‘Influential’ Thais linked to fishy bank account

Deputy national police chief Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn says “influential” Thais are involved in a scam linked to a bank account worth 176 million baht. (File photo)
Deputy national police chief Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn says “influential” Thais are involved in a scam linked to a bank account worth 176 million baht. (File photo)

Police say some “influential” Thais could face arrest in connection with attempts by suspected Chinese scammers to get access to 176 million baht in a local bank account.

Investigators expect to issue arrest warrants for five or six Thai nationals next week, deputy national police chief Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn said on Tuesday.

The case, he said, was a transnational crime involving Chinese nationals running an investment scam, working with influential Thais.


Thai authorities have been working with China to examine the money trail of the Chinese suspects, he said.

On March 24, staff of the Kasikornbank (KBank) branch at the EmQuartier shopping mall in Bangkok alerted Thong Lor police that a foreign national had used a fake passort to obtain a passbook for an account containing 176 million baht.

On Sunday, Pol Gen Surachate said four Thais and a Cambodian who claimed to be the holder of the KBank account had shown up together at the bank to request a new passbook.

Staff found the ID details of the Cambodian man did not match those of the registered account owner and police were called to arrest him. The group had reportedly made several attempts to withdraw money without the correct documents.

Police believed the account might be linked to a phone scam gang.

Pol Gen Surachate said the money was believed to have been transferred into the account by Chinese scammers. Later they tried in vain to withdraw the money by using false documents.

The investigation implicated some Thai people in the scam.

Vocabulary

  • arrest: (of the police) taking someone to a police station because they are believed to have committed a crime - การจับกุม
  • arrest warrant: a document signed by a judge allowing police to arrest someone - หมายจับ
  • attempt (noun): when a person tries to do something or achieve some goal, makes an effort to do it - ความพยายาม
  • authority (noun): a person or government agency who has the power to make decisions or enforce the law - เจ้าหน้าที่ผู้มีอำนาจ
  • fake: made to look like something real in order to trick people - ปลอมแปลง
  • fishy: suspicious; something seems not right, meaning perhaps someone is lieing or cheating -
  • implicate: to show or suggest that someone is involved in wrongdoing - โยงใยถึง
  • in vain: without success - ไม่สำเร็จ
  • influential: of a person or group who has the power to affect a situation - มีอิทธิพล
  • investigation: the process of trying to find out all the details or facts about something - การสอบสวน
  • investment (noun): the act of investing money in something - การลงทุน
  • national: a citizen of a particular country - ประชาชน
  • scam: a dishonest plan, especially for getting money - กลโกง, แผนร้าย
  • trail: the places where someone/something has gone - ร่องรอยที่ทิ้งไว้ให้ตามได้
  • transnational: involving more than one country; present in more than one country - ข้ามชาติ
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