News
American Arrested in Southern Thailand for Bank Fraud
Police have arrested a 63-year-old American man accused of defrauding bank customers in Hua Hin in Southern Thailand just one day before the statute of limitations expired, on his crime.
Thomas Michael Grimm was tracked down in the resort town in Hua Hin on Thursday by the Economic Crime Division of the Royal Thai Police after 15 years of avoiding capture.
Mr. Grim was one of three people accused of being involved in a scam targeting e-banking customers. The two others involved in the e-banking scam were Thai nationals.
Police said the men tricked customers into entering their confidential information through emails, social media and a website. Once they acquired the information the victim’s accounts were accessed and money was stolen.
According to the Bangkok Post, the investigation started in February 2007 when an employee from Kasikorn Bank filed a complaint against the two Thai men accusing them of colluding to defraud people. The pair were later arrested and Mr. Grimm was implicated during the police investigation.
Police said Mr. Grimm would allegedly send messages to his victim’s directing them to a bogus website where they were asked to fill out their personal information. Questions like do you have an American express login or do you deal with American Express.
One of the e-banking victims had hundreds of thousands of baht stolen, police said.
Police sought a warrant for Mr. Grimm’s arrest from the Thon Buri Criminal Court in Bangkok on Monday. Police apprehended him at a hotel in Hua Hin, in southern Thailand.
