Thailand's Department of Special Investigation (DSI) is seeking the extradition of two individuals, one Hungarian and another Singaporean, involved in the notorious Forex-3D scam. The Thai Criminal Court has already issued an arrest warrant against the two foreigners.
The Hungarian model, Eddy Polgari, and the Singaporean national, Daryl Cai Younghui, are among the 16 suspects in the massive forex Ponzi scheme . Both are believed to be close friends of Forex-3D owner Apiruk Kothi, who was arrested in January 2021.
According to the Thai authorities, Polgari left Thailand in January 2021, while Younghui fled the country on October 25, 2021.
The DSI will now collaborate with the Bureau of Foreign Affairs and Transnational Crime to extradite the two foreign suspects to Thailand. The Thai authority will further request Interpol to issue a Red Notice, an international permit for global law enforcement for the provisional arrest of a wanted person.
High Returns
Kothi created the Forex-3D website in March 2015 after setting up the RMS Familia Company with some friends. The forex investment platform offered a lucrative 10 percent return on investment with the condition that investors must keep their money on the platform for at least three months.
The company claimed to use a team of forex experts and artificial intelligence technology to manage the investments.
Apart from the absurd return promises, the scheme model should also have raised red flags. Forex-3D operated as a classic Ponzi scheme, incentivizing existing investors to bring in new investors.
The scheme even managed to onboard several Thai celebrities for endorsements. Among the suspects running the scheme were actor Pattanapon 'DJ Man' Minthakhin and his singer-wife Suteewan 'Baitoey' Thaweesin. Movie actress, Savika Chaiyadej, nicknamed 'Pinky' and her elder brother and mother were also involved in the Ponzi scheme and have been charged.
Forex-3D blew out when the company experienced liquidity problems in late 2018 and delayed monthly dividend payments for several months. In addition, it prompted investors to request complete withdrawals of their funds, resulting in a complete collapse of the scheme.
A Massive Scam
The DSI received complaints from more than 9,000 investors who invested around two billion baht ($55 million) in the scheme. However, the actual number of investors is believed to be much higher, with a possible total investment of 20 billion baht ($554.7 million).
The Thai authorities already raided several locations linked to Kothi and his network members in 2019, seizing cash, expensive vehicles and several documents among other valuable items.
In another forex scam in Thailand, the popular YouTuber, Natthamon Khongchak, known to her followers as 'Nutty', defrauded more than 6,000 people of around $55 million. She claimed to be a successful forex trader and financial coach and promised investors 25 percent in returns for three months contracts, 30 percent for six months, and 35 percent for a year.
