Police have arrested a Chinese man at a condominium in Pattaya for allegedly running a fake online market platform, and impounded assets worth about 9 million baht.
The suspect, identified only as Li, 30, was detained at a condominium room in tambon Na Kluea of Bang Lamung district, Chon Buri, the Technology Crime Suppression Division said on Wednesday.
The arrest followed a complaint from a person who had joined a Facebook group named World Dealing Market. The group had more than 200 members allegedly buying and selling second-hand goods, the complainant said.
They were told by the group’s administrator to pay a joining fee of 189 baht, which would be returned later. The admin then sent a link to a website along with a password to log in.
The victim told police the website looked fake, but the admin claimed they had a legally registered company and said three transactions must be made to open the system.
The victim transferred a total of 20,700 baht into an account, and then found out no withdrawals could be made, police said.
The group admin then directed the victim to pay another 50,000 baht to fix the system. At this point the complainant realised they were being scammed, police said.
Investigators tracked the site and monitored the cash flow. They learned the money was being withdrawn in Pattaya by the unidentified controller of a mule bank account, who allegedly handed the money over to the Chinese suspect known as Li.
During the arrest, police impounded 746,530 baht in cash, three cars, five mobile phones, two bank books and the accounts, along with some branded goods, worth more than 9 million baht in all, police said.
The suspect initially denied all charges. He was being held in custody. The police investigation was ongoing.