Thai immigration officers face arrest for demanding $30,000 in crypto as ransom

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Key Takeaways:

  • Thai immigration officials are being searched for kidnapping a Chinese citizen and extorting ransom in cryptocurrency.
  • The suspects asked for USDT, the stablecoin tied to the US dollar known as tether, as payment for releasing them.

A Chinese man and his female interpreter were abducted in Thailand, and four immigration police officials are suspected of forcing them to give up 1 million baht (US$29,170) in cryptocurrency.

The officers allegedly kidnapped the Chinese man after he fell for a con, along with his female interpreter, according to the SCMP.

The victim allegedly fell for a phoney investment scheme and suffered a sizable financial loss. When the immigration officers contacted him, they demanded a ransom payment of almost $30,000 in cryptocurrencies and threatened to detain him if he didn’t cooperate.

It is important to note that Thailand has a cordial relationship with crypto.  The Thai government recently chose to exempt companies that issue investment tokens from value-added tax and corporate income tax. (VAT).  The issuance of digital tokens for investments is permitted tax-free as part of the government’s efforts to make money from the growth of the digital asset industry.

According to the cited comments from Surachate Hakparn, deputy national police chief, the incident was made public after the interpreter reported it to the police, claiming that she and the Chinese man had been the victims of an immigration scam before they were kidnapped.

The abductors wanted 30,000 USDT. He allegedly gave his son instructions to use the imToken app to give the accused the coins. Despite the defendants’ insistence that they were innocent, further investigation revealed that four members of the immigration police department were connected to the incident. The police have arrest warrants out for them, and the Chinese man has escaped to China.

The accused, according to Surachate, asserted their innocence. However, he pointed out that additional research had shown that the case involved four members of the immigration police division. He added that the Chinese national had fled to his nation despite arrest warrants being made for these officers.

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Aadrika Sharma
Aadrika Sharma

I enjoy writing and try to learn new things every passing day!

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