Moment police raid mansion in Thailand, arrest five alleged Aussie investment scammers

This is the wild moment police storm a mansion in Thailand and arrest 13 men including five Aussies at gunpoint for allegedly running an investment scam.

Dramatic footage shows the moment Thai police raid a mansion in Bangkok, arresting 13 people including five Australians, allegedly running a scam centre.

The scammers allegedly cold-called residents in Australia to fleece victims out of millions of dollars.

The centre has now been shut down following an investigation by the Australian Federal Police (AFP), under the Joint Policing Cybercrime Coordination Centre’s (JPC3) Operation Firestorm.

The operation’s success followed a tip-off that Australians had been recruited into the scam. The AFP passed the intelligence to the Royal Thai Police (RTP) which led to the raid and arrests on Monday.

Moment Thai police raid a mansion in Bangkok, arresting 13 people including five Australians, allegedly running a scam centre.

Five Australian citizens (aged between 43 and 51), six UK nationals, one Canadian and one South African have been arrested and charged by Thai police with offences relating to conspiracy to commit an offence, contrary to section 210 of the Thai Criminal Code.

This offence carries a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment.

Footage shows the moment armed Thai authorities stormed through the front door yelling “freeze” and “get down” to the suspected scammers.

Multiple cubicles fit with laptops can be seen in a room of the six-bedroom mansion, along with scripts hanging in each section.

The scammers allegedly cold-called residents in Australia to fleece victims out of millions of dollars.

The AFP said as part of the alleged criminal network’s pitch to build trust and fleece victims, they used a “well-orchestrated and detailed script” that involved high-pressure sales tactics and forged documentation.

Digital spreadsheet containing a list of thousands of potential Australian targets, was also discovered.

It is alleged they robbed multiple victims in Australia since April this year – when operations started out of the six-bedroom Bangkok property.

Officers said that the alleged scammers were living seemingly respectable lives but arrived at the call centre every day to target new victims.

They were allegedly running a boiler room gang that targeted elderly victims.

They allegedly had a complex network of 60 computers they used to scam thousands of residents in Australia.

They allegedly amassed more than $1.9 million in suspected stolen funds from Australians in just two months of operating

The alleged scammers pretended to be representatives of international financial firms to sell fake high-yield fixed-income bonds – some of up to 10 per cent.

Authorities said the group moved victim funds into cryptocurrency before transferring them to other accounts, complicating recovery efforts. Officials are now reviewing seized documents to trace and possibly recover the stolen funds.

‘Most elaborate investment scams’

Cops seen storming into the luxury rented home and arresting the suspected scammers at gunpoint on Monday morning.

AFP Assistant Commissioner Richard Chin said this was one of the most elaborate investment scam operations the AFP had encountered and the collaboration with Royal Thai Police had been vital for arresting the alleged offenders and shutting down their illegal scam activities.

“Southeast Asia is fast becoming a hot spot for scam centre activity. Since the establishment of the AFP-led Operation Firestorm, three scam centres in Manila have been taken down, resulting in the seizure of thousands of digital devices and hundreds of arrests. This will be the first take-down in Thailand,” Mr Chin said.

The AFP pushed Thai officers to probe the call centre set up after receiving complaints from devastated alleged victims who had lost their life savings.

The alleged suspects were handcuffed and pushed face down onto the ground before being driven away in police trucks.

“These arrests have been a result of the dedication of the AFP and law enforcement partners in Australia and Thailand and have potentially saved tens of thousands of Australians from being financially impacted.”

In the last four years, Australians have reported more than $4.45 billion in losses from cyber-enabled fraud. In 2024 alone, Australians lost $945 million to investment scams.

Mr Chin said these financial losses destroyed the wellbeing of victims and their families.

“These syndicates do not care about their victims and are only interested in the profits this crime type can bring in,” Mr Chin said.

“Unfortunately, Australia is a big target for cybercriminals as we are a relatively prosperous country and tend to be very trusting.

“We encourage all Australians to be extremely cautious when approached by someone online offering an investment opportunity.

“If an investment opportunity seems too good to be true, then it probably is.”