Four Chinese nationals suspected of running an advanced online scam were arrested during a police raid at a luxury condominium in Bangkok on Sunday.
The operation took place around 12:30 p.m. in a unit on Soi Sukhumvit 16, Klong Toei district. Police identified the suspects as Xiahou Xin (29), Liu Ming (28), Li Lei (22), and Zeng Lingquan (21) — believed to be ringleaders of an online fraud syndicate.
Authorities said the arrests followed intelligence reports that several Chinese scammers had fled recent crackdowns in Cambodia and relocated to Thailand.
Metropolitan Police Bureau deputy commissioner Pol Maj Gen Thiradej Thammasutee ordered undercover officers to pose as condominium repairmen to monitor the suspects’ activities. Once confirmed that the group had set up an online fraud operation inside the condo, police executed the raid.
Pol Lt Gen Jirapop Phuridej, who oversaw the investigation, revealed that the suspects were using advanced AI tools capable of turning still images into lifelike video clips of people moving their heads. These AI-generated clips allegedly helped the group bypass banking and trading platform security systems, allowing them to steal funds from victims.
Seized evidence included:
Two desktop computers running AI video software
Two notebooks containing records of Cambodian money transfers
Sixty mobile phones
Two sachets of crystal methamphetamine (“ice”)
Jirapop confirmed the suspects had recently arrived from Cambodia. The Royal Thai Police are expected to release more details about the case and the wider scam network during a press conference scheduled for 10 a.m. on Monday.
