Vorapak denies scam links after Sept 15 US sanctions request

Former Thai deputy finance minister Vorapak Tanyawong denied links to scam networks in a Facebook statement reported on September 17, 2026, responding to a request by two US House committee chairs to consider sanctions against him and others.

Vorapak, who served in Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s first government, said the US lawmakers’ sanctions request asked US agencies to examine information and determine whether those named met the legal criteria for sanctions.

“It is not an investigation finding or a ruling that I have committed an offence, and it does not mean I have already been sanctioned by the United States,” Vorapak said.

Vorapak also denied any involvement in the activities cited in the allegations. “I have never participated in, supported or had knowledge of scam-centre operations, money laundering, human trafficking, cybercrime or any transnational crime of the kind alleged,” he said.

Vorapak says he has contacted US Treasury to offer evidence

Vorapak said he had formally contacted the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to ask how he could submit facts and supporting documents for US authorities to consider.

Vorapak said he was also sending letters to the two committee chairs, requesting an opportunity to explain his position and obtain information concerning him so that he could respond to specific questions.

“I am ready to cooperate fully with any review, and I believe the best way to respond to such serious allegations is through facts, documentary evidence and a process that can be verified,” Vorapak said.

Vorapak outlines progress in two Thai defamation cases

Vorapak said he had taken legal action over earlier allegations, with one defamation case accepted for consideration by a Thai court. A preliminary examination of another case had concluded, and he was awaiting the court’s order. 

The Committee to Protect Journalists previously reported on Whale Hunting’s allegations linking Vorapak to a network laundering money from Cambodian scam centres through Thai financial institutions. Vorapak has denied those allegations and brought a defamation suit against the reporter involved.

Vorapak declined to speculate on whether his inclusion in the US letter was connected to allegations already before Thai courts. He said he would continue presenting facts and documentary evidence to both the Thai courts and US authorities through verifiable procedures.

Vorapak said he would not disclose or publicly contest details of some allegations being considered by Thai courts because he did not want to affect the judicial process. He would provide further updates when appropriate.

US lawmakers request scrutiny before any sanctions decision

Brian Mast, chair of the US House Foreign Affairs Committee, and John Moolenaar, chairman of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party, sent the September 15 letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. They asked US agencies to investigate the named foreign individuals and entities and impose sanctions if the legal criteria were met.

Mast and Moolenaar’s letter describes transnational criminal networks operating scam centres in Southeast Asia, including investment fraud known as “pig butchering”, in which offenders build relationships with victims before persuading them to transfer money into fraudulent investments.

The US lawmakers also link scam operations to human trafficking and forced labour. Their proposed sanctions approach targets the financiers, businesses and other facilitators they allege sustain the networks, with the aim of disrupting funding and supporting business structures.

The House Foreign Affairs Committee had also advanced H.R. 5490, the Dismantle Foreign Scam Syndicates Act, which proposed an interagency task force to dismantle transnational scam networks and sanctions against foreign persons involved in supporting them.

For Thai and regional financial institutions, the US request could increase pressure to strengthen transaction monitoring and anti-money-laundering checks, particularly for dealings involving parties identified for scrutiny. The September 15 letter itself imposes no sanctions; any restrictions arising from the request would depend on subsequent US decisions under the applicable legal criteria.