A Thai actor faked royal family ties and swindled over 10 million baht from an 87 year old retired teacher, claiming his mother was suffering from cancer.
The elderly victim, Samai, sought assistance from non-profit organisation Saimai Survive after the significant loss shattered her retirement plans. The suspect, Karn, was a supporting actor in a Thai television drama series and also claimed to be a Mom Luang, a noble title granted to the great-grandchildren of a king.
Samai stated that she first met Karn in 2019 when she was teaching at a school in Bangkok. Karn visited the school as a volunteer and participated in numerous activities to support children’s education.
He frequently mentioned that his father was a high-ranking police officer and trainer at the Royal Police Cadet Academy and often showed photographs of himself in an official white uniform adorned with various decorations and medals.
Karn’s identification card clearly displayed the Mom Luang title, which led Samai and other teachers to trust him. The school board held him and his family in high regard and allowed him to play a prominent role in several school events.
His fraudulent actions reportedly began in 2021, when Karn borrowed 300,000 baht from Samai, claiming it was needed for his mother’s cancer treatment. He continued to borrow money on two more occasions, each time for 300,000 baht, stating that his mother had not yet recovered.
Samai said she agreed to lend him the money because Karn appeared trustworthy due to his claimed noble lineage and television career.
She gradually transferred more money to Karn upon his requests until her remaining savings of 3.5 million baht were completely depleted. She even handed over her gold necklace and other jewellery, bringing the total financial damage to approximately 10 million baht.
Samai later discovered that all of Karn’s claims about his royal family ties were fabricated. He forged an identification card and concocted an entirely false background.
After confronting Karn in an attempt to recover her money and valuables, Karn allegedly promised to repay her by the end of the month.
Samai has not yet filed a police report, hoping he will honour his promise. However, she insisted that she would take legal action if repayment is not made as promised.
Samai added that she was not the only victim; other teachers at the same school also believed Karn’s deceit and gave him money. One teacher, Phitsamai, ignored Samai’s warnings and continued to support Karn financially.
Karn’s father, who resides in the Isaan province of Khon Kaen, denied any knowledge of his son’s fraudulent activities and claimed he is also unable to contact Karn since the scandal emerged.
The story Thai actor poses as royal family to swindle old woman out of 10 million baht as seen on Thaiger News.
