UTTARADIT: Two women at the centre of an alleged factory lunchbox scam were arraigned on fraud charges in Uttaradit provincial court on Thursday.
The suspects allegedly contracted a woman in Uttaradit to supply 10,000 lunchboxes a day and another 10,000 bottles of fruit juice drinks to a factory in a nearby province, but nobody came to pick up the food and the factory later denied all knowledge of the order.
Kanhathai Suksai, 41, and Thanita Chan-im, 43, both from Phichai district, gave themselves up at Phayaman police station on Wednesday evening and denied any wrongdoing, Pol Maj Gen Phayu Thanasrisuebwong, acting commander of Uttaradit police, said.
They were charged with colluding in fraud, but said they would testify only in court. They were later freed because they had surrendered voluntarily, Pol Maj Gen Phayu said.
The two women were later summonsed to report to a provincial-level police investigation team at Phayaman police station on Thursday. From there, they were taken to the court. The hearing was unfinished.
Pol Maj Gen Phayu said Ms Kanhathai had been involved in up to six earlier criminal cases in Uttaradit and Phitsanulok provinces, and most were about fraud.
Ms Thanita had previously been involved in 10 criminal cases, including embezzlement, document falsification, fraud and drugs in Phitsanulok and Uttaradit provinces, the acting Uttaradit police chief said.
So far only the one person had filed a complaint against the two women. However, police investigators learned there were several other people believed to have been duped by the suspects. He urged them to contact Phayaman police station.
The lunchbox scam came to light when Thanisorn Guikaew, 42, of Uttaradit’s Muang district, complained she had been contacted by two acquaintances and asked to supply lunchboxes and drinks to a major factory in Phitanulok province under a five-year contract.
Bagged bottles of drinks left uncollected at Ms Thanisorn's house in Uttaradit. (Photo by Boonnum Kerdkaew)
According to the contract, she was hired to fill 10,000 styrofoam lunchboxes per day on weekdays, 10,000 bottles of fruit juice drink on weekends, and 30,000 boiled eggs on Mondays and Fridays. The contract began on Nov 3.
Ms Thanisorn said she had mortgaged her car to a finance firm to get money for the investment. On Nov 3, the first day of the contract, she supplied fruit juice drinks to the hirer, but the drinks were returned.
The hirer claimed her drinks did not comply with the contract conditions and must pay a fine of 150,000 baht. The hirer then asked her to supply fresh juice drinks on Nov 4 to wipe out the fine, Ms Thanisorn said.
On Nov 5, she and her family prepared 10,000 lunchboxes at their home, but nobody came to pick them up. She and her mother Jok Nutsri, 60, then filed a complaint with Phayaman police, demanding 299,000 baht in damages from the hirer.
Police investigators found Ms Kanhathai and Ms Thanita were involved in the hire contract.
On Wednesday, investigators went to a major factory in Phitsanulok which one of the two suspects claimed had ordered the meals. The management of the factory, which employs 4,000 workers, denied any knowledge at all of the arangement, Pol Maj Gen Phayu said.
A police source said the two suspects had tried to negotiate with Ms Thanisorn, offering to compensate her for her losses in exchange for her dropping the charges.
The Bangkok Post tried to contact Ms Thanisorn, but she could not be reached.
Prepared meals left uncollected at the house of a woman in Uttaradit who says she was duped by two women into supplying 10,000 lunchboxes a day for a factory in Phitanulok province which later denied all knowledge of the contract. (Photo by Boonnum Kerdkaew)