NONTHABURI: Immigration police on Wednesday arrested an Indian man who was alleged to have operated as an illegal money lender and discovered he had overstayed in the country for more than six years.

Pol Col Somkiat Sonchai, the Nonthaburi immigration chief, said the 39-year-old man, identified only as Kay, was arrested in front of a rented room at Moo 3 village in tambon Bang Rak Noi of Muang district.

The arrest followed an investigation into foreign nationals involved in illegal money lending, aligning with the government's policy to address the problem of informal debts.

Local residents informed immigration police that an Indian man had been unlawfully lending money to vendors at markets in Tambon Sai Ma. He typically used a motorcycle to collect repayments from debtors there.

Acting on the information, the police successfully arrested the Indian individual.

During a subsequent search of his travel documents, it was found that he had overstayed in the country for over six years, or 2,366 days. A ledger for recording debt repayments was also found in his room.

In an initial investigation, the man denied being involved in money lending, claiming that the ledger belonged to a fellow Indian national.