The Royal Thai Police Force’s Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB) has arrested a former Muay Thai champion for allegedly running an illegal, large-scale online gambling network that generated over ฿100m ($2.7m).
On Tuesday, the CCIB’s Police Major General Chatchapandhakan Klaikluengon identified one of the network’s key administrators as the ex-flyweight pro Puenkon Tor Surat.
A Thai boxing commentator shared a May 2022 image of the former 2016 Sports Authority of Thailand Fighter of the Year on X as he was considering retiring from the combat sport:
Puenkon Tor Surat hung up his gloves in May 2022, but appears to have gotten his hands dirty by being caught up in the CCIB’s months-long “Knock Out 100-Million Gambling Website” operation.
The special investigators tracked suspicious transactions from website “g2g69bet” and found the platform “processed extensive financial activity consistent with organised gambling.”
According to Thai daily The Nation, the CCIB’s knockout blow came after official confirmation of Puenkon Tor Surat’s involvement led a court to approve search and arrest warrants. Subsequent raids executed across Thailand resulted in the arrests of the ex-champ and seven other suspects and the seizure of ATM cards, bank books, mobiles, and computers allegedly linked to online gambling and money transfers.
started out as a side job
Under police questioning, Puenkon Tor Surat admitted to operating the illegal site upon his retirement, and that it started out as a side job. The former Muay Tuay household name known for his devastating southpaw high kicks confessed that the illegal site “became his main source of income.”
