Metropolitan Police Rescue Student Staged in Fake Kidnapping Scam

Key summary

On October 17, 2026, Metropolitan police rescued a university student in Bangkok who had been manipulated by a call-centre scam gang. The gang coerced the student into isolating themselves and staging a fake kidnapping to pressure their parents for ransom. Police located the student at around 18:00 in a rented room in an alley off Soi Sasan in the Phaya Thai area while they were still on the phone with the suspects. The investigation revealed that the scam began on October 16 when the student received a call from someone posing as a mobile network operator employee. The caller claimed the student's national ID details were used to register a phone number involved in fraud and money laundering, correctly providing the student's 13-digit national identification number. The call was transferred to another person posing as a police officer handling the case in another province, instructing the student to communicate via a Telegram chatroom named 'Investigation Room.' Under threat and pressure, the student transferred 36,000 baht to verify financial transactions. The scammers then instructed the student to leave their usual accommodation, rent a new room, deactivate their regular phone number, and use a new one. They also obtained the student's LINE verification code to control the account and deceive family members. After learning the student had run out of money, the scammers changed tactics, instructing the student to claim they received a scholarship to study abroad requiring 200,000 to 300,000 baht for expenses. To stage an abduction, the student was told to smear red syrup mixed with coffee on their body and the room's walls to simulate blood. The parents became suspicious of the scholarship claim, contacted a university lecturer who confirmed no such scholarship existed, and subsequently contacted police. The Royal Thai Police and Metropolitan Police Bureau warned that call-centre gangs target university students with false claims of criminal involvement to coerce money transfers or asset handovers, urging victims to hang up immediately on threatening calls.