In an episode that seems straight out of a crime thriller, the quiet and serene environment of a temple in Nakhon Ratchasima was shattered by the arrival of police officers. They were not there to seek blessings but to arrest a nun clad in white, a figure of tranquility, now at the center of a storm. This was no ordinary nun, but Mingkhwan, a fugitive entangled in the web of the notorious Ufun international pyramid scheme—a deception so grand it convinced thousands to part with over 10 billion baht.
The story unfolds in the small locality of tambon Kritsana, Sikhiu district, where amidst the chanting and the peaceful daily routines, hid Mingkhwan, more than two years on the run from the law. Her sanctuary? A temple, where her secrets were as safe as the sacred relics. However, her past caught up with her when officers from the Consumer Protection Police Division (CPPD), equipped with an arrest warrant from December 30, 2021, came knocking. She was wanted for colluding in transnational crime and public fraud, a cloak of darkness under her robe of innocence.
The Ufun scandal, first catching public attention in 2015, was a masterclass in deception. It promised untold riches through investments in the U-Token, a cryptocurrency that was anything but valuable, and various products. A classic pyramid scheme, its only success was in building a mountain of lies that inevitably crumbled, leaving behind a trail of financial devastation.
Investigations into this elaborate scam led to the arrest of 164 individuals, leaving 14,700 victims in financial ruin, all duped out of at least 10 billion baht. In a twist of poetic justice, the Criminal Court, in March 2017, handed down sentences totaling 12,267 years to 22 defendants, a number so staggering it seems borrowed from a work of fiction. Yet, the bounds of legal reality cap such sentences at 20 years.
Further justice was meted out by the Supreme Court in July of the previous year, affirming 20-year sentences for five central orchestrators. This cabal was also ordered to return more than 300 million baht they had stolen, a small solace to the countless lives they shattered.
As the investigative gears of the CPPD continued to grind, information surfaced about Mingkhwan’s sanctuary at the temple. Confronted by law enforcement, she admitted her identity, the confirmation sealing her fate, yet she remained silent under questioning, perhaps contemplating the impermanence of freedom. Her apprehension was a sequel to another capture, that of the wife of a Ufun executive in Si Sa Ket, marking almost nine years in hiding. Known only as Ratthakitbovorn, she faced accusations of collusion in transnational crime, public fraud, and money laundering.
This saga of deceit and its unraveling reads like a modern-day morality tale, reminding us that even in places of peace and sanctity, shadows can lurk, harboring secrets that, once disclosed, remind us of the eternal battle between right and wrong.
Honestly, finding her in a temple of all places raises so many questions about the sanctity of religious institutions. How could they not know?
It’s unfair to blame the temple. Such places are open to all seeking refuge. Judging without understanding the whole story only spreads more negativity.
You have a point, but you can’t deny the irony here. A scam artist hiding in plain sight under the guise of spirituality. Doesn’t that bother you just a little?
Not every temple or religious institution has the resources to background check every individual seeking shelter. Compassion is at the heart of their teachings, not suspicion.
Let’s not divert. The real issue is the audacity of the scam. How people exploit the trust of others on such a massive scale is what’s truly appalling.
The numbers are staggering. 12,267 years of sentencing? Yet capped at 20 years? It feels like a mockery of justice to the victims.
Legally, sentences in many jurisdictions are capped for practical and rehabilitation reasons. But I agree, to the affected, it hardly feels like justice.
As someone directly affected by the Ufun scam, no amount of jail time feels enough. They destroyed lives, savings, futures. 20 years is a joke.
Interesting to see cryptocurrency being used as the bait here. Goes to show you how these scams evolve with technology.
Exactly, and it’s alarming how people are easily swayed by the lure of quick riches in the crypto world. Education on these matters is key.
Education helps, but so does regulation. The wild west days of crypto should be ending, yet the regulations seem always to lag behind.
Not all crypto is a scam, though. It’s important not to throw the baby out with the bathwater. Blockchain has legitimate, revolutionary uses.
This story reads like a movie script. Tempted to feel bad for Mingkhwan but then I remember the victims.
Scams like these aren’t new. They’re as old as time. The methods change, but the goal remains the same: deception for profit.
We need to understand what drives people to commit such acts. Perhaps it’s a reflection of societal pressures more than individual malice.