Din Daeng police chiefs moved after Bangkok gambling raid

Operation “Multiple Lightning Raids on Din Daeng Gambling Den”!

Seems the only thing that changes is the name of the operation.

Another week, another “transfer pending investigation”. RTP discipline really does seem to operate as the world’s slowest merry-go-round: when a gambling den is discovered in a police jurisdiction, senior officers are transferred to another office while the investigation gets underway.

Din Daeng isn’t particularly surprising. A substantial gambling operation was operating under the noses of the local authorities, a major raid was led by Department of Provincial Administration officials, and four senior Din Daeng officers were immediately transferred to the Metropolitan Police Division 1 Operations Centre pending a fact-finding investigation. The raid resulted in 53 arrests and the seizure of more than ฿1 million in cash and gambling chips.

And this isn't an isolated administrative response. Similar cases have appeared repeatedly over the years.

Past examples aren’t hard to recall, and I have even reported on some of them in previous Forum posts. Here is a quick list from the web:

• June 2020 Map Ta Phut, Rayong: illegal casino raided by administrative/DSI authorities; five local police officers transferred, followed by the transfer of the Rayong provincial police commander while questions were investigated about how the gambling operation had been allowed to operate.

• August 2020 Rama 3, Bangkok: four people were killed inside an illegal gambling venue, including a police officer. Gambling equipment and CCTV were subsequently found to have been removed, prompting an investigation into the removal of evidence.

• December 2020 Muang Rayong: an illegal gambling operation became associated with a major COVID-19 outbreak. The provincial police commander and senior local officers were transferred, while authorities investigated whether police had allowed the gambling operation to continue.

• 2022 Chonburi/Bang Lamung: multiple major gambling operations were uncovered, including investigations involving suspected casino facilities. The broader pattern of enforcement is documented, although specific claims about police protection or individual officers require case-by-case evidence.

• 2023 Bang Lamung/Pattaya: repeated raids involved illegal gambling and other nightlife offences. Again, the individual circumstances varied, but the recurring question of local police responsibility remained.

• September 2026 Din Daeng, Bangkok: DOPA officials raided a gambling operation in the Din Daeng flats, arresting 53 people and seizing approximately ฿350,000 in cash and ฿635,000 in gambling chips. Four senior Din Daeng officers were then transferred to the Division 1 Operations Centre while a fact-finding investigation was established to determine whether any state officials were involved.

It’s the recurring sequence that is striking: illegal gambling operation → complaints or outside intelligence → high-profile raid → arrests and seizure of gambling equipment → local police transferred pending investigation.

And then the investigation begins. That is the part I find difficult to ignore, the issue isn't whether every transferred officer was personally involved in the gambling operation, the current Din Daeng investigation has not established that. The question is why substantial illegal gambling operations can repeatedly establish themselves within police jurisdictions before an outside operation finally shuts them down.

Until there is meaningful accountability for the authorities responsible for policing these areas, it is hard not to wonder whether the transfer is becoming part of the standard operating procedure: different soi, different gambling den, different officers, same script!

Ok, so he bet high, and lost it all. He should have read the responsible gambling info.

The usual punishment for corruption, moved to an inactive post, or transferred to another area. No arrest. No prosecution.

Just a change of the snout in the trough in the policing area.