CHIANG RAI – Thai police have arrested a 23-year-old man from Chiang Rai at a Bangkok bus terminal. The arrest happened just hours after his release from prison for a previous offense. Special Operations officers caught the suspect at the Mor Chit 2 bus station on Friday evening.
The suspect, identified publicly as Mr. Hawk, faced an arrest warrant issued by the Taling Chan Criminal Court. Authorities charged him with supplying a bank account to a cybercrime syndicate. This network ran a romance scam that targeted a local woman.
Key Takeaways
- Rapid Re-arrest: Police apprehended a 23-year-old suspect at a Bangkok bus terminal just hours after he was released from prison.
- Romance Investment Scam: The cybercrime ring used fake social media profiles to trick a 53-year-old woman into a romantic relationship before stealing her money through a fake gold trading site.
- Financial Losses: The victim lost over 284,000 baht across eight transfers, with the suspect’s bank account directly receiving a portion of the stolen funds.
The arrest links directly to a transnational romance scam reported at the Tha Phra Police Station. The scam began when fraudsters used fake profiles on Facebook and Line to message a 53-year-old woman. They built trust over time and eventually tricked her into a romantic relationship.
Once the victim trusted them, the scammers invited her to invest in a gold trading website. They claimed the online trading platform was highly secure and linked to official government agencies. These false statements convinced the victim that her money was safe.
The Financial Trap and the Mule Account Trail
The fraud network used psychological tricks to make the victim invest more money over time. Initially, they asked for a small deposit of 100 US dollars to show quick profits. The victim then transferred money eight separate times between March 7 and March 17, 2023.
Her total financial loss reached 284,174 baht, which is worth around 7,500 US dollars. A financial investigation by the police tracked the stolen money directly to the suspect. The Chiang Rai man acted as a crucial “mule account” holder for the crime syndicate.
The criminal ring tried to steal even more money when the victim asked for a withdrawal. The website told her she needed to pay an extra 5,000 US dollars to upgrade her account. At that point, the victim realized she was scammed and filed a police report.
Special Operations officers eventually spotted the suspect walking inside the Mor Chit 2 passenger terminal. Investigators confirmed his identity using his national ID card and official police databases. The suspect admitted he was the person listed in the court warrant.
According to the official report by Siam Rath, officers read the suspect his legal rights before transporting him to the police station. The investigation continues as police look for other members of the cybercrime network.
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