Tourist Police in Pattaya, Phuket and Chiang Mai joined forces to arrest a Frenchman who allegedly used forged ATM cards to steal money from tourists.
Belkacem Batache, 35, was arrested Nov. 26 in a Phuket hotel based on a Pattaya Provincial Court arrest warrant that he’d used a counterfeit card last month to steal funds from unnamed bank in Pattaya. Phuket Tourist Police seized a Visa-branded credit card, 40,000 baht, three mobile phones, notebook and clothing.
Tourist Police investigators suspect Batache of being part of a gang of international thieves who grab ATM numbers from unsuspecting tourists, then use them to create new cards and hack into accounts via automated teller machines in Phuket, Chiang Mai, Pattaya and other tourist destinations.
Batache was charged with counterfeiting ATM cards and theft and was shipped to Pattaya for further proceedings.
Belkacem Batache has been arrested for counterfeiting ATM cards and theft.
