A major crackdown led by Police Major General Jirawat Payoongtham took place today, November 2, resulting in the arrest of Wanchai near his home in Nakhon Sawan. This operation, directed by Police Colonel Adichat Amornpradit, followed a warrant issued by Thanyaburi Provincial Court on February 19. Wanchai faces charges of conspiring to defraud the public and introducing false information into computer systems.
The case dates back to December of last year when a well-known midfielder from the Thai League sought a loan online and encountered a fraudulent website posing as a legitimate financial service. Lured by the loan offer, the footballer clicked a link and communicated through a LINE account named RATCHAPHRUEK CAPITAL. He expressed a desire to borrow 600,000 baht, and the scammers guided him through a series of steps to process the loan.
The deception became clear as the victim was instructed to interact with individuals impersonating company officials, ultimately coaxing him into transferring various sums of money under the guise of procedural fees. These included fees for loan protection (33,600 baht), credit insurance (33,600 baht), AI verification (98,500 baht), credit retrieval (49,250 baht), CVV code reissuance (208,000 baht), document renewal (200,000 baht), account modification (235,000 baht), credit top-up (550,000 baht), and a credit refund fee (89,000 baht).
Finally, the fraudsters demanded a last deposit of 1 million baht to verify his identity. Trusting the process, the victim complied. However, when additional funds were requested, he began to suspect he was being scammed. In total, he had transferred money 12 times, amounting to nearly 2.7 million baht, before reporting the incident to the cyber police.
Following the report, the Cyber Crime Analysis and Special Tools Division investigated the case and identified Wanchai as a key suspect, primarily involved in setting up mule accounts to facilitate the fraud. After gathering sufficient evidence, officers secured an arrest warrant and detained him.
During preliminary questioning, Wanchai admitted to his role, confirming the investigators’ findings. He has since been handed over to the Cyber Crime Division for further legal proceedings, as reported by KhaoSod.
