Police arrest 3 suspects for laundering scam proceeds

The Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB) has arrested three additional suspects linked to a Chinese scam syndicate accused of tricking a 19-year-old university student into emptying his mother's safe before laundering the stolen assets through cryptocurrency. CCIB commissioner Pol Lt Gen Surapol Prembutr said the arrests bring the number of key suspects detained in the case to four. The three suspects -- Zheng Likul, Suda and Houxi Zhou -- were allegedly involved in converting stolen cash into digital assets and transferring the proceeds to other members of the network. Zhou allegedly transferred US$218,350, worth more than 7.2 million baht. The case began on Nov 19 last year when scammers posing as government officials contacted the student, sent forged documents and threatened him with prosecution. They then forced him to remain on a video call while he removed gold bars, jewellery and other valuables from his mother's safe. Investigators said the gang operated through separate teams responsible for making fraudulent calls, collecting stolen assets, selling them and converting the proceeds into cryptocurrency. The investigation previously led to the arrest of Qin Hao, a 31-year-old Chinese national. Authorities recovered part of the stolen property, including gold and vehicles worth about 3.5 million baht. Searches of two houses in Pathum Thani also uncovered more than 11 million baht worth of assets, including a Mercedes-Benz S500e. Police said Zheng and Suda were charged with money laundering and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Subscribe to our newsletters for daily updates, breaking news and exclusive content.