THE Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) today (April 9) temporarily seized a second batch of assets worth 8 billion baht from scam suspects Ms. Taengthai, Mr. Yim Liak, Ms. Wirinya Yim ,Mr. Ben Smith, aka Benjamin Mauerberger, and his wife Ms. Katriya Beaver, taking the total to over 20 billion baht, Amarin TV said.
Announcing this action at the AMLO office were Prime Minister/Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul, Pol. Lt. Gen. Natsak Chaowanasai, commander of the Crime Suppression Division, and AMLO Secretary-General Thepsu Bovornchotidara and his team.
AMLO resolved to temporarily seize and freeze an additional 34 items of related assets for a period not exceeding 90 days. These include six vehicles, loan claims, bank accounts, and securities in trading accounts, valued at approximately 8.269 billion baht. This brings the total number of seized and frozen assets in this case to 102 items, with a total value of approximately 20.392 billion baht.
Anutin said relevant agencies have jointly seized and frozen this massive amount of assets attributed to suspects of this criminal group believed to have committed illegal acts in Thailand causing significant hardship to the victims while also affecting the economy, as their alleged crimes are rooted in a scam network,
Anutin further stated that, as AMLO’s supervisor, he recognises that the public and the international community want decisive action against these crimes. The threat from scammers is complex and has widespread impact.
Law enforcement agencies have been instructed to implement measures and fully enforce the law against offenders. These offenders are often influential individuals with networks or even connections with those in power, he said.
Agencies handling this type of crime have been told to adhere to the principle of “keeping names anonymous, focusing on behaviour.” If wrongdoing is found, action will be taken rigorously and without exception.
Meanwhile Thepsu said AMLO is preparing to publish a notice in the Royal Gazette to protect the rights of victims. Victims must submit a request for asset distribution within 90 days of publication. Applications can be submitted at the AMLO office, police stations in every province, online, or by mail.
Regarding Taengthai, she is suspected of being a money mule who received cash from the victims and laundered it through various accounts before transferring it to beneficiary accounts. Some funds were also transferred overseas through money exchange shops before being transferred back to Thailand.
Initially, police issued arrest warrants for 42 suspects involved in this conspiracy with 29 having been arrested, while 13 remain at large, with one of them being Ben Smith.
Most recently, reports indicate that Ben Smith has fled to Seychelles, a country without an extradition treaty with Thailand.
When asked about the progress in requesting Interpol to issue a Red Notice for Ben Smith, Pol. Lt. Gen. Nattasak revealed that there is currently another case against Ben Smith and his accomplices with numerous victims reporting damages totaling 5 billion baht to the Central Investigation Bureau. Police will issue summonses and arrest warrants according to procedure while for those overseas the Interpol will be asked to issue a Red Notice.
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Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul inspecting seized vehicles from scam suspects and briefing the press about this case. Photos – Amarin TV
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