Thai Businessman Scammed of $90,000 in Gold Deal Gone Wrong: Two Liberians Arrested

Thai Businessman Scammed of $90,000 in Gold Deal Gone Wrong: Two Liberians Arrested.

Two Liberian men have been arrested for defrauding a Thai businessman of US$90,000 (approximately 3 million baht) in a counterfeit money scam involving gold bars.

Pol Col Pansa Amarapitak, chief of the Thong Lor police station, stated that Solomon Varney Gaddeh, 32, and Yousouf Cherif, 50, were apprehended late Saturday night while walking along Udomsuk Road in Bangkok’s Bang Na district.

The arrests came after the owner of an iron and gold ore importing company filed a complaint, alleging that two African men had stolen $90,000 in cash during a transaction to purchase 2 kilograms of gold on January 2.

According to the complaint, the businessman was initially contacted by a man identified only as “Richard” via Facebook. Richard had offered to sell him 2 kilograms of gold bars at a price below market value. The victim agreed to meet and pay Richard $90,000 in cash at the car park of the Ibis Bangkok hotel on Soi Sukhumvit 24.

At the meeting, the businessman encountered Gaddeh and Cherif instead of Richard. Speaking via phone, Richard told the businessman that the two men were his associates and instructed him to drive them to a nearby outdoor parking area where the gold bars would be presented.

Once at the new location, the businessman inspected the gold bars and found no irregularities. The two suspects, seated in the back of the car, requested to count the $90,000 in cash, which had been placed in a bag on the front passenger seat.

During this process, Richard initiated a video call with the businessman, distracting him. This allowed the two men to swap the genuine banknotes with counterfeit bills.

After handing the bag back to the businessman, the suspects claimed they needed to retrieve their passports and asked to exit the car, taking the gold bars with them. They assured the victim they would return in five minutes.

After waiting for over an hour and failing to reach Richard or the two men, the businessman inspected the cash and noticed the texture of the bills felt suspicious. A subsequent check at a nearby bank confirmed the money was counterfeit.

Pol Col Pansa reported that the suspects admitted to tricking the businessman but revealed that the stolen money had already been transferred abroad. Authorities are continuing their investigation and believe that three additional accomplices were involved in the scam.