PATTAYA, Thailand — Police have arrested a Malaysian-born Chinese man accused of swindling more than 1.9 million baht from a Thai university student in a call centre scam.
The 20-year-old student filed a complaint with Mueang Pattaya Police Station on February 10, stating he was contacted by a caller posing as an employee of a mobile service provider. The caller alleged the student’s phone number had been used to register a social media account promoting an illegal gambling website.
The scammer convinced the student to withdraw a large sum of cash and bring it to a shopping mall car park in southern Pattaya. The victim was instructed to place the money in the boot of his car and open it during a meeting.
According to police, the suspect grabbed the cash from the vehicle and fled. The student told officers the money was the last financial support left by his late mother.
After reviewing CCTV footage, authorities identified the suspect as Yap Chin Keong, 38. He was arrested on February 15 at a hotel in Soi Ngam Wongwan 18 in Nonthaburi province.
Yap allegedly admitted to the crime and told investigators he acted under orders from a “big boss,” claiming the individual knew his whereabouts and held his personal documents. He said he delivered the stolen cash to Hat Yai district in Songkhla on February 12 and was paid 30,000 baht per collection.
The suspect stated his role was to collect money from victims and that he had planned to leave the group after this incident but was arrested before doing so. Police are continuing to question Yap as they work to identify and apprehend other members of the call centre scam network.
