Man arrested for impersonating police officer to extort cash

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/crim...to-extort-cash

Man arrested for impersonating police officer to extort cash

• Published: 16/02/2011 at 12:00 AM
• Newspaper section: News

Police have arrested a man on charges of impersonating a police officer, extortion and theft of vehicles in Bangkok.

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Panuthit Isarowutkul, 38, is escorted to a news conference at the Police Region 6 offices after his arrest on charges of impersonating a police officer.Mr Panuthit claimed to be a deputy superintendent at Phlapphla Chai 1 Police Station and allegedly extorted money from his victims. APICHART JINAKUL

The authorities received reports of a suspicious individual believed to be impersonating a newly appointed deputy superintendent.

Panuthit Isarowutkul, 38, from Si Sa Ket, was arrested on Monday after police allegedly caught him using a police radio illegally.

They said he confessed during questioning to impersonating a police officer to extort money and steal cars.

Mr Panuthit allegedly told his victims he was the deputy superintendent of Phlapphla Chai 1 Police Station.

He was found to have police uniforms, radios, a police helmet and a fake police ID in his possession.

Police said they found out he had sold four cars. They are now investigating whether he had any accomplices.

The suspect allegedly confessed to dreaming of becoming a police officer and to pretending to be one many times in the past.

Mr Panuthit allegedly admitted to selling cars to friends with criminal records around the Phlapphla Chai area.

Bit of a shame how his life turned out. He obviously has the right qualities to be a copper.

:mid:

^ Yeah. It will be news when they start arresting police officers for impersonating police officers.

the cops just got the shits because he was cutting into their business

He sounds like a real to policeman to me. I suppose they worked out he was a fake because he wasn't giving half the money to the station commander.

Seriously that should be treated as a very serious crime for a number of good reasons. Most countries have laws that require a person to submit to an arrest by a real officer, no matter how wrongful, and this exploits those laws. Thailand is not the only Country where this happens, it also happens frequently to the illegal Mexican immigrants in America and often involves rape and robbery.

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Originally Posted by bobo746

the cops just got the shits because he was cutting into their business

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obviously, and he was giving them a bad name for charging and doing so little

and why is he smirking ?

The have apologised to him for not having accepted his pervious application to be a police officer; which was negligent given his obvious talents. They have however told him that he was breaking the law without having purchased a licence to do so, so he has to pay a whopping fine to back date his licence.

He is smirking because he can afford the fine and after he's paid it; they have said he can join the police.

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/loca...-get-away-with

It's a crime what some impersonators get away with

It might be a cry for attention or sheer lunacy, writes

• Published: 21/02/2011 at 12:00 AM
• Newspaper section: News

News reports this past week of two fraud cases involving the impersonations of a policeman and a military officer are just the latest examples of a perennial criminal practice.

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Police badges and insignia are sold at some shops in Bangkok, raising concerns as crimes are carried out by members of the public impersonating police officers. APICHART JINAKUL

Make-believe cops and military men have been found over the years operating under a range of motives, varying from simple self-promotion to extortion and sometimes even murder.

The first of the two most recent cases involved a 38-year-old man from Si Sa Ket who tricked businessmen into loaning him their cars, which he then made off with and sold to second-hand car dealers.

Panuthit Issarovutkul was arrested as he posed as a deputy superintendent of Phlapphla Chai 1 Police Station.

Police said he was dressed in the full uniform of a lieutenant colonel and possessed a police radio and the appropriate insignia and pins to signify the rank, which he had bought from a shop which sells police supplies.

He allegedly told police he approached businessmen around Worachak Road and asked to borrow their car.

Before his arrest in Pomprap Sattruphai district on Tuesday last week, he had identified himself as a police officer on a mission from Government House and commandeered a Honda Civic from a businessman.
He told the owner he needed the car to urgently pick up his superior.

Mr Panuthit allegedly confessed to having driven the car to a used-car dealership belonging to a man named Od near the expressway in Rarm Intra. He sold the vehicle to Od for 130,000 baht.

The suspect has been charged initially with cheating and possessing and using a radio transmitter without permission.

Police said the Honda Civic was one of four cars Mr Panuthit "borrowed".

The suspect told police his dream job was to be a policeman.

"I've always wanted to be a policeman and I've posed as one many times," he is said to have told police.

Army officers are another commonly impersonated profession.

Krissana Bunna allegedly put on her sister's army private uniform last week and defrauded people by telling them she could help them be enrolled at the army privates' school.

Police said Ms Krissana, 25, claimed she had connections with a senior figure in the army who could guarantee a place in the school in return for a gratuity of 30,000 baht.

It is not clear how many people she cheated.

However, she allegedly told the arresting officers in her home province of Surin that she knew some soldiers based in Saraburi who assured her they could "reserve" seats in the army school if she wanted.

Experts say the impersonation of those in uniform is a psychological condition caused by an unfulfilled desire for fame and recognition.

Pol Maj Gen Supisan Pakdeenarunart, commander of the Crime Suppression Division, said police officers were a popular choice to impersonate as the profession was regarded as an honourable one.

The motives of the impersonators vary, Pol Maj Gen Supisan said.

Some merely want to impress others by wearing a uniform and hanging around police stations. They often hang the uniform in their cars and even befriend real officers to make their pretence look believable.

The commander said some impersonators also falsify police identification cards.

He said it was notable that most impersonators were middle-aged or older.

Pol Maj Gen Supisan said there were also those who pretend to be police officers to commit criminal acts.

One example is con men swindling victims by dressing in uniform and coaxing passersby into donating money to a charitable cause.

Some impersonators pose as senior officers and dupe real police into paying money in order to improve their chances of promotion.

Pol Maj Gen Supisan said some impersonators work in gangs who extort money from individuals and businesses, carry out kidnappings and sometimes even commit murder.

"This last group operates without any fear of the law," he said.

"They are mostly former security guards, former police officers, former soldiers or thugs."

The CSD commander said the sale of pins, insignia and badges should be regulated.

Shops that sell these items are open to all and that partly explains why the impersonation of uniformed officers is so common.

I have been here from 2002 and visiting from 1997 and have never been asked for money or any other type of payment by a police man .
But was a passenger in a truck when stopped the driver could not show a driving lisence and was charged b200 no recipt.
I have been stopped by a road police block and allways after the usual where are you going and where do you live , get the salute and on your way remark.

Quote 'Some impersonators pose as senior officers and dupe real police into paying money in order to improve their chances of promotion.'

Love it!:)

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Originally Posted by nevets

I have been here from 2002 and visiting from 1997 and have never been asked for money or any other type of payment by a police man .
But was a passenger in a truck when stopped the driver could not show a driving lisence and was charged b200 no recipt.
I have been stopped by a road police block and allways after the usual where are you going and where do you live , get the salute and on your way remark.

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We had a whole squad of fake cops pile into our office in Rayong a few years back saying they were collecting 'charitable donations' for bullet-proof vests. This was during Thaksin's war on drugs campaign.

They seem to operate with the complicit approval of the "real" cops.

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Originally Posted by StrontiumDog
Police said he was dressed in the full uniform of a lieutenant colonel and possessed a police radio and the appropriate insignia and pins to signify the rank

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What is it with Thais and their important looking uniforms, if the man wasn't so caught up in his own ego and self importance he'd probably gone unoticed and would be happily ripping off motorists for a long time to come, what a tool.