Thai police arrested a 50-year-old woman, Laksamee, connected to a call center scam and money laundering scheme after her return to Thailand from a foreign prison. She was apprehended in Bangkok following a warrant issued by the Criminal Court on June 11, 2018, on charges of attempted fraud, participation in a criminal organization, and involvement in transnational crime. Her arrest occurred outside a massage parlor in the Prawet district of Bangkok.
The case began when a 64-year-old victim reported receiving a call from someone impersonating a police officer, who claimed the victim was implicated in drug and money laundering cases. The caller convinced the victim to transfer 120,000 baht to prevent the freezing of their bank account. Believing the ruse, the victim complied and later filed a complaint with the police.
During the investigation, Laksamee confessed to her role in the scam. She explained that in 2018, she was working at a massage parlor in Bangkok when a colleague encouraged her to work in Malaysia. There, she became involved with a call center gang, earning 500 baht daily. Along with eight others, she was instructed by a Taiwanese gang leader to impersonate a Thai postal worker, using scripted lines to deceive victims before transferring calls to a male colleague posing as a police officer.
Her phone and bank app were confiscated by the gang. The operation continued until Malaysian and Thai authorities raided their two-story hideout near the Thai border. Laksamee suspects that two colleagues, who were not arrested, acted as informants leading to the raid.
She expressed regret over her imprisonment in Malaysia and her subsequent three-year sentence in Thailand, which she served due to good behavior. After her release, Laksamee returned to her hometown in Khon Kaen for two years before moving to Prawet for work. Despite her efforts to start anew, she was arrested again for her past crimes. She denied involvement in the specific 120,000 baht transfer, claiming it was the gang leader who controlled her phone.
Laksamee expressed deep remorse and urged others not to follow her path, as reported by KhaoSod.
