Police Rescue Student From Online Extortion Gang
Police rescued a 19-year-old Bangkok university student from online extortion after she was tricked into transferring 800,000 baht with false scholarship promises and fabricated criminal record threats. Online fraud complaints surged this w
The Anti-Computer Crime Center announced the rescue of a 19-year-old university student from Bangkok on September 7, 2026, after the center coordinated with regional police and banking partners. Between August 30 and September 5, authorities received 5,863 online fraud complaints through the Thai Police Online system with total damages exceeding 241 million baht, representing an 84-case increase from the previous week, though overall losses dropped by about 19 million baht.
Product and service fraud remains the most common offense type at 4,349 cases (74.2% of all cases), while impersonation fraud causes the highest financial damage at over 69 million baht (28.7% of total losses). Women continue to be disproportionately victimized, with the 21-30 age group facing the highest risk across multiple fraud categories including purchase fraud, impersonation, and employment scams.
In one notable case, officers rescued the student after her parents alerted police that she was being coerced into transferring funds. Scammers had tricked her with promises of a foreign education scholarship, then threatened her by claiming she had a criminal record and needed to send money to verify her innocence. Frightened and in tears, the victim had already transferred approximately 800,000 baht and was about to request another 1 million baht from her parents when officers arrived. The center coordinated with banks to freeze 18 victims' transfers totaling 1.2 million baht during the week, and authorities are now assisting the student with evidence collection and formal legal proceedings.
