Cyber Police Bust Illegal Loan App Gang in Northern Thailand
Cyber Police Region 4 arrested six suspects in Phitsanulok for operating an illegal online lending application charging predatory interest rates across northern Thailand. The network of approximately 100 members served around 1,000 customers with monthly circulation of 10 million baht. The crackdown was ordered after a mother and two children died in Pathum Thani following harassment from loan sharks using the app.
Cyber Police Region 4 launched an operation to dismantle an illegal online lending network charging exorbitant interest rates in the lower northern region. On October 21, 2026, Police Lieutenant General Sanan Nuanma, the national police chief, ordered Police Major General Thinnakorn Rangmat, deputy commander of the Crime Suppression Division, to urgently investigate and arrest members of the network operating illegal loan applications that deceived and lured the public into borrowing through social media.
The order followed the shocking case of a mother and two children found dead in a Pathum Thani rental room, where investigators discovered a fake loan application created to swindle borrowers. The gang operated covertly, concealing identities to evade detection, causing damage to the national economy, financial institutions, and the public, with large sums of money circulating through the network.
Recently, Police Colonel Kritachan Bumrungratsayot, chief of Sub-division 4, along with several deputy chiefs and investigators, obtained a search warrant from the Phitsanulok Provincial Court to raid six targets in Phitsanulok province. They arrested six men aged 25 to 45: Atthaphon, Sawat, Phanuwat, Chawalwit, Thanakorn, and Yodying. Seized items included loan advertising materials with QR codes, a 9mm CZ 2075 semi-automatic pistol with 29 rounds, 10 mobile phones, two computers, and 52,320 baht in cash.
Investigation revealed that since early October 2026, the gang created a loan application to trick victims into transferring money, with numerous victims identified. The network charged interest rates exceeding legal limits and operated personal lending businesses without licenses. They functioned as an organized network with divided roles to launder and conceal proceeds.
Undercover investigators infiltrated the network, discovering approximately 100 members. Atthaphon, Sawat, Phanuwat, and Chawalwit acted as team leaders controlling collection staff across lower northern provinces. Thanakorn served as system administrator, while Yodying owned the illegal lending operation. Financial investigation uncovered about 1,000 customers including business owners, merchants, students, and civil servants, with monthly circulation of approximately 10 million baht. Multiple bank accounts were used to transfer proceeds from the loan application.
The application managed operations through regional administrators. Investigators tracked suspects in the field to gather evidence, obtained court warrants, searched premises, and seized evidence for prosecution.
