Central Investigation Bureau lists Thailand’s top 10 crimes of 2023

Here are the top 10 crimes of the year listed by the Central Investigation Bureau:

• 17 members of a gang that allegedly helped students cheat in entrance exams for the police non-commissioned officers school were arrested on March 29. The arrest led to the disqualification of more than 100 applicants.

• 114 suspects linked to an online gambling network allegedly owned by a former police officer, Pol Lt-Colonel Wasawat Mukarasakul were arrested on April 11. The case was brought to public notice by whistle-blower Chuwit Kamolvisit.

• Suspected serial killer Sararat Rangsiwuthaporn was arrested on April 25. She was accused of poisoning and killing at least 14 people with cyanide.

• Phra Achan Khom, abbot of Wat Pa Thamma Khiri in Nakhon Ratchasima, was arrested on May 6 over accusations of siphoning 300 million baht from the temple’s bank accounts.

• A Canadian was arrested in Canada on May 30 for allegedly shooting to death an international crime boss in Phuket.

• A gang is arrested on August 16 for killing pangolins for their scales and trying to smuggle 1.4 tonnes of these scales out of Thailand. The operation was conducted in collaboration with the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

• A Chinese gang called “Pig Butchering” was shut down on August 31 in a joint operation with police from China. The gang, believed to be behind several scams, had some 1 billion baht in circulation.

• Five Thai civil servants were arrested on June 14 for allegedly siphoning 80 million baht through their electronic purchasing and hiring systems. This was part of CIB’s Stop Cyber Corruptions operation.

• Members of a gang are arrested on November 24 for allegedly smuggling 23 million litres of diesel into the kingdom.