Thai model arrested for promoting illegal gambling sites
Published date: Fri, 13 Sep 2024 16:17:34 +0700
A female influencer was arrested by police for illegally promoting online gambling on her social media accounts.
Araya Suwannachote, 28, reportedly advertised gambling websites before she was caught by police at her home in Bangkok, Thailand, on September 9.
Police Captain Pratchaya Khotsakha of the Metropolitan Police Bureau's Investigation Division said they found posts in the model's pages allegedly inviting her followers to gamble online.
He added that they raided her house on a search warrant from the Minburi Criminal Court. They seized her phone and computer and found she was running Facebook and Instagram accounts with more than 200,000 followers.
Araya, described in local reports as a 'fairy-like beauty', is believed to have amassed the large follower count by showing off her petite figure in revealing dresses, bikinis, and lingerie.
The police boss said: 'During the arrest, the suspect admitted to all charges. She confessed that she posted advertisements for online gambling websites herself after being hired to promote these sites. She received around 40,000 baht per month. She had been doing this since early this year.'
Araya claimed she was driven to do illegal advertising because she was 'misled' and was suffering financial problems. She was taken to the Romklao Police Station to face legal action.
On July 30, another female influencer was detained for allegedly running an illegal gambling website for her breast implants.
Chutima or 'Soda' was said to have been operating the online gambling site Zigma911 with more than four billion baht (91 million GBP) in deposits.
She was caught at the Suvarnabhumi International Airport after authorities found Zigma911 ads on Facebook and LINE promoting gambling games, including baccarat, slots, lottery, and sports betting.
The arrests came amid a crackdown by the Cyber Crime Prevention and Suppression Special Operations Unit on digital crimes, including online gambling, underground lotteries, and call centre gangs.
