Police Dismantle Vietnamese Scam Gang Impersonating Electricity Officials
Police dismantled a Vietnamese scam ring that impersonated electricity officials and defrauded 18 Thai victims of over 12 million baht by laundering stolen money through gold trading. Five suspects were arrested with 14 gold bars and cash s
Cybercrime police have dismantled a Vietnamese scam gang impersonating electricity officials who tricked victims into transferring money before laundering it through gold trading, causing Thai victims to lose 12 million baht.
On July 31, 2025, at 1:30 p.m., senior police officials held a press conference announcing that cybercrime police had broken up the Vietnamese money-laundering gang operating through gold transactions and seized gold bars. According to Police Lieutenant General Surpol Preambut, commander of the Cyber Crime Investigation Division, the investigation began after a 61-year-old male victim received a phone call on July 9 from a scammer posing as an electricity official, claiming a transformer had problems and requesting insurance payment. The scammer provided a LINE account, conducted video calls, and sent a QR code. The criminals then instructed the victim to open a banking app, change it to English, and follow instructions. When OTP codes arrived, the scammers requested the numbers under the guise of queue numbers, ultimately resulting in three transfers totaling 1,799,400 baht.
Investigation of the money trail revealed that victim transfers went to corporate and personal accounts under the name Ms. Narissara, who withdrew cash at banks in the Rangsit area before passing it to network members. The corporate account transferred funds to purchase gold bars from shops in the Sampran area of Nakhon Pathom totaling 22 transactions worth 5 million baht, with Thai network members receiving the gold and passing it to Vietnamese coordinators who resold it at another gold shop in Nonthaburi for approximately 4 million baht in cash.
Over the past year, this Vietnamese gang has defrauded 18 Thai victims with combined losses exceeding 12 million baht. Courts issued arrest warrants for seven people: three Vietnamese and four Thai. Police arrested five suspects: two Vietnamese nationals—Mr. Nguyen Dinh Sang, 29, and Ms. Thi Thuydung Trinh, 25—who were caught preparing to sell gold. Officers seized 14 gold bars weighing 27.50 grams worth over 1.7 million baht, 66,500 baht in cash, three mobile phones, and two vehicles.
Three Thai suspects were also arrested: Ms. Narissara, 32, who withdrew and distributed cash; Mr. Phaitool (warrant suspect) arrested on Keha Ruamkled 37 Road, Bangkok; Mr. Sitthichat, 29; and Ms. Vasupass, 34, who received gold sales proceeds and distributed cash to network members. They were apprehended at a hotel on Sukhumvit Road in Nakhon Rayong province.
According to Deputy Police Lieutenant Colonel Kantpong, the two Vietnamese suspects claimed they were sent to Thailand to oversee Thai workers' gold purchases, but they also supervised or conducted gold sales themselves to prevent Thai members from absconding. Immigration records show they have entered Thailand multiple times over several years, most recently in late 2024.
