Police Bust Foreign Nominee Network in Hua Hin Pool Villa Raid
Police arrested 13 foreign nationals in Hua Hin after busting a network using Thai nominees to illegally own pool villas worth millions of baht, part of an ongoing nationwide crackdown on foreign property schemes.
On August 10, Deputy National Police Chief Samran Nualmaha ordered a Phase 6 operation against foreign nominees, targeting pool villas in Hua Hin, Prachuap Khiri Khan province. The operation, led by senior police officers including Nopsilp Poolsawat, involved over 200 personnel from the Royal Thai Police, Department of Business Development, and Department of Land Resources. Arrest warrants were issued for 45 foreigners and summonses for 39 Thai nationals across 15 search locations. Police arrested 13 suspects from multiple countries, including 3 British, 4 Chinese, 1 Italian, 1 French, 1 Dutch, 1 Austrian, 1 Filipino, and 1 American national.
The primary target was the "A Hua Hin" project, a modern single-family home and pool villa development in Tub Tai subdistrict, Hua Hin district, priced between 10–20 million baht per unit. Investigation revealed 6 companies using Thai nominees as shareholders to conceal foreign ownership of properties. Four companies were identified in Phase 1 and two in Phase 2 of the project. Interrogations showed that foreign nationals sought legal advice to establish companies for property acquisition, believing this arrangement was lawful. Thai nominees admitted they never paid for shares, managed operations, or saw financial documents, confirming the scheme's sole purpose was to mask foreign ownership. Police seized company registration documents, accounting records, computers, mobile phones, and electronic data to trace financial flows and expand investigation to related networks domestically and internationally.
This Phase 6 operation follows five previous phases conducted across six provinces including Surat Thani, Phang Nga, Phuket, Krabi, and Chon Buri. Earlier phases examined 233 land parcels covering over 160 rai, valued at approximately 2,539 million baht, resulting in 133 arrest warrants and 20 court convictions. The National Police Office pledged to continue combating foreign nominee networks and illegal foreign business operations in tourism areas nationwide, while investigating state officials suspected of corruption or complicity. The public is urged to report suspected foreign capital violations to local police or the National Police hotline 1599 available 24/7.
