A Nigerian man was arrested Sunday in Khon Kaen for allegedly swindling more than 120,000 baht from a Thai woman via Facebook, police said.
Stephen Chukwuemeka Ejeliogu was caught at an early morning market in Muang Khon Kaen district after he was caught on CCTV withdrawing money transferred by the victim at a department store in this northeastern province. Police seized his ATM card and some cash.
Pol Col Supaset Chokchai, chief investigator of Provincial Police Region 4's division 3, alleged Mr Ejeliogu, a member of an online-fraud gang, duped a Thai woman whom he met on Facebook a few months ago into believing that his valuables and 30 million pounds in cash had been seized at Phuket airport.
His accomplice, a Thai woman identified as Bussadee Aobchoey, who is still at large, told the woman, whose name was not disclosed, Mr Ejeliogu needed money to pay to police and customs officials to regain his seized assets. The victim was persuaded to transfer money three times for a total of 122,000 baht and to pick up Mr Ejeliogu at Don Mueang airport. She filed a complaint with police after finding no one at the airport and Ms Bussadee had disappeared.
Pol Col Supaset said the Nigerian and the Thai woman were part of a foreign online-scam operating in Thailand. Mr Ejeliogu’s role was to withdraw money swindled from the victims and send it to the gang leader and he would get 10 per cent of the total amount. Police are investigating further to identify and locate other gang members.