Police detain 14 in scam raid at Bangkok mansion worth over THB270m

Thai immigration police detained 14 people during a raid on a Bangkok mansion worth more than THB270 million on Wednesday (September 16, 2026), as investigators examined an alleged call-centre scam involving impersonation of Japanese police.

Officers from the Immigration Bureau’s Investigation Division searched the property in Soi Ekkachai 112, Bang Bon Nuea subdistrict, Bang Bon district, at about 4pm. The search was conducted under warrant No. ค228/2569, issued by the Thon Buri Criminal Court that day.

Police suspected the mansion, which has more than 2,515 square metres of usable floor space, was being used as a hideout for the alleged scam network.

Fourteen people found at Bang Bon property

Police found 14 people inside the mansion. The report provided the following breakdown:

• Four Japanese nationals
• Four Chinese nationals
• Two Myanmar nationals
• Two Taiwanese
• One person described as a highland resident, whose nationality was not specified
• One Thai national

The Immigration Bureau said all the suspects had been taken into custody.

Japanese police uniforms among items found

Police reported finding ketamine, electronic equipment and Japanese police uniforms, identification cards and insignia. Investigators believed equipment recovered from the property had been used to defraud victims.

The reported inventory comprised:

• One computer
• Two laptops
• Four tablets
• 27 mobile phones
• Six portable Wi-Fi devices
• Eight work desks
• Three Japanese police uniforms
• Three sets of Japanese police identification cards and badges
• 10 pieces of Japanese police insignia

Police describe two alleged scams targeting Japan

Investigators said one alleged method began with callers claiming to represent a Japanese delivery service. The callers asked victims to provide personal information and confirm their current address and telephone number.

The alleged scammers then told victims they had an illegal parcel in their possession. Police said members of the group subsequently posed as police officers from Hokkaido, using the victims’ fear to persuade them to transfer money.

Investigators described a second method involving temporary deposit receipts. Callers allegedly claimed that money associated with a victim’s deposit transaction was the proceeds of crime and had been paid into an account unlawfully. The callers then threatened the victim with prosecution by Japanese police to extort money.

Immigration authorities coordinate with Japan

The Immigration Bureau said it was taking steps to revoke the foreign suspects’ permission to remain in Thailand under the Immigration Act 1979. Authorities had also coordinated information with Japan to support prosecutions and expedite assistance for victims.

Pol Maj Gen Panthana Nuchanart, deputy commissioner of the Immigration Bureau, said call-centre scam groups continued to operate clandestinely in Thailand from time to time.

Pol Maj Gen Panthana said that once arrests and legal proceedings in Thailand were completed, authorities would share information with the suspects’ countries of origin to investigate possible connections to other groups or offences.