Bogus ID cards scam spiralling out of controlGangs have made over B1bn in the past 3 yearsKANCHANABURI : More than 10,000 foreigners have obtained Thai ID cards illegally over the past three years and the gangs behind the scam have made over one billion baht out of the illegal business, a watchdog says.
Ampol Wongsiri, secretary-general of the Public Sector Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC), yesterday said the discovery was made after officials were told to look into records of ID card issuance over the past three years.
The probe was ordered by Justice Minister Pirapan Salirathavibhaga after the case of a Nepalese man being issued with a Thai ID card in Thong Pha Phum district came to light last week.
The man, known as Aman, was identified on his Thai ID card as Tui Kuljarukit. The name and household registration number were found to be fake and issued to him by local officials.
Mr Aman had worked as a tailor in Silom and allegedly went to Thong Pha Phum for the sole purpose of securing a Thai national ID card.
Most foreigners illegally entering Thailand and obtaining bogus Thai ID cards were Nepalese, Burmese, ethnic Mon and Rohingya, Mr Ampol said.
The justice minister would ask the Department of Provincial Administration to investigate Thong Pha Phum district office chief Thaworn Lilaphan for possible disciplinary action, Mr Ampol said.
The kickbacks paid to government officials involved in the alleged scam came to as much as 20 million baht a month, he said.
Each foreigner seeking a fake Thai ID card was thought to have paid 120,000-150,000 baht.
At the Thong Pha Phum district office alone about 10 people applied for a new ID card each day, Mr Ampol said.
He said the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) would investigate to find the brokers who helped arrange for the immigrants to obtain the ID cards.
The PACC would also seek cooperation from the National Anti-Corruption Commission and Anti-Money Laundering Office to speed up the probe as the problem was being treated as a national security matter.
A source in Thong Pha Phum district said the fake ID card problem had become rampant over the past three to four years and the main buyers were Nepalese in Bangkok and other tourist districts.
Officials said up to four gangs were behind the scam. The gangs could help their clients get the cards within a day, the source said.
The immigrants sometimes travelled in a group by van to get their cards.
The Thai names and addresses were prepared for them by government officials and the first names given usually were of one syllable because it was easier for the immigrants to remember them and fake their signatures, said the source.
Most of the cards issued illegally to foreigners in Thong Pha Phum were so-called smart cards, the latest type of ID cards, said the source.
Stateless people applying for Thai citizenship have also fallen victim to the scam.
Over 12,000 stateless people in the district were eligible to have their nationality verified to become Thai citizens but only about 4,000 people had submitted applications, said the source.
Of this number, 2,000 people have been approved to receive Thai nationality, said the source.
The Department of Provincial Administration had assigned 13-digit ID numbers for them, but many of these people had fallen victim to a gang asking for bribes in exchange for help to speed up the ID card issuing process.
They were asked to pay 15,000-20,000 baht each, while those who were not qualified to receive Thai nationality were encouraged to pay 30,000-100,000 baht, in return for which the gang promised it would lobby officials to change their mind.
Civil servants, politicians and Thai and foreign brokers were involved in the scam, said the source.
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