Samut Prakan — Police said on Saturday a former lawyer in Samut Prakan was arrested for allegedly using a dating app to cheat on his victims with a love scam. Pongsakorn Supakornmongkolchai, 43, was arrested outside a gold store on Sukhumvit Road in Sam Rong Nua tambon of Muang district on Friday. The arrest was made in collaboration between the cyber task force 5 of the police and the investigative branch of the Metropolitan Police Bureau.
The investigation was launched after a victim asked the national police chief, Police Gen Damrongsak Kittiprapas, for help after claiming he was involved in a romance scam 1,51 Millions of baht being scammed. According to police, the victim met the suspect, who identified himself as “Tom” or “Thanet” introduced with a good looking profile picture via dating app Bumble. After an online chat, the suspect learned that the victim was suffering from depression.
Mr Pongsakorn took advantage of her symptoms by urging her to have sex with his father, who is also under investigation, if she wanted to continue the relationship. The two later met 6. bis 19. January at a hotel in Tambon Sam Rong Nua. The victim was tricked into investing in stock market scams and was also asked to sell their car to fund further investments.
Police Gen Damrongsak hired Police Gen Theeradet Thammasuthee, the commander of the MPB Investigative Branch, who also served as the head of the PCT unit 5 functions to work with a crime analysis team. Police Gen. Theeradet said the victim had been classified as suicidal.
