Chinese call centre boss and Burmese suspects busted 'for tricking student with fake police scam' as cops raid luxury den
A Chinese call centre boss and two Burmese scammers were busted over a fake police scam as cops raided their luxury den in Bangkok, Thailand.
Chinese national Lu Shunxiang, 37, and Burmese suspects Saing Mee, 35, and Myini Htay, 24, allegedly posed as police officers to trick students into transferring money.
They were said to have threatened victims with bogus money laundering charges before ordering them to wire money 'for verification'.
The scam group reportedly received more than 200 million baht in funds before they were arrested by police at a high-end condominium in the Thai capital, on October 6.
Footage shows officers sweeping into the luxury property, where they found framed autographed sports jerseys as well as rows of designer outfits.
They also combed the upper floor, which houses a game room with a pool table in the middle.
Police said more than 40 items, believed to have been bought using scam money, were seized from the property, including luxury watches from Richard Mille, Patek Philippe, Rolex and Audemars Piguet, as well as cash, mobile phones, tablets, bank passbooks, passports, powers of attorney documents, and cash receipts.
Authorities said the arrest stemmed from a report by a 19-year-old male student, who was allegedly forced to transfer 213,000 baht to the suspects.
The fraudsters then demanded an additional 450,000 baht, with police closely monitoring the cash handover at a mall in Nakhon Pathom.
They found that the money was take to the luxury housing estate in Saphan Sung, where the trio were arrested.
Lu was identified as the alleged mastermind, while the Burmese women, posing as her housekeepers, acted as cash mules.
Police Lieutenant General Tinnakorn Rangmat, commissioner of the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau, said: 'We are now tracing the money trail and checking the ownership of the assets seized from the house.
'Our investigation doesn't stop with these three suspects. We will continue looking for the people behind the operation, including the mule-account holders and anyone else involved in this transnational network, and take legal action against them.'
The rescue comes amid a spate of similar scams across Thailand.
On September 24, a fourth-year student in Nakhon Ratchasima was rescued on after scammers posing as police allegedly threatened her with fake money-laundering charges.
The Anti Cyber Scam Centre said three other students had lost more than 2.7 million baht to fraudsters posing as police in Khon Kaen, Ranong and Bangkok.
The scheme is a common tactic used by call centre gangs. Many of them are based in Thailand or in neighbouring Cambodia and Myanmar.
