Immigration police in Pattaya have arrested five Japanese men allegedly operating a call scam centre that has been defrauding elderly Japanese out of about 5 million baht a day.

The Japanese embassy had informed the Immigration Bureau that a scam gang operating from Thailand was telling elderly people in Japan that they would receive refunds for past medical expenses worth millions of yen, but to make it work they would first have to send them at least 500,000 yen (about 111,600 baht).

Immigration police had then raided two pool villas.

They arrested two Japanese suspects at one residence. The two men allegedly commanded the call scam gang.

Police also seized 42 mobile phones and tablet computers, along with scammers’ scripts, recorded conversations between scammers and victims and victims’ data.

At the second villa, three Japanese suspects were arrested. They were hired to make the calls to potential victims.

Police said 37 mobile phones and tablet computers, lists and data of victims and scammers’ scripts were also seized at this villa.

Police said one of the gang leaders was a member of the Japanese Yakuza. The gang had been tricking victims out of about 24 million yen a day, about 5 million baht.

The gang had Thai nominees running businesses to launder the money, police said.