Immigration Officers Intercept Human Trafficking Operation Using Fake Documents in Tak

Picture courtesy of Amarin.

Immigration authorities in Tak province have arrested 17 individuals involved in an illegal human trafficking operation, including two Thai nationals accused of transporting 15 undocumented migrant workers using forged government documents.

The operation was launched at 01:00 on 3 July after Pol. Col. Chinnakorn Asavapoom, Superintendent of Tak Immigration Checkpoint, received intelligence about a smuggling attempt involving illegal migrant workers. The group was reportedly travelling from Mae Sot District into inner provinces using Highway 12.

Three task forces were dispatched to monitor and intercept the suspected vehicle. One surveillance team tracked a white passenger van on the Mae Sot–Tak highway and officers managed to stop the vehicle near the Department of Highways Unit in Phawo Subdistrict, Mae Sot.

Upon inspection, police discovered 15 individuals of Myanmar nationality onboard, 10 men and 5 women. The van was driven by Mr. Noppadon 36, accompanied by Ms. Sunisa 35, seated in the front passenger seat.

Noticing suspicious behaviour from the passengers, officers asked all occupants to disembark and produce their immigration documents. Ms. Sunisa presented 15 work permit registration papers purportedly issued in accordance with a Thai Cabinet resolution dated 24 September 2024. These documents were concealed inside her clothing.

However, when officers began reading names aloud from the documents, none of the 15 migrants responded or could verify their identities against the documents. Further inspection involved scanning the QR codes printed on each document. The scans led to blurred images hosted on URLs beginning with “https://sites.google.com”, which raised suspicion.

Authorities concluded that the documents were forgeries. The digital links did not direct to official government platforms and both the formatting and image quality lacked the standard of authentic government-issued materials.

Following this discovery, Mr. Noppadon and Ms. Sunisa were arrested and charged with:

1. “Aiding or hiding illegal immigrants to avoid arrest” – under Section 64 of the Immigration Act, B.E. 2522 (1979).

2. “Using or citing forged official documents likely to cause harm to others or the public” – under Sections 266 and 268 of the Thai Criminal Code.

All 15 immigrants were charged with “Entering and staying in the Kingdom without permission”, violating Sections 11, 18, and 81 of the Immigration Act.

The suspects, the vehicle and all counterfeit documents were handed over to Phawo Police Station for further legal proceedings. Authorities confirmed that further investigations will continue into the trafficking network, which is believed to be part of a wider operation smuggling undocumented workers through Thailand’s porous border regions.

  Adapted by Asean Now from Amarin 2025-07-04