COURT ISSUES FREEZING ORDER ON BHUTANESE CRYPTOCURRENCY DEALER IN THAILAND

Financial Crime on the Rise in Bhutan

In a move to combat financial crime, the Thimphu Police have frozen a bank account belonging to a Bhutanese citizen residing in Bangkok following a court order. The account was allegedly used in a scam that duped two other Bhutanese individuals seeking foreign currencies.

Investigation Reveals Scam

According to police investigations, a Bhutanese man living in Australia was tricked into exchanging his currency for Australian dollars after being contacted by someone on social media claiming to have the desired currency. After transferring Nu 116,000 to an account number provided by the scammer, he did not receive the Australian dollars as promised and reported the incident to the police last month.

Similarly, a Bhutanese student in Bangkok was duped in a similar scheme after being contacted by someone on social media claiming to have US dollars for exchange. He transferred over Nu 72,000 to the individual but did not receive the US dollars as promised. The case was reported to the police in February this year.

The police revealed that scammers in both cases allegedly hacked into social media accounts of two Bhutanese citizens and phished their bank account details. Using these accounts, the scammers sent the account numbers to the other two Bhutanese individuals seeking foreign currencies.

Bank Account Used for Cryptocurrency Dealings

During the investigation, it was found that the Bhutanese individuals whom the victims interacted with were unaware of the incidents. However, both individuals involved in the cases claimed that they received messages about amounts being deposited into their accounts but stated that the amounts were withdrawn within a few minutes.

The police said that the amounts obtained through criminal proceeds in both scam cases were eventually deposited into a Bank of Bhutan account belonging to a Bhutanese man living in Thailand who deals in cryptocurrency. The individual claimed that he was unaware of the alleged crime and thought the amount he received was for selling cryptocurrency.

Rising Financial Frauds in Bhutan

Financial frauds are on the rise in the country, with 45 such cases recorded in Thimphu alone since 2023, resulting in financial losses of over nine million ngultrum.

Caution Advised to Bhutanese Citizens Overseas

The police are urging Bhutanese citizens travelling or residing overseas to exercise caution when exchanging currency and remain vigilant. They advise individuals to use measures to secure their banking apps and verify the authenticity of online interactions to avoid falling victim to money scams.

Cases Still Under Investigation

By Kinzang Lhadon, Edited by Kipchu