The top leader of a Japanese call center and human trafficking gang was arrested—Deputy Police Chief Pol. Gen. Thatchai joined forces with Japanese police to apprehend him in the Thonglor area of Bangkok.
Following Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s policy to eradicate call center gangs and human trafficking from Thailand, the Royal Thai Police under Police Chief Pol. Gen. Kittirat Phanpetch ordered Deputy Police Chief Pol. Gen. Thatchai Pitanilabutr, who also directs the Anti-Human Trafficking Center, to collaborate internationally to prevent deception of foreign nationals using Thailand as a transit point to force labor in call center gangs in neighboring countries, while strictly cracking down on call center gangs as per the Prime Minister’s directive.
On 6 June 2026, under the leadership of Deputy Police Chief Pol. Gen. Thatchai Pitanilabutr and Immigration Bureau Commander Pol. Lt. Gen. Phanumas Boonyalak, along with senior officers including Pol. Maj. Gen. Pantha Nuchnarat and Pol. Maj. Gen. Thanit Thaiwatcharamat, and investigators led by Pol. Lt. Col. Witthaya Thongphueng and Pol. Capt. Jurinchat Sota, the investigative team arrested Mr. Sasaki, 39, a Japanese national and leader of a Japanese call center gang based in Poipet, Cambodia, in the Thonglor area, Khlong Tan Nuea, Watthana District, Bangkok.
Mr. Sasaki is wanted under an arrest warrant issued by Nagoya Court, Japan, as the head of a fraudulent operation that deceived Japanese citizens causing damage worth billions of yen. He operated from Cambodia. According to Japanese authorities, he is a key figure commanding a transnational call center gang network and was charged by Nagoya Court on 1 April 2026 for fraud-related offenses.
This case began when Japanese police investigated and expanded their inquiry into call center gangs in Cambodia that defrauded Japanese citizens. They discovered Mr. Sasaki as the chief mastermind with a network spanning multiple countries, hiding in Thailand with his family. The Anti-Human Trafficking Center assigned the Immigration Bureau to track him down, leading to his successful arrest. He will be extradited to Japan for prosecution.
Furthermore, Japanese authorities found that this network is linked to transnational crime groups using Cambodia as their base, deceiving victims through call center operations. There is also evidence connecting them to trafficking and forcing people to work in these operations, a form of transnational human trafficking. Law enforcement agencies in multiple countries are intensifying efforts to combat this crime.
Deputy Police Chief Pol. Gen. Thatchai emphasized that cracking down on call center gangs and human trafficking is a key policy of the Prime Minister and the Police Chief. Collaboration with Japan and other countries is crucial to prevent Thailand from being used as a transit point for forced labor in neighboring countries’ call center gangs, as well as to dismantle call center networks by targeting and arresting key leaders for prosecution. This will significantly disrupt these criminal cycles.