On Saturday (May 13), a Thai woman, named by police as “Ms A”, filed a report at Thalang Police Station stating that four Thai men had tricked her out of B1mn.
Ms A told police that at 11am on Friday (May 12) four people acting as property brokers visited her at her house stating that they were interested in buying her home.
“After showing interest in buying my property the gang arrived in a Bangkok-registered Honda City when they picked me up from Garden Place Village, in Tambon Thepkrasattri Rd, Thalang.
“However, after picking me up they persuaded me to play the Chinese gambling game Fan-Tan, so we went to a bank in Phuket Town where I withdrew close to B1mn to gamble with.
“We then went to a rented room in Koh Kaew to play the game and I lost all the money. I also run up a debt to the four men of B900,000.
“The four men then disappeared,” she said.
After making their investigations police were able to identify one of the suspects as Somchai Inthawong, 49, from Phuket.
Thalang Police Chief Col Sompong Thiparpakul and Deputy Chief Lt Col Weerayuth Sitthirattanakul were able to apprehend him at a property on Soi Permsin in Rassada.
According to police, Somchai confessed during questioning that he and three friends, all from off-Phuket, defrauded Ms A after they pretended to be interested in buying her property.
After Ms A showed interest in the men buying her property they persuaded her to play Fan-Tan and she lost all her money, police reported.
Somchai said he took B270,000, one of his friends took B250,000 and the other two took B220,000 each, said police.
“Somchai had already served one and a half years in prison for doing seven similar crimes and taking several million baht from people, and since my release I have carried out a further three crimes, the one against Ms A being the most recent,” police quoted Somchai as saying.
“I do this as I want it to be a warning for people and businessmen or women not to be greedy. If you are greedy you will be a victim. I know people in other provinces play the same trick as me,” Somchai reportedly said.
Col Sompong told the press, “I want to warn people to please be careful when doing any business with people they don’t know.
“In cases such as this, the people who talk about buying or selling houses, vehicles or land will often then persuade victims to gamble. They will tell you that you will win and if they see you as not being greedy you will not be their victim.
“In the case of Ms A, she decided to file a report after losing near B1mn, if she hadn’t she could have lost more,” he said.
“We know who the three accomplices of Somchai are and we are now looking for them,” he added.
Police made no mention of whether the Ms A would be charged with illegal gambling.