Image from The Nation Thailand/ANN
PATTAYA (The Nation Thailand/ANN): Thai Pattaya police, acting on a search warrant issued by the Pattaya Provincial Court, raided a house in Nong Prue, Bang Lamung district, Chonburi province, on Saturday.
The operation followed intelligence reports that the property was being used as a server base for an "online gambling website operated by foreign nationals".
Upon arrival, officers allegedly found a two-storey detached house secured with a high perimeter fence and closed-circuit TV cameras installed around the premises.
Inside, police say they discovered a group of South Koreans occupying both floors of the house. On the second floor, 13 South Korean men were found working in two rooms filled with dozens of computers.
The Koreans were allegedly assigned various tasks for the gambling website, identified as www.myrunking01.com, which offered baccarat, slot games, and sports betting.
All data on the computers was in Korean. The operators were allegedly responsible for managing more than 20,000 user accounts, processing financial transactions, and onboarding new customers.
The majority of users were South Koreans, along with international players, except for Thai nationals, who were restricted from accessing the website.
Authorities seized 24 desktop computers, 12 laptops, 28 mobile phones, more than 20 South Korean passports, and nearly 40 OTP (one-time password) devices, among other items. Police detained 15 individuals: 13 South Korean men, one South Korean woman, and a male Myanmar cleaner.
Police also searched two additional houses in the same gated community using warrants. These properties, rented by the syndicate for staff accommodations, were found to have been abandoned before the raid. Investigators confiscated some evidence, including a safe.
Chonburi Police Chief Pol Maj Gen Thawatkiat Jindakwuansanong said the raid followed reports of suspicious activity, including frequent comings and goings of South Koreans and continuous food deliveries.
Police say the operation revealed that the house had served as the server base for a South Korean-operated online gambling website for about three months, during which transactions exceeded 120 million baht (5.16 billion won).
Police plan to expand the investigation and collaborate with the South Korean Embassy as part of efforts to dismantle foreign criminal networks operating in Thailand.
This aligns with government policies targeting illegal online gambling and call-centre scams.
Local residents reported that the South Korean group had been living in the house for nearly a year. While they caused no disturbances, their routine movements, primarily using scooters, raised suspicions.
Residents were not surprised by the raid, claiming the area has a history of being rented by foreigners involved in illegal activities, such as call-centre scams and online gambling. - The Nation Thailand/ANN
