It’s reported that Immigration police have taken British man Mark Hallett, 48, from Somerset, into custody today in Bangkok, allegedly for overstaying his visa.
Hallett has been wanted in the UK for his part in an alleged Ponzi scheme fraud that may have netted him THB203 million (GBP3.9 million).
According to Thaivisa, Hallett was arrested by officers from Thonglor police station and is being held at an Immigration detention center. The officers thought they were processing an immigration matter but soon found out that Hallett had a UK warrant for his arrest since 2010, when he failed to appear in South Somerset to face 13 charges of fraud and money laundering.
The fraud charges are related to allegations of a Ponzi scheme that happened between 2007 and 2009, with a total gain by the perpetrator (and loss to the victims) of GBP3,897,000.
The money laundering charges are related to a withdrawal of GBP3.5 million and wire transfer of GBP36,500 that was sent to several Thai bank accounts, according to a 2010 report from Somerset Live.
Police in Thonglor may be investigating further claims that Hallett has allegedly been involved in another Ponzi scheme here in Bangkok.
Local police have received complaints about Hallett from alleged victims, who claim he convinced them to invest in a scheme to make money extracting copper from scrap metal.
