Thai police arrested a Chinese man yesterday who is wanted in China on murder charges and has been on the run for about 36 years, living in Pattaya under a Thai name and allegedly fraudulently obtaining a Thai ID card before building a business empire and acquiring land worth nearly 100 million baht.
The fugitive, identified as Chu Che Chan, 67, had been the subject of an Interpol Red Notice since 2020. He was using the Thai name Suchart Surachai, according to the Thai ID card issued in Phop Phra district of Tak province.
Police, acting on an arrest warrant issued by the Pattaya Provincial Court, raided his luxury home in Nong Prue sub-district, Bang Lamung district, Chon Buri province, yesterday and arrested him.
According to police, Chu allegedly fled China after committing an intentional murder in Taizhou, Zhejiang province, in January 1990. He initially fled to Myanmar before illegally entering Thailand.
Investigators found that he allegedly assumed the identity of a Karen person in 2001 to obtain a Thai ID card in Phop Phra district. He reportedly paid 50,000 baht for the arrangement and subsequently adopted the name Suchart Surachai.
After settling in Pattaya, he invested in the tourism sector and built up a business network comprising five companies, including hotels, restaurants, a coffee shop and a tour company. The businesses have combined registered capital of more than 89 million baht.
He also married a Chinese woman and has 12-year-old twin children, a boy and a girl, who were granted Thai citizenship.
Officials found that he had changed his household registration details eight times over a 13-year period. His identity was eventually exposed when he applied for a visa to travel back to China, prompting Chinese authorities to detect irregularities and coordinate with Thailand’s Interior Ministry.
During a search of his approximately 90-square-wah home, officials found that the swimming pool at the rear of the property had been converted into a large underground room, which was allegedly used to store numerous antiques and amulets. The items were seized for examination.
Officials also found that he owned 11 plots of land in central Pattaya, with a combined value of nearly 100 million baht.
Deputy National Police Chief Pol Gen Samran Nuanma and Department of Provincial Administration director-general Naruetcha Khosavilai briefed the media on the arrest yesterday.
Authorities are also investigating whether Thai officials were involved in helping Chu obtain his Thai ID card. The Department of Provincial Administration said it had received information suggesting that several other foreigners may have obtained Thai identity documents through similar means.
Naruetcha said authorities would take legal action under the Deportation Act and establish a fact-finding committee to investigate the issuance of the Thai ID card in Phop Phra district.
Officials said the investigation would be expanded to identify and dismantle any network involved in the fraudulent acquisition of Thai identity documents.
