More than 50 victims have filed a complaint with the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau accusing a gang—led by a man posing as a priest—of falsely promising legal employment in South Korea. The scam left them 63,000 baht out of pocket.
The victims, from Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai provinces, submitted evidence to the police, revealing that the so-called priest acted as an illegal broker through online platforms. He claimed to legally arrange jobs in South Korea, but no one was ever sent abroad despite paying significant fees.
Wuttichai Daruntaworn, a representative of the victims, explained that in 2023, a Thai man around 35 years old posing as a priest posted on Facebook, advertising legal job placements in South Korea. He claimed to have studied religion and language in South Korea, and to have returned to work at a church in Chiang Rai. He told people he had connections within Thailand’s Ministry of Labour and executives in South Korean industrial estates, enabling him to legally help applicants obtain E-9 work visas.
Since he appeared to be a priest, and most of the victims were devout Christians, many believed him without hesitation. They contacted him in hopes of earning money abroad. He would personally meet them before adding them to a LINE chat group, where a “group admin” provided further details.
For their fee, they were promised legal employment in South Korea for three years, with a possible one-year extension, and a guaranteed monthly salary of at least 55,000 baht.
Trusting the priest, victims paid a 10,000 baht deposit directly to him to reserve their spots. The remaining amount was transferred to the admin’s account. The admin told them the visa process would take 4–6 months, after which they’d be able to travel.
However, no one ever travelled. When questioned, the admin offered various excuses—such as documentation issues or delays due to investigations at the Ministry of Labour—promising revised travel dates 3–4 months later. Many victims continued to wait, clinging to hope.
In January 2025, the priest unexpectedly passed away, and shortly after, the admin left the chat group and disappeared.
Wuttichai told CityNews that this scam was a well-organised operation with the priest and his wife receiving 10,000 baht per victim and the remainder going to the couple who ran the admin side of the scam.
To date, around 100 victims have been identified, with total damages exceeding 6 million baht. However, authorities believe there may be many more who haven’t come forward, either out of resignation or to avoid the hassle.
Authorities have confirmed that some perpetrators are still in Thailand, and the cybercrime police have pledged to pursue the case urgently to ensure justice for the victims.
