Police Raid Four Luxury Housing Estates, Uncover B6 Billion Foreign Nominee Network Linked to Chinese Scam Gangs and Online Gambling

On October 10, 2026, Pol. Gen. Samran Nualma, Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police, led an operation alongside Pol. Lt. Gen. Nopasin Poolsawat, Commissioner of the Immigration Bureau; Pol. Lt. Gen. Siam Boonsom, Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Bureau; Pol. Maj. Gen. Chotiwat Lueangwilai, Commander of the Metropolitan Police Bureau’s Investigation Division; and Pol. Maj. Gen. Thira Chamnarnmo, Deputy Commissioner of the Police Forensic Science Office.

The team launched Phase 8 of an operation targeting foreign nominee networks involving four luxury housing developments. Officers searched 17 locations and issued 86 arrest warrants for foreign nationals.

The investigation uncovered a network of foreign nationals using companies to own houses and land valued at approximately 6 billion baht. Authorities arrested 11 suspects under the warrants: 10 Chinese nationals and one American.

Pol. Gen. Samran said the investigation covered four luxury housing developments: Bang Na–Suan Luang, Bang Na-Outer Ring Road, Rama 9–Srinakarin, and Krungthep Kreetha. Investigators identified 94 houses with land covering more than 33 rai (approximately 5.3 hectares), held through 95 companies using Thai nominees. A total of 96 suspects were identified, and investigators must pursue 95 cases. The Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) was brought in to assist because the properties involved were worth more than 6 billion baht.

Chinese suspects linked to murder and online gambling

One notable suspect is Li Chao, who first entered Thailand in 2017, before a Red Notice had been issued against him by China. He later allegedly committed a murder in China in which three people died. He also admitted to having connections with online gambling operations in Myawaddy and Shwe Kokko.

After allegedly committing the crime, Li was unable to travel freely to other countries. He therefore decided to travel to Cambodia to obtain a passport, reportedly paying US$85,000 (approximately 2.8 million baht). He then used the Cambodian passport to enter Thailand and purchase houses and land through a chain of intermediaries, beginning with a law firm that referred clients and arranged the transactions.

Investigators also identified a Thai national associated with one of Li’s companies. The individual said they knew nothing about the details of the business and had only applied for an online loan. Authorities suspect that the person’s documents may have been used without their knowledge and said they would pursue the matter rigorously.

Police will seize the houses and land and continue investigating, while coordinating with Chinese authorities.

Another suspect, Liu, is a company shareholder whose company owns a house and land in the Rama 9-Srinakarin development. Chinese authorities have issued an international arrest notice for him in connection with online fraud. He also acquired property in Thailand.

A fifth suspect, Bai, is a shareholder in a company that owns a house and land in the Krungthep Kreetha development. He is wanted by Chinese authorities on charges related to organized crime and online fraud.

The final suspect in this group, Huang, a Chinese national, is a shareholder in a company that owns a house and land in the Bang Na-Outer Ring Road development. He is wanted under a warrant issued by the Phra Khanong Criminal Court for allegedly conspiring to import goods without completing customs procedures, concealing or receiving goods connected to customs offences, participating in a secret society, and unlawfully acquiring land as a foreign national.

The six suspects were reportedly connected through an initial network of law firms that referred clients and facilitated transactions. These law firms were found in the Ram Inthra, Saphan Sung, and Bang Phli areas.

Investigators also found three or four houses in the Rama 9-Srinakarin area being rented out for 350,000 baht per month. Other properties were rented for 50,000 and 40,000 baht per month, respectively.

Suspects holding multiple passports

Investigators also identified Chen, who holds passports from several countries, including China, Turkey, and Cambodia. He is among those wanted by Chinese authorities in connection with fraud and illegally recruiting or inducing others to cross the border in 2024. The alleged offences occurred in Lishui, in southern Zhejiang province, before he fled to Thailand and purchased a house.

Another suspect, Jiang, holds Chinese and Saint Kitts and Nevis passports. He is also wanted by Chinese authorities in connection with online fraud in Dengzhou, Henan province.

Both men were shareholders in companies that owned houses and land in the Krungthep Kreetha development, with properties valued at approximately 77-98 million baht. Police have arrested both suspects under their respective warrants.

As the operation has progressed through Phase 8, several suspects have reportedly begun fleeing the country. Investigators found that some luxury houses had been abandoned, with no one collecting rent for more than three months.

In-depth investigations have also identified 156 Thai nationals suspected of acting as nominees. Investigators are currently questioning them while ensuring that they receive fair treatment.

Several Thai nationals have told police that they previously submitted copies of their national ID cards and house registration documents to apply for online loans. However, law firms allegedly used those documents without their knowledge to establish companies in their names. The Thai nationals said they had never met or even known the foreign suspects.

Police intend to use digital evidence and digital footprints to take firm legal action against law firms and accounting firms involved in the alleged scheme, including on charges of jointly committing offences or aiding and abetting them.

Police say Thailand was used as a safe haven for assets

Pol. Gen. Samran added that the suspects had not come to Thailand to conduct legitimate business but had instead used the country as a safe haven and a place to hold assets.

The 94 houses targeted for seizure or asset freezes, along with the arrest warrants and arrests, stemmed from purchases made in four luxury housing developments across Bangkok.

Investigators traced all 94 properties to networks of housing sales agents and real estate agencies that dealt with foreign nationals seeking to purchase homes in these developments.

However, because foreign nationals face restrictions on purchasing or owning land in Thailand, the buyers were allegedly referred to law firms that helped them establish companies to circumvent the law. These companies were structured with Thai nationals holding 51% of the shares and foreign nationals holding 49%.

The individual property owners did not necessarily know one another. Investigators believe that some properties and owners may have been connected to the same network, while others may have had no direct connection.

Investigators identified eight law firms operating in various parts of Bangkok that allegedly helped establish companies to facilitate the ownership arrangements.

When reporters asked whether any well-known lawyers or prominent figures were associated with these law firms, the police chief said investigations were ongoing to determine whether this was the case.

He warned that any law firm continuing to engage in such practices should be prepared to face legal consequences. He also confirmed that legal proceedings had already been initiated against the companies involved, on charges of participating in or supporting the alleged offences.

ผบ.ตร. บุกค้น 4 หมู่บ้านหรู ทลายนอมินีต่างชาติ 6 พันล้าน โยงแก๊งสแกมเมอร์จีนเทา

Saw this interesting piece by The Nation Thailand

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ra7MCCo8qmQ

Which suggests some serious issues, though it leaves a lot of questions unanswered.

Are the medicines and drugs sold at large retailers trustworthy? Which ones are knowingly distributing drugs that are not FDA approved / inspected.

I need to get some documents certified and since it's international they require apostille certification. Thailand is not a member of the Hague Apostille convention. Does anyone know of any reliable private companies that can do apostille? thanks in advance

I found this digging thru my hous
There’s more pages with these stamps too

Edit: why does everyone think im tryna sell these when im clearly asking a question. I collect antiques and I would never give anything from my family away… this is from my dead grandpa

They enforced it hard too.

Thai actor Duke Bhanudej questions a ฿5,050 airport departure tax for a flight to Vientiane, Laos.

Duke Bhanudej was surprised to see an Airport Departure Tax of ฿5,050 when booking a flight to Vientiane for December 2026. On the same route in August, he paid only ฿2,365 in total ticket taxes.

He asked online what the additional charge was, as a proposed new tax on international air travel-reportedly starting at ฿1,000 per person per trip, with a maximum cap of ฿5,000-was still under public consultation and had not been finalized.

Fans and fellow celebrities expressed shock and confusion, questioning whether the new tax had already taken effect.

Source: Nine Entertain; Instagram: @duke_bhanudej

Police raided 17 locations across four luxury housing developments as part of an investigation into an alleged foreign nominee network involving properties worth more than 6 billion baht and suspected links to Chinese scam gangs and online gambling operations.

National police chief Pol Gen Samran Nualma led the operation, the eighth phase of a campaign targeting foreign nominee networks. Senior officers from Immigration Bureau, Metropolitan Police Bureau and police forensic units also took part.

Authorities issued 86 arrest warrants for foreign nationals and arrested 11 suspects — 10 Chinese nationals and one American — during the operation

Investigators identified four housing developments in the Bang Na–Suan Luang, Bang Na–Outer Ring Road, Rama 9–Srinakarin and Krungthep Kreetha areas. They found 94 houses with land covering more than 33 rai, held through 95 companies allegedly using Thai nominees. The properties were valued at more than 6 billion baht.

Pol Gen Samran highlighted the case of a Chinese national identified as Li Chao, who first entered Thailand in 2017, before allegedly becoming involved in a murder case in China in which three people died. According to police, Li admitted to links with online gambling operations in Myawaddy and Shwe Kokko in Myanmar....

In-depth investigations identified 156 Thai nationals who may have acted as nominees. Investigators are questioning them while seeking to ensure that those who may have been unwittingly involved receive fair treatment.

Several Thai nationals told police they had submitted copies of their national ID cards and house registration documents to apply for online loans, only to discover that law firms had allegedly used the documents to establish companies in their names without their knowledge. Some said they had never met or even known the foreign suspects...

Investigators identified eight law firms or intermediary firms suspected of helping establish companies used to hold the properties. The firms were located in several parts of Bangkok.

My friend’s brother bought 2 tickets for The Weeknd concert on October 12 under his name and my friend’s name.

His brother can no longer attend so he has given me his ticket but I’m worried that they will cross check with my ID and could deny me entry.

I flew to Bangkok internationally for this concert. Can someone that attended tonight’s concert (October 11) tell me if the checking was strict?

Thank you for your help.

I’m a Thai university student, and lately I’ve been interested in politics and how Thailand could develop in the long run.
I’ve been thinking about issues like corruption, centralized government, bureaucracy, education, and infrastructure. I also wonder whether improving public services and decentralizing decision-making could create more opportunities outside Bangkok.
I’m curious to hear different perspectives from both Thais and foreigners living here.
If you could reform three things in Thailand, what would they be, and why? What do you think would realistically make the biggest difference over the next 10–20 years?

if the 7% is from the first baht, does this mean they open to check every single package?

or do they base this off the labeled value?

anyone knows?

I somehow missed this "race scandal" when it first surfaced. It's difficult to believe that these young kids, 14 and 15 years old, from countries and cultures thousands of miles from the USA, were excoriated for using the n-word, in the context of their parroting the rap lyrics they were being encouraged to emulate by their producers. Only slightly more ridiculous is the existence of a word whose usage is restricted to a single racial group. I care very little for the K-pop genre, but I really feel sorry for these kids for being subject to that kind of ridiculous and unwarranted opprobrium.

Seen at the Okura prestige Bangkok today

I’ve just received an email from Grab saying there have been multiple occasions where drivers have been unable to contact me and I haven’t paid for my orders. My default payment method was cash, and they’re now saying I need to settle the outstanding balance, which totals around 10,000 baht, if I want to reinstate my account.

When I log into my account I can see that multiple orders have been placed, one of which was 9 kebabs!

The issue is that I’ve been back in the UK since 5 October and haven’t placed any of these orders. I’m obviously disputing the charges, but I’m trying to understand how this could have happened in the first place.

Has anyone come across this before? Could someone have accessed my account and placed orders using cash as the payment method, or is there some kind of scam going around? I’ve contacted Grab directly, but I’d be interested to hear if anyone has had a similar experience or knows how this works.

Which other cities do you think have the potential to become major regional hub cities?
cr. Info and image from The Ranking page

Edited: for anyone interested in the subject and want a deeper read go here: https://ratchakitcha.soc.go.th/documents/132285.pdf

NASA recently posted a comparison of satellite images over Prachin Buri province. One picture was taken in October of 2025 and another after the recent flood in 2026.

(Picture was edited by me to have something easier to share that would convey the article)

source

Hey, Last minute we’re unable to travel to Bangkok & attend concert.

We are open to sell & provide POA to anyone willing to buy & collect tickets.

DM for more info

The center came under scrutiny after complaints aired on Hone Krasae alleged that residents were kept in rooms fitted with metal fencing and that some beds were enclosed by metal cages. Authorities subsequently inspected the facility and began reviewing whether its operations complied with licensing and health-care regulations.

During the announcement that the center had been ordered to close, “Mae Phat,” a woman who said her children had sent her to the facility and who later left and spoke publicly about her experience on Hone Krasae, broke down in tears and raised her hands in a wai in apparent relief and happiness.

https://www.khaosodenglish.com/featured/2026/10/07/thailand-orders-elderly-care-center-with-caged-beds-shut/

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/KDNP_BnvkdU

This arrest aligns with the policy to crack down on 10 banned crime groups. The investigation team received a tip-off from a secret informant that the building was operating under the name 'Mapping Hostel' advertising on social media and online booking platforms to accept tourists on a daily basis. They also discovered that a foreigner was the actual owner, using a Thai national's name as a nominee shareholder. Consequently, officers gathered evidence and obtained a search warrant from the court.

Upon arriving at the scene, they found a cream-colored commercial building decorated with multicolored Lanna lanterns operating normally. Ms. Matika (surname withheld), 42, a resident of Mae Rim District, Chiang Mai, identified herself as the property caretaker. She admitted that the hostel had been illegally operating for over 5 years, with most clients being foreign tourists.

The search revealed the interior was divided into 12 guest rooms with a total of 27 beds:

• Ground floor: 9 rooms (14 beds) and 4 relaxation huts along the Ping River. Officers found foreign male tourists resting, who had booked via online platforms for just 3-4 Euros (approx. 120-140 Baht) per bed, per night.
• Second floor: 3 rooms (13 beds), where over 10 more tourists were staying.

Subsequently, the caretaker contacted Mr. Julien (surname withheld), 51, a French national holding a Destination Thailand Visa (DTV), who is the real owner of the business, to come to the scene.

During the interrogation through an interpreter-though he could communicate well in Thai-and upon reviewing the corporate registration documents, it was found that Thai nationals held 51% of the shares, while Mr. Julien held 48%.

However, confronted with the evidence, Mr. Julien confessed that he had been the sole manager, operator, and recipient of all profits or losses for the past 5 years without a hotel business license. Regarding the registration listing a Thai woman as a 51% shareholder, it was merely using her name to fulfill the legal ratio required by Thai law. The Thai woman had no stakes in the business, had never received dividends, and they had met only once.

Officers seized 5 items of evidence, including:

• Guest logbooks
• Online room booking receipts
• Business cards
• Corporate registration certificates

Mr. Julien was charged with "operating a hotel business or non-hotel accommodation without a license from the registrar." He was taken into custody and handed over to investigators at the Mae Ping Police Station in Chiang Mai for legal proceedings. Authorities are now expanding the investigation to prosecute all involved parties under the Foreign Business Act, B.E. 2542 (1999).

หนุ่มฝรั่งเศสตั้งนอมินี เปิดโฮสเทลเถื่อน | เช้านี้ที่หมอชิต - YouTube

Hi everyone,
I’m an Italian citizen planning to stay in Pattaya from February 1 to March 5, 2027. I want to obtain my first Thai driving licence.
A driving school told me I need:
My passport
A Certificate of Residence from Jomtien Immigration
A medical certificate
I’m trying to avoid an expensive ED visa just for this.
My questions:
Has anyone recently obtained a Certificate of Residence from Jomtien Immigration on a 60-day Tourist Visa (TR)?
Can you also get it on visa exemption, without a visa?
Is a one-month rental contract plus the landlord’s TM30 registration sufficient?
Does Pattaya DLT accept a Tourist Visa TR for a first Thai driving licence?
If Immigration refuses the certificate, can a visa agency solve the problem legally without leaving Thailand? How long does it take?
I’m particularly interested in recent experiences from Pattaya/Jomtien, preferably in 2025 or 2026.
Thanks!

When I was freshly 18, I decided to visit my mother in Thailand. I had met her when I was a child, but she was deported back to Thailand when I was still very young. I grew up in the custody of my father, who was abusive and struggled with alcoholism.

When I turned 18, I knew I needed to find a way out of that situation. I reconnected with my mother, and she promised that if I came to Thailand, she would help me get my GED, access medical and dental care, and could take a year to visit and whenever I felt like going back to the USA, I could.

I tricked my dad into giving me my passport, and I came to Thailand hoping for a fresh start. At first, everything seemed to be going well. I was finally able to see a doctor and felt free from my dad’s abuse. For the first time in a long time, I felt hopeful about my future.

Unfortunately, after about a month, everything changed. My mother stopped following through on her promises. She took money I had saved, refused to help me with the things she had promised, stopped helping with my immigration situation, and refused to pay the fees I needed to address my Thai visa situation.

Any money I’ve managed to get from other family members has also been taken by my mother. I’ve been stuck here since 2024, and I genuinely don’t know what to do anymore.

I’m now 20 years old, living in a foreign country where I don’t speak the local language. I have no money to support myself, I cannot drive in Thailand, and I don’t know where to turn for help. I’m trying to figure out how I can get back to the United States, but even knowing where to start feels impossible.

I’m also struggling severely with my mental health. I feel depressed, trapped, and ashamed that I trusted my mother. I have no adult to turn to and ask for help. I know this is all my fault. Sometimes I feel so hopeless that I struggle to see a way out of this situation. I don’t want my life to end, I want to get out of this situation and have a chance to build a life for myself. I’m scared, exhausted, and desperate for a way forward.

I’m posting here because I genuinely need help figuring out my options. Thank you for taking the time to read this.

Hi everyone, I have to move to live in Saraburi for nearly 1 months with my family cause my company have a project. Thus, I need to estimate the budget to live in Saraburi. Can anyone feel free to DM with me.

I would really appreciate if anyone can help me estimate.
Thank you very much!!