Four Brits among 62 foreigners arrested in property crackdown on Thai island

Four British nationals were among 62 foreigners arrested in a property crackdown on a Thai island.

Polpheer Suwannachee, deputy minister of interior, launched the seventh phase of a crackdown on nominee business networks on Koh Samui in Surat Thani on August 15.

More than 300 officers were deployed to raid illegal businesses and arrest foreign nationals holding and operating them using Thai proxies.

Officials examined all 12,906 legal entities on the island and flagged 59 suspicious companies linked to 37 plots of land and buildings covering more than 12.25 acres (31 rai), with a combined value of around 1.2 billion baht.

This led to prosecution in 60 cases involving 88 suspects, comprising 26 Thais and 62 foreign nationals.

The Koh Samui Provincial Court issued 37 warrants, resulting in 14 arrests.

The suspects included four Chinese and four British nationals, as well as one each from Italy, France, the Netherlands, Austria, the Philippines and the United States.

Authorities said the raids targeted five 'significant' companies.

The first was an Israeli network of 19 companies that used multi-layered corporate structures and Thai proxy shareholders. It operated an unlicensed preschool nursery and engaged in purchasing, developing, selling and leasing luxury villas to foreign clients.

The second group was a German network of four companies that conducted real estate businesses and constructed luxury villas on steep hillsides, potentially exceeding legal limits and putting the validity of building permits at risk.

Villa sales were conducted by altering partner shares within proxy companies to evade land transaction taxes and corporate income taxes.

The third group involved a Thai national who established 27 companies for foreigners to secure work permits or one-year long-term business visas, despite registry details contradicting the actual activities.

The fourth group comprised 16 companies that were initially registered using only Thai nationals to bypass document submission procedures.

Foreigners were subsequently introduced into the shareholding structures to apply for work permits and convert visa types to business visas without engaging in genuine business operations.

The final group involved two companies which were raided following intelligence from the French Embassy in Thailand about a French national accused of defrauding investors of more than 21 million baht in cannabis farm investments.

Surat Thani Immigration conducted an investigation and found that the defrauded funds were used to form a company using Thai proxies to hold shares, purchase land and construct a luxury hotel equipped with a swimming pool and tennis court.

Furthermore, a company was established to manage the hotel through a disguised lease agreement, advertising daily stays on websites at rates ranging from 11,000 to 17,000 baht per night without securing a hotel operating permit.

Police General Samran Nualma, deputy national police chief, said the operation is part of a campaign to crack down on nominee networks in major Thai tourist destinations.

He added: ‘After the execution of six previous phases, we inspected 238 companies and 272 land plots spanning more than 184 rai (72.7 acres), with land and property values totalling approximately 2.839 billion baht, leading to the issuance of 178 arrest warrants.

‘The operation aims to restore order in key tourist provinces such as Surat Thani, Phuket, Krabi, Phang Nga, Chonburi and Prachuap Khiri Khan, ensuring foreign investment and business operations comply strictly with the law to prevent foreign capital groups from taking unfair advantage and damaging local occupations.

‘We will suppress nominee networks, including corrupt state officials involved, to foster transparency and public and business confidence, while continuously expanding investigations and crackdowns to all regions across the country.'

Previously, Thai police launched the sixth phase of a crackdown on nominee business networks in Hua Hin district in Prachuap Khiri Khan, on August 10.

During the operation, officers issued arrest warrants for 45 foreigners and 39 Thai nationals, along with 15 search warrants.