The Immigration Police Investigation Team of Chonburi Province, the Pattaya Tourist Police Investigation Team, and the Chonburi Provincial Police jointly launched an operation, deploying over 30 officers based on a search warrant issued by the Pattaya Court, to search a residence in a village in Chonburi Province.
After receiving complaints from local residents, the police claimed that a group of Chinese citizens was residing in a house and suspected of engaging in illegal activities. Subsequently, the police conducted a blockade and inspection of the residence. This is a luxury residence with an area of about 150 square meters, surrounded by fences.
Initial inspections revealed that several Chinese nationals were inside, sitting in front of laptops, with nearly 20 mobile phones placed on the table. The police then presented the search warrant, conducted a detailed inspection, and legally seized 3 laptops and 29 mobile phones.
Upon initial questioning, the Chinese nationals inside included one female with a tourist visa and four males with student visas.
Further investigation revealed that the members of this Chinese group were suspected of engaging in illegal activities. They mainly served as administrators, receiving remittances from other Chinese citizens to participate in a specially developed gambling game program, similar to online gambling games.
The group members interacted with participants through the WeChat application, guiding them into the game, and received compensation based on a certain percentage of the transfer amount. Investigations showed that the daily cash flow of the gang amounted to tens of thousands of RMB (approximately 100,000 Thai Baht).
In addition, the investigation also found that the mastermind behind the game program was located in China, and the main duty of the group members was to communicate with customers and receive remittances. Currently, the police are expanding the scope of the investigation, as the program involves online gambling and other illegal activities.
This arrest operation stemmed from the police investigators noticing unusually high electricity usage in the residence, frequent entry and exit of Chinese people, and their tendency to hide inside the house most of the time, unwilling to interact with the outside world.
