Thai law enforcers have swooped on a suspected gambling ring that allegedly has links to senior domestic and international politicians.
The Ministry of Justice’s Department of Special Investigation raided addresses at six locations, making one arrest, the Thai media outlet Khaosod reported. Officers say the ring has a turnover of over a billion baht, or $30.5 million.
The DSI said four of the properties were in Songkhla Province, with the other two in Phatthalung Province.
The arrestee, however, was charged in the Patong District of Phuket Province.
DSI officials say the arrestee is a “close associate” of an online gambling website’s masterminds. The suspect allegedly helped launder, transfer, and hold funds to support the site’s business operations.
Thai Politicians: Under Scrutiny
Investigators say financial documents prove funds worth $1.6 million passed through the suspect’s personal bank accounts over a period of just three months. The suspect has previously served a jail term for drug-related offenses, following a 2022 conviction.
The DSI said the raids were linked to a wider investigation into an unnamed politician “and his associates.”
Investigators said they collected a “significant amount of evidence” linking the arrestee “to national-level politicians and various groups based in Thailand and abroad.”
Officers said their investigation remains ongoing as they continue to search for additional individuals linked to the network.
Police suspect the politician in question helped operate the gambling site and launder money with the help of a cross-border organized crime syndicate.
DSI officials said they are working on the case with prosecutors from the Attorney General’s office.
Earlier this year, Royal Thai Police cybercrime officials raided the home of the People’s Party member and former lawmaker Ratchapong “Pond” Soisuwan.
Officers said they had evidence that the politician had ties with the illegal betting platform nakarin789.
In mid-January, the Thai media outlet MGR Online reported that a police examination of financial transactions related to the gambling portal revealed that Soisuwan had used his bank accounts to transfer money to a Siam Commercial Bank account.
Officers said illegal gambling operators used this same Siam Commercial Bank account to process gambling deposits and make payments to nakarin789 customers.
Police Hunt Gambling Rings
Thai police continue to crack down on illegal betting-related activities. These have become particularly prominent in tourism hotspots, officials warn.
Last month, police made multiple arrests during a raid on a Pattaya nail salon. Police said salon workers and others had congregated at the venue for a late-night gambling session.
And earlier this year, three Chinese passport-holders sustained injuries when they jumped out of a second-floor window in a Pattaya villa to escape a police raid.
Detectives said foreign nationals had converted the house into an underground VIP betting den that catered to Chinese tourists.
And in Phuket, officers discovered an illegal poker club that advertised sessions to Russian speakers on Instagram.
Last month, the chat app operator Line agreed to work with police on a plan to block gambling-related community group chats.
The platform has 54-56 million monthly active users.
