The teenage son of a secretary to the Chaiyaphum mayor was brought back safely to Thailand on Wednesday after being abducted and held for ransom.
Chaitawat Keeratirat filed a complaint on Tuesday with Muang Chaiyaphum police, saying his 17-year-old son had been abducted from his university dorm in Pathum Thani and taken to Cambodia.
A scammer had called the boy and posed as a police officer to trick him into meeting and then grabbed him.
His son contacted Mr Chaitawat via Line, saying he was being held captive in Cambodia but did not know the exact location.
Mr Chaitawat then received an online message demanding 2 million baht for his son’s release. The perpetrators threatened to kill the young man if the father failed to comply.
Mr Chaitawat reported the incident to the police.
Analysis of mobile phone signals showed Mr Chaitawat’s son had been using his phone in Cambodia and was in contact with his parents the entire time during his captivity.
The police coordinated with Cambodian authorities, asking them to locate the teenager, said Pol Maj Gen Suchart Klaichanpong, commander of Chaiyaphum provincial police.
Cambodian police found the young man and took him to an immigration checkpoint. He was fined for illegal entry before being handed over to Thai police on Wednesday.
An initial investigation showed the teenager had received a call from a scam gang posing as the police — an increasingly common ruse that authorities have warned the public about.
The caller accused him of being involved in drug trafficking and coerced him to meet with them before abducting him.
