Fraud suspect Pasit Arinchayalapis, alias Sin Sae Shogun, was detained at the Central Women's Correctional Institution on Friday after no one appeared to post bail for her.
The executive of WealthEver, a company registered as a wholesale distributor of non-alcoholic drinks with the Commerce Ministry, allegedly deceived about 2,000 victims who paid for trips to Japan during the Songkran holiday. No arrangements were actually made for the trip, according to police.
WealthEver, which claimed to sell food supplements, used trips to Japan to solicit membership in what police suspect is a pyramid scheme.
Crime Suppression Division (CSD) officers took Ms Pasit to the Criminal Court to seek her first detention from yesterday to April 25 as police need to question 50 more witnesses and track financial records of the suspect and her victims.
Police objected to her bail application with the court, saying she could pose a flight risk or tamper with evidence.
As none of Ms Pasit's relatives came to the court to seek her bail and she herself did not oppose the detention, the court approved the police request for her detention.
While Ms Pasit was waiting to be transferred to the detention facility, about 10 supporters of the 30-year-old suspect told her they were collecting money to seek her bail payment. The suspect replied: "Do not discard me. Please think I am one of your relatives."
She was later sent to the Central Women's Correctional Institution after they failed to make payment.
Police subsequently pressed a charge of defrauding the public against Ms Pasit, who could face a jail term of up to five years, a fine of up to 10,000 baht or both.
In a police statement seeking the detention of Ms Pasit, officers said the woman persuaded members to sign up to the food supplement company by claiming they would receive the company's incentives to travel overseas.
Police said thousands of people were deceived into paying 9,700 baht each for membership and received two food supplement packages, the petition says.
The first small group of the members were taken to Hong Kong and Japan, and this created confidence among others that the business was legitimate, the statement said.
After paying money, about 470 victims turned up at Suvarnabhumi airport on Tuesday to join the company's trips to Japan, but the trips did not go ahead as there were no flight bookings as claimed by the suspect, the statement said. Ms Pasit denied all charges, it noted.
Ms Pasit's lawyer, Nitisak Meekhuad, said his client told him she had no intention of deceiving others. The overseas trips were part of a promotional campaign for members and she was pleased to compensate the victims, the lawyer said.
CSD chief Suthin Subphuang said 314 victims had lodged complaints.
He said the Anti-Money Laundering Office (Amlo) officers told him after a meeting yesterday that 3 million baht in bank accounts owned by Ms Pasit had been seized. Efforts are being made to expedite the seizure of all assets held by the suspect so the money drawn from the assets can be returned to the victims, Pol Maj Gen Suthin said.
He said warrants were being sought for other people involved.