Arrest warrants have been issued for 15 Thais who were recently repatriated from Poipet in Cambodia for allegedly organising online gambling activities.
The move followed the Cambodian government’s crackdown on scammers in the border town last month, when 119 Thais were arrested and sent to Thailand for further investigation, said Pol Lt Gen Trairong Phiewphan, chief of the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB).
Among them, 93 have been charged with involvement in a transnational criminal organisation, illegal activities, fraud and inputting false or misleading information into a computer system that could harm the public.
Seven others were detained by officers from Provincial Police Region 2 on separate charges upon their return to Thailand. Of the remaining 19 individuals, four are 17 years old, while 15 others were involved in online gambling operations and were eventually charged. So far, five have been arrested.
Pol Lt Gen Trairong said on Saturday that the 15 suspects took part in streaming live gambling sessions in a Line chat group targeting Thais, using props such as a nodding doll to notify users of ongoing live streams.
The investigation is part of the CCIB’s ongoing crackdown on illegal online activities. It previously arrested four suspects involved in call centre scams including online shopping fraud and investment scams.
In one case, perpetrators posing as Department of Special Investigation officers tricked people into installing apps that gained access to bank accounts and stole more than 1 million baht from them. Other activities targeted were illegal online football betting and fraud.
Meanwhile, Thailand has thanked the Cambodian authorities for the arrest of the 119 Thais in Poipet, said Pol Gen Thatchai Pitaneelaboot, the Royal Thai Police inspector-general.
Pol Gen Thatchai was in Cambodia on March 13 and 14 coordinating with the Cambodians to prosecute the suspects.
He said Thai scammers often targeted Thai victims. When arrested, they would deny their part in the scamming activities, claiming they had been tricked into the work.
As a result, many were charged only with illegal entry into Cambodia. These loopholes have allowed scammers to flourish and become more violent in recent years, he said.
