Police crack down on a 21 million baht investment scheme

[snoop1130]

 

A 25-year-old woman was arrested for allegedly running a fraudulent investment scheme. She pretended to be a famous stock market expert, causing victims to lose over 21 million baht. The woman, known as Prakaikaew, was taken into custody today, May 7, at a house in the Uthai area of Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province.

 

The woman's arrest was made this morning by Police Major General Mantri Teskhan, Head of the Anti-Cybercrime Division. His team had a South Bangkok Criminal Court arrest warrant charging her with conspiracy to defraud the public, impersonation, and inputting false data into a computer.

 

The scam was discovered in March 2023 when someone started using the Line app trying to trick individuals into investing in stock trading. The impersonator promised huge profits while faking the identity of respected stock market investor, Dr Paiboon Sereewiwattana. The tricked victims then transferred money, in total over 21 million baht across four different accounts.

 

But when the victims asked to withdraw their funds, the fraudster demanded an extra 40% processing fee, revealing the scheme's fraudulent nature. As a result, the victims reported the scheme to the authorities.

 

More investigations showed that Prakaikaew's bank account was among those used to receive money from the victims. The money was then sent to 16 other accounts. This discovery led to her arrest.

 

During questioning, Prakaikaew confessed to opening bank accounts while being unemployed and lured by acquaintances in Poipet, Cambodia. She made 3,000 baht for each account opened. She also got friends to open accounts and was paid 1,000 baht each time.

 

She had run away to Poipet, but her desire to be home led to her return to Thailand and subsequent arrest. She is now in the custody of Bang Rak Police Station, according to a report from Khaosod.

 

This case shows the ongoing problem of online fraud and emphasizes the need for caution before investing money. It also teaches us how far fraudsters are eager to go, making use of tricks to fool unsuspecting individuals. The authorities continue to advise the public to ensure they verify the legitimacy of any investment opportunities before committing money.

 

File photo for reference only. Courtesy of Microsoft Bing

 

-- 2024-05-07

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[bradiston]

Shows how stupid people can be, more like. Why are there still unsuspecting individuals who fall for this? Where's the government public information service alerting people to fraud, scams and bs phone calls? There's no attempt to educate the vulnerable or gullible. The tambons could set up local programs, hold meetings and generally educate people. Surely? Forget soft sticky power!

[Homburg]

12 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

....promised huge profits

Now where did I hear that anything that sounds too good to be true is usually a scam?  But it's not just the LOS where people fall for such promises.  I heard that some guy called Bernie Madeoff with billions...

[hotchilli]

12 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

The tricked victims then transferred money, in total over 21 million baht across four different accounts.

 

[nobodysfriend]

13 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

The impersonator promised huge profits while faking the identity of respected stock market investor, Dr Paiboon Sereewiwattana. The tricked victims then transferred money, in total over 21 million baht across four different accounts.

 

Greed and naivete leads to a loss ... nothing new here .

Before transferring the cash , a little background research would have been better ...

[newbee2022]

14 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

 

A 25-year-old woman was arrested for allegedly running a fraudulent investment scheme. She pretended to be a famous stock market expert, causing victims to lose over 21 million baht. The woman, known as Prakaikaew, was taken into custody today, May 7, at a house in the Uthai area of Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province.

 

The woman's arrest was made this morning by Police Major General Mantri Teskhan, Head of the Anti-Cybercrime Division. His team had a South Bangkok Criminal Court arrest warrant charging her with conspiracy to defraud the public, impersonation, and inputting false data into a computer.

 

The scam was discovered in March 2023 when someone started using the Line app trying to trick individuals into investing in stock trading. The impersonator promised huge profits while faking the identity of respected stock market investor, Dr Paiboon Sereewiwattana. The tricked victims then transferred money, in total over 21 million baht across four different accounts.

 

But when the victims asked to withdraw their funds, the fraudster demanded an extra 40% processing fee, revealing the scheme's fraudulent nature. As a result, the victims reported the scheme to the authorities.

 

More investigations showed that Prakaikaew's bank account was among those used to receive money from the victims. The money was then sent to 16 other accounts. This discovery led to her arrest.

 

During questioning, Prakaikaew confessed to opening bank accounts while being unemployed and lured by acquaintances in Poipet, Cambodia. She made 3,000 baht for each account opened. She also got friends to open accounts and was paid 1,000 baht each time.

 

She had run away to Poipet, but her desire to be home led to her return to Thailand and subsequent arrest. She is now in the custody of Bang Rak Police Station, according to a report from Khaosod.

 

This case shows the ongoing problem of online fraud and emphasizes the need for caution before investing money. It also teaches us how far fraudsters are eager to go, making use of tricks to fool unsuspecting individuals. The authorities continue to advise the public to ensure they verify the legitimacy of any investment opportunities before committing money.

 

File photo for reference only. Courtesy of Microsoft Bing

 

-- 2024-05-07

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Happens every day somewhere new. Greediness is the source🙏