A Vietnamese man has been arrested in Sa Kaeo for allegedly driving a car for a gang of Chinese men who robbed a compatriot of 70 million baht in digital money and other assets worth 10 million baht in Pathum Thani.
Police and immigration officers spotted a man driving a Toyota Vios with Bangkok licence plates at the Khlong Luek immigration checkpoint in Aranyaprathet district of the border province at 7pm on Friday.
The officers stopped the car for a search and found the driver, identified as Nguyen Ba Hien, 35, was the person wanted for allegedly taking four Chinese men to rob a Chinese businessman in Pathum Thani on Wednesday.
The robbery occurred at a house in tambon Ban Mai in Muang district of Pathum Thani at 2am on Wednesday morning.
The victim, identified as Ke Jibao, a 35-year-old Chinese businessman, and his wife were asleep in their bedroom when four suspects wearing balaclavas broke into their house. Each of them was armed with a gun and a knife. Mr Ke, his wife and a maid were tied up by their hands and feet.
The intruders ordered Mr Ke to call a relative in China to transfer $2 million (about 70 million baht) in digital money into their account. After confirming the transfer, they stole the house security camera servers that had recorded the incident and escaped with the victim’s black Toyota Alphard, cash and other valuables worth over 10 million baht.
Police have launched a massive manhunt for the gang, whose members were Chinese nationals.
The arresting team seized two passports and two mobile phones from the Vietnamese suspect. He was initially charged with overstaying his visa.
During questioning, the suspect denied any involvement in the robbery. He claimed he had been hired to take the four men from the Rama IX area in Bangkok to the house in Pathum Thani twice — on the night of Aug 8 and later on Aug 14. He later brought them back to the Rama IX area, he said.
The suspect will be handed over to police at the Pak Khlong Rangsit station in Pathum Thani for further legal action.