Cambodian man arrested over fake passport stamps

>> Sa Kaeo immigration police yesterday arrested a Cambodian man for allegedly procuring a fake passport stamp for his compatriots at the Rong Kluea border market.

The suspect was identified as Janthon Yan, 28. He was detained by immigration police at the market in Aranyaprathet district.

The arrest was conducted after local immigration police received a tip-off that a passport stamp forgery gang was operating at the Aranyaprathet border checkpoint.

An initial investigation found Janthon Yan was a gang member. Police later arrested the man by using a Cambodian woman as a decoy, posing as a migrant who wanted to enter Thailand to lure the suspect.

Police also seized and destroyed two passports with fake stamps of Samut Prakan’s Immigration Division 3 in them and 15 counterfeit passport stamps. Of the 15 stamps, 14 belong to Samut Prakan’s Immigration Division 3 and another to the Sa Kaeo Immigration Police.

During police questioning, Janthon Yan confessed he had bought the rubber stamps worth about 50,000 baht from a Cambodian friend in Poipet across the border.

He would target only Cambodian migrants who wanted to work in Samut Prakan as most of his stamps belonged to Samut Prakan immigration. Customers would pay 8,000 baht each for the stamp.