Chinese scam kingpin nabbed at Suvarnabhumi while trying to flee on fake passport

BANGKOK: Thai immigration officers moved in just in time at Suvarnabhumi Airport on Tuesday evening, stopping a Chinese man as he prepared to board a flight out of Thailand under a false identity.

The man, identified only as Huang, 44, was arrested moments before departure. Although he legally held a Thailand Privilege Visa, officers became suspicious when he presented a Mexican passport under the name “Gol,” said Pol Maj Gen Choengron Rimpadee, deputy commander of the Immigration Bureau. Authorities have not revealed where he was headed.

A routine background check quickly turned serious. Huang was found to be the subject of an Interpol Red Notice and is wanted by Chinese authorities for his alleged role as a central figure in an international scam network.

According to investigators, Huang fled China in 2020, slipping across a remote border in Yunnan province before making his way into Myanmar. Over the next few years, between 2022 and 2024, he allegedly helped establish a large-scale scam operation with an organised crime group in the New Taichang Park complex in Kyaukhat, Myawaddy, just across the border from Thailand’s Phop Phra district in Tak province.

The group is accused of running a carefully crafted online investment scam, reaching out to victims through social media. Posing as “wealthy single businessmen,” members built personal relationships and trust, offering what appeared to be attractive investment opportunities. Initial returns were paid out to reassure victims — until the platform suddenly vanished, along with the money, leaving victims unable to make contact.

Chinese authorities say more than 500 people were affected, with total losses estimated at 200 million yuan, or about 1 billion baht.

Huang now faces charges in Thailand for using a forged passport, while immigration police work closely with Chinese authorities to determine the next steps in the case, Pol Maj Gen Choengron said.