Thai authorities have arrested 11 Nigerian nationals and 2 Ivorian citizens in a crackdown on an international romance scam syndicate in Nonthaburi province.
The suspects were caught in a condominium raid, with several attempting to flee barefoot.
They allegedly posed as wealthy professionals online, building romantic relationships with victims and scamming them of money.
The operation followed a complaint from a Thai woman who lost over 2 million baht (about N91 million) to the group.
Police seized 34 electronic devices containing scam evidence and found some suspects overstayed visas or entered Thailand illegally.
Thai authorities said intelligence gathering revealed that the suspects were operating as a structured foreign gang with clearly defined roles.
These reportedly included online romance scammers who communicated with victims, cash handlers responsible for moving funds, and individuals tasked with recruiting bank account holders, often referred to as “mules”, to facilitate the fraud.
Based on this intelligence, law enforcement agencies identified a condominium in Pak Kret district as the gang’s central hub and launched the joint operation on January 19.
According to investigators, many of the devices contained active scam conversations, scripts used to deceive victims, and internal chat messages through which members of the group coordinated activities and alerted one another as the raid unfolded.
The syndicate allegedly used Thai partners’ bank accounts to launder funds, converting them to cryptocurrency.
Meanwhile, investigations continue to identify more suspects and dismantle the network.
