Police and customs officers in Chiang Rai have seized a large quantity of high-tech equipment believed to belong to a transnational call centre scam gang.
The gang is suspected of moving its base from Myanmar to Laos, said Pol Lt Gen Jirabhop Bhuridej, chief of the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB).
He said customs officials in Chiang Saen discovered more than 10 cardboard and plastic boxes under a tree on the bank of the Mekong River in the Golden Triangle region near the Thai-Lao border.
In the boxes were 94 desktop computers and accessories, 347 mobile phones and 15 notepads written in Chinese, among other items.
(Photo supplied/Wassayos Ngamkham)
After checking files stored on computers and phones, police investigators were convinced that they were used by scammers to deceive victims via phone calls.
The CIB chief also said that 4,998 SIM cards sent from the United Kingdom and 10 high-speed Starlink satellite internet receivers sent from Japan were found in the boxes.
Authorities also found evidence of various romance and investment scams through chat history, dialogue scripts and fake social media profile pictures.
There were also details of mule accounts and documents concerning financial transactions.
Most of the gang’s victims were Chinese, Japanese, European and American, police said.
Five mobile phones with SIM cards, bank passbooks, ATM cards and papers with passwords were also found in a large plastic bag hidden in the forest near the riverbank.
The value of the seized items was estimated at 5.4 million baht.
The parcels were seized at the border near the notorious Kings Romans casino, which operates in a Chinese-run special economic zone just across the river in Laos.
This led to speculation that the casino complex might be the gang’s new operation base after it relocated from Myanmar, where the military junta is facing increasing pressure from rebel militias, especially in border areas.
“I believe that this gang is part of a large transnational network, which allows them to move quickly if their current location is unsafe,” said Pol Lt Gen Jirabhop.
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The Kings Romans Casino, located across the Mekong River from Chiang Rai, is part of a Chinese-controlled special economic zone in Laos that has long been linked to allegations of illegal activity. (Photo: Transborder News)
Devices and equipment discovered by customs officials in Chiang Saen district of Chiang Rai province are displayed during a briefing on Friday. (Photo supplied/Wassayos Ngamkham)