Thailand’s Immigration Bureau announced on Tuesday, January 14, the arrest of 43-year-old Dutch national Ndille for allegedly orchestrating a gold scam in Bangkok. Ndille is accused of deceiving victims by selling counterfeit gold pellets, claiming they were smuggled from Africa without taxes and offering them at prices below market value.
Investigations revealed that Ndille used a sophisticated approach to defraud his victims. He initially provided genuine gold samples to gain their trust before switching to fake gold during the actual transactions. Victims were persuaded to make payments in US dollars, typically amounting to around US$55,000 (approximately 1.9 million baht).
The police traced Ndille to a hotel in the Watthana district, where they seized 5 kilograms of fake gold, along with smaller bags containing both genuine and counterfeit gold samples. Authorities also confiscated foreign currencies amounting to approximately 117,600 baht. Evidence from Ndille’s phone indicated he had been in active communication with several victims via WhatsApp.
The arrest followed a report from a victim who grew suspicious during a transaction at a shopping mall in the Phra Nakhon district. Following the arrest, Ndille’s visa was revoked due to his fraudulent actions, and preparations are underway for his deportation. Immigration officials noted that his scam tarnished Thailand’s reputation.
Authorities are continuing to investigate the case, seeking to locate any accomplices and assist the victims. In a related case, two Liberian nationals were arrested in Bangkok earlier this month for a scam that defrauded a Thai businessman of US$90,000 (about 3 million baht) through the exchange of counterfeit banknotes.
In another high-profile case, a social media influencer was accused of operating a gold scam that led to losses exceeding 85 million baht, affecting over 500 victims. The influencer allegedly promoted gold sales at reduced prices through livestreams.
