of evidence, including:
- Over 50 VoIP devices are used to disguise the true location of callers
- 35 mobile phones with contact lists and victim details
- Several laptops and desktop computers are running scam-related software
- Counterfeit identification cards claiming to be from South Korean prosecutors
- Forged official stamps and documents
- Printed call scripts in Korean and English
- Databases listing thousands of South Korean phone numbers and financial records
“All 17 suspects have admitted working illegally in Thailand, and most have confessed to their part in the fraud,” a spokesperson for the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB) said.
The accused, aged between 28 and 43, now face charges relating to illegal entry, visa overstays, and involvement in transnational organised crime. Once court proceedings in Thailand are finished, authorities plan to deport them to South Korea to face full fraud charges.
Thailand’s New Role in Regional Scams
The case highlights how Thailand has become a backup base for scam gangs as enforcement stiffens in neighbouring countries such as Cambodia and Myanmar. Throughout 2025, Cambodian officials have sent dozens of South Korean suspects home for prosecution over similar schemes. During the same period, Thai police have carried out frequent raids on call-centre rings operated by Chinese, Taiwanese, and Indian groups using condominiums in Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket, and Chiang Rai.
Experts who track these crimes warn that as long as people at home look for high-return investments, new groups will keep appearing in different countries. “It’s like whack-a-mole,” a senior CCIB investigator told the Chiang Rai Times, speaking on condition of anonymity.
“We close one operation in Cambodia, another one surfaces here. We hit compounds in Myanmar, then they move to Laos or Thailand.”
South Korea’s National Police Agency has praised the latest operation. Kim Doo-dung, a representative from the South Korean embassy, attended Monday’s press event. “This level of cooperation shows there is no safe refuge for these groups,” he said.
Victims Share Their Stories
In Seoul, several victims told Korean media that the calls sounded entirely believable. The callers claimed to be “senior Genting investment consultants” and used financial jargon, charts, and documents to win trust.
A retiree from Busan said he lost almost 300 million won, his full life savings, after following the scammers’ instructions. He watched fake profit reports climb every day before his money vanished.
“I really believed it was real because they sent official-looking papers and even what appeared to be a prosecutor’s notice when I started questioning them,” said the 68-year-old man. “I feel deeply embarrassed, but I am also grateful they have been caught.”
Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul praised the operation on social media, writing, “Thailand will not be a hiding place for international criminals. We are working with all partners to end this problem.”
The Central Investigation Bureau says the case is still open. Investigators are tracing money flows through bank accounts in several countries and studying links to wider Chinese-speaking fraud networks that have driven Southeast Asia’s multi-billion-dollar scam trade.
For now, the 17 suspects are being held at the Immigration Detention Centre while deportation procedures move ahead.
Their arrest marks another success in Thailand’s efforts to disrupt cross-border cybercrime, but officers accept that as long as the profits stay huge, other groups are likely already planning to rent the next luxury flat down the road.
