Six Taiwanese men, accused of duping more than 500 people -- mostly Chinese and Taiwanese nationals -- into investing in fraudulent cryptocurrency schemes, were arrested during a police raid in Bangkok's Prawet district.
Pol Gen Damrongsak Kittiprapas, deputy national police chief and director of the Police Cyber Taskforce (PCT), said yesterday a combined team of his officers and members of the Immigration Bureau apprehended the six suspects during the raid on May 27.
The gang had used Thailand as an operational base, Pol Gen Damrongsak said.
Police had monitored the suspects prior to the raid. The suspects, during what was an unspecified time, rarely left the building, police said.
Armed with a search warrant, police raided a row house and arrested the suspects, two of whom were wanted on warrants issued by Taiwanese authorities on accusations of committing fraud. Six notebook computers and 47 mobile phones were seized.
An examination of the seized notebook computers and mobile phones revealed that the suspects had lured people into investing in fraudulent digital currency schemes. The gang used Chinese bank accounts for financial transactions.
The PCT director said the suspects were arrested on various charges: four for working without permission, one for drug offences and another for overstaying his visa. All were held in police custody for legal action.
Pol Maj Gen Archayon Kraithong, deputy commissioner of the Immigration Bureau, said immigration authorities would revoke the suspects' permission to remain in the country and deport them after the cases against them were completed.