More than 300 police officers raided 32 companies on Koh Pha Ngan this morning, May 13, as part of a crackdown on suspected foreign nominee businesses allegedly using Thai nationals to hold land on behalf of foreigners.
Deputy national police chief Samran Nualma led the operation at 9am alongside officers from multiple police units, including the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau, Immigration Bureau, Provincial Police Region 8, Surat Thani police and Crime Suppression Division officers.
Police searched 32 target companies on Koh Pha Ngan. The companies reportedly hold 37 land plots worth around 150 million baht through suspected nominee arrangements designed to bypass Thai foreign business laws.
Investigators also sought to arrest four suspects linked to alleged illegal foreign business operations and nominee shareholding schemes. The group included one foreign national and three Thai nationals.
DailyNews reported that during the searches, officers seized company registration records, shareholder documents, meeting reports, land title deeds, land sale agreements, lease contracts and management agreements.
Police also confiscated financial evidence, including bank account records, income and expenditure statements, and documents related to international money transfers. Digital data and computer equipment were also seized for further examination.
Similarly, Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul visited Koh Pha Ngan and Koh Samui in Surat Thani today, following investigations into more than 10,000 businesses operated by foreigners through Thai nominees.
The Department of Business Development (DBD) and the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) recently launched a nationwide crackdown targeting illegal foreign-operated businesses using Thai nationals as nominees, particularly in major tourist destinations.
Officials reported that southern Thailand had the highest number of suspected nominee-run operations. On Koh Pha Ngan and Koh Samui alone, investigators identified 11,426 companies allegedly linked to foreign ownership through Thai nominees.
According to officials, 3,212 suspected illegal businesses were located on Koh Pha Ngan, while another 8,214 were found on Koh Samui.
The story Koh Pha Ngan nominee raids target 32 suspected companies as seen on Thaiger News.
