On December 2, Pol Lt Gen Trairong Phiwphan, Acting Commander of the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau, along with U.S. officials including Mr. Benjamin Chervenak, U.S. Secret Service Resident Agent in Charge, and Mrs. Caroline A. Marshall, Acting Legal Attaché from the FBI at the U.S. Embassy in Thailand, successfully coordinated the return of 1,643,349.40 baht (around $48,000) to the victim’s representative. This was made possible by working with Krungthai Bank to freeze the suspect’s bank account in time.
The scam began on January 10, 2024, when an elderly American woman had trouble accessing her Microsoft account. She searched Google for Microsoft support and called a number she found online. The person who answered, with an Indian accent, claimed to be from Microsoft support. The scammer convinced the woman to install remote access software to resolve her issue. After supposedly fixing her account, the scammer told her Microsoft would refund her $49.99, but falsely claimed they had accidentally transferred $49,999 into her account. The scammer then begged her to return the excess money, threatening to lose their job if she did not.
Out of sympathy, the victim transferred $49,840 to a corporate bank account in Thailand. After receiving the money, the scammer even sent mocking messages, ridiculing the victim for falling for the scam.
The police investigation revealed that the scammers had used remote access software to move funds between the victim’s accounts to create the illusion of a refund. Further investigation uncovered that the gang was operating a sophisticated scheme with Thai nationals involved. These Thai accomplices, recruited through a loan shark operation, provided personal documents that were used to register companies and open corporate bank accounts to receive the fraudulent transfers.
On June 20, Thai police raided a house in Sena District, Ayutthaya Province, where they seized 19 pieces of evidence, including electronic devices and ATM cards linked to the operation. Aswani Kumar Singh, an Indian national, was arrested at the house. Three Thai nationals—Mr. Chan Puttithai (69), Ms. Pranom Sroypimpit (59), and Ms. Sroi Maison (45), directors of Tint Realty Limited Partnership—were also charged for allowing their bank accounts to be used in the scam.
Police have issued arrest warrants for two additional Indian suspects on charges of transnational organized crime, fraud by impersonation, and money laundering. Interpol has been contacted to issue Red Notices for the remaining suspects, who are currently at large.
The investigation further revealed that the gang was converting their illegal profits into gold bars, which were collected by Indian nationals from a gold shop in Bangkok’s Pahurat area. This suggests a highly organized criminal operation with clearly defined roles for each member.
