A senior police officer at the Hang Dong police station in Chiang Mai province has been arrested over allegations of running a call center scam. According to reports, Pol Lt Col Bandit Khonkan was apprehended during an ordination ceremony at a temple in Lampang’s Ngao district and subsequently taken to Chiang Mai after being disrobed.
The arrest followed the issuance of an arrest warrant by the Chiang Mai Provincial Court, charging the officer in question with unauthorized use of telecommunications equipment and operating a telecom business without the requisite permissions. Pol Lt Col Bandit, who claims to be just a participant with Chinese partners and not the mastermind, was arrested alongside his daughter and three others during police raids at several housing projects.
The raids resulted in the seizure of approximately 12 GSM gateways—devices that convert cellular signals into domestic phone numbers, misleading victims into believing they were communicating with Thai government agencies. The investigation uncovered that the scam, orchestrated from Myanmar opposite Chiang Rai, involved over 3.6 million fraudulent calls.
The ongoing investigation seeks to dismantle the broader network of conspirators, including Thai and Chinese suspects. Decisions regarding Pol Lt Col Bandit’s future in the police force are pending, as the authorities are working to confirm no other officers are implicated in this fraudulent activity. (NNT)
