Bangkok: The Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) successfully dismantled an illegal online yuan exchange operation, arresting a Chinese national and his girlfriend in the process. The operation, which had been running with a turnover of over 26 million yuan, was brought to an end following a coordinated effort by law enforcement agencies.
According to Thai News Agency, the CIB, in collaboration with the Economic Crime Suppression Division (ECSD), apprehended 28-year-old Chinese national Mr. ZHENG and his 30-year-old Thai girlfriend, Ms. Kittiyaporn. The duo was charged with "jointly engaging in unauthorized foreign exchange and international money transfer business." Their arrest took place at a three-story townhouse in Bang Khun Thian Subdistrict, Chom Thong District, Bangkok, after the execution of a court-issued search warrant.
The investigation revealed a Facebook platform that advertised unauthorized services for exchanging and transferring Thai baht to Chinese yuan. A financial probe uncovered a turnover exceeding 26 million baht over six months, and nine incoming transfer accounts totaling over 1.1 million baht were linked to cybercrime activities. The evidence led to the arrest of Mr. ZHENG, identified as the financier, and Ms. Kittiyaporn, who managed the online operations. They profited from daily exchange rate differences. Police seized two mobile phones and four bank passbooks during the arrest. The suspects confessed to the charges, admitting to running the unauthorized yuan exchange service for profit without authorization from the Ministry of Finance.