In Phuket, Russians lost 1.

What happened: In Phuket, Russian tourists reported a loss of a total of approximately 1.5 million baht after booking and prepaying rent for several luxury villas, which in the end were either not provided or turned out to be fake offers. Information about the fraud was published by the local English-language publication The Phuket News, which drew attention to a series of complaints from Russians who were injured while trying rent properties for recreation.

Who was injured: According to The Phuket News, the victims are Russian tourists who rented through online platforms and instant messengers. The amount of total losses indicated in the publication is about 1.5 million baht.

The names of the victims are not given in open materials. Actions of the authorities and the police: After the publications and the receipt of statements from tourists, the local police and specialized units began to check the alleged facts of fraud.

The Phuket News also mentioned that there are broader law enforcement operations in the region against criminal networks that use real estate and hospitality to launder money and cover up fraudulent activities. For reference: Larger raids on hotels and properties in Phuket reported by Thai media (Thairath.co.th, Thai Examiner) show the authorities' efforts to check illegal hotels and related financial flows, but the direct links between individual raids and a specific case of villa fraud must be confirmed by official police statements.

Seizures and arrests: Selected reports (Thai Examiner, The Phuket News) pointed to major operations by the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) and the Phuket Police against organized financial networks associated with Russian business structures on the island. As part of these operations, significant sums were reported seized from related persons (in other materials, hundreds of millions or billions of baht were mentioned in large-scale cases).

In open publications dedicated specifically to the scam with villas for tourists, arrests and investigations were named, but detailed information about specific detainees in the case with 1.5 million baht is not given in available sources. Media commentary and