Chinese woman rescued after scam incident

Song Xiuhua, 42, who fell victim to a Chinese call centre gang, is found inside an apartment room in Samut Prakan's Bang Phli district on Thursday. (Photo: Crime Suppression Division)
Song Xiuhua, 42, who fell prey to a Taiwanese call center group, is found inside an apartment space in Samut Prakan’s Bang Phli region on Thursday. ( Photo: Crime Suppression Division )

A Foreign woman who lost touch with her home after being duped into paying a call center fraud group has been found safe in Samut Prakan. &nbsp,

Police from the Crime Suppression Division ( CSD ) found Song Xiuhua, 42, in an apartment room in tambon Ratcha Thewa of Bang Phli district, Pol Maj Gen Montree Theskhan, CSD commander, said on Friday.

Following a request for assistance from the Chinese ambassador in Bangkok, the search was conducted. Due to concerns from her family that she might be in danger, the ambassador called the CSD.

Earlier, swindlers had contacted Ms Song’s family, Li Jianshe, via WeChat messaging app, claiming that her child was detained and forced to work in Thailand. They demanded a payment of 2.5 million rmb, or roughly 11.5 million baht, for her release.

The group then sent a picture to Ms. Li that shows her girl holding a passport and stating,” I am working in Thailand. I am never forced to remain videotaped”. Her relatives contacted the military for assistance because of this.

According to Pol Col Manoon Kaewkam, director of the CSD sub-division 1, Ms. Song left Germany on August 15 to table a trip to Suvarnabhumi airport.

Surveillance footage showed her taking a car as she left the Samut Prakan airport only.

Ms Song Xiuhua, 42, a Chinese scam victim, tells what happened to police. (Photo supplied/Wassayos Ngamkham)

Song Xiuhua, 42, a victim of fraud, explains her condition to Indian officers. ( Photo: Crime Suppression Division )

Upon locating Ms Song in the room, officers noticed that she immediately appeared cautious. The Taiwanese woman lived only and rarely left the room, according to the house owner.

Ms. Song informed the police that she had traveled to Thailand to work on closed-circuit television (CCTV ) footage. She resisted being taken, saying she was secure, and denied knowing anything about the violence.

When presented with evidence, including information from the swindlers, she seemed skeptical, prompting the officers to call her families for a chat.

Ms. Song claimed that on April 11 people allegedly contacted her and told her that her phone number was connected to a scamming scheme during questioning. The visitor insisted that she needed to transfer funds to a team to look into her alleged role in human smuggling to establish her innocence.

The group claimed that when she made her initial money move, she had wired the money to the incorrect bank account. They demanded that she move more money, then, she may not receive the funds from her first move. She transferred more than 8 million baht overall to bank accounts in China and other Western nations.

After reading a communication and watching a movie clip sent by a Chinese call centre fraud crew featuring their daughter, the Taiwanese woman's parents wept. ( Photo: Crime Suppression Division )

After reading a communication and watching a movie clip sent by a Chinese call centre fraud crew featuring their daughter, the Taiwanese woman’s parents wept. ( Photo: Crime Suppression Division )

Pol Col Manoon, who led the search function, said the group after deceived the Taiwanese prey into travelling to Thailand, claiming that someone there may provide legal assistance. The gang had already given her instructions to place Skype communication software and enable the video call feature at all times upon her arrival.

They instructed Ms. Song to remain in her place and avoid showing her passport to everyone. Additionally, they demanded that she make a film that was later sent to her family as a payment requirement. While in Thailand, the victim had to survey to the group daily, according to Pol Col Manoon.

Before being discovered, Ms. Song generally changed her accommodations- up to eight times. She remained in Thailand from August 15 to August 20.

The crew threatened her, saying she did not receive her money again and may face legal consequences if she revealed her condition to anyone.

According to Pol Col Manoon, her mother has not yet responded to the group’s request by transferring any payment funds.