Thai men were allegedly recruited to pose as fathers and help children of Chinese nationals obtain Thai citizenship through fraudulent birth registrations, authorities said on Thursday.
Sixteen people, including district officials and hospital employees, have been arrested in connection with the alleged scheme, according to deputy national police chief Pol Gen Samran Nualma.
He announced the arrests during a joint briefing held by the Royal Thai Police and the Department of Provincial Administration (DoPA).
The investigation, known as “Removing the Dragon’s Scales”, also involved the Public Sector Anti-Corruption Commission and the Anti-Money Laundering Office (Amlo).
Authorities have identified 42 suspects in total. Arrest warrants have been approved for 21 people, with 16 taken into custody so far.
The suspects include an employee of a private hospital, a district office registrar, 18 Thai men accused of posing as fathers, 21 Chinese parents and one Laotian mother.
They face charges under the Civil Registration Act and the Computer Crime Act, while the public officials involved are also accused of malfeasance under Section 157 of the Criminal Code.
The inquiry developed from the April 2024 arrest of Chinese national Chen Yin Lai, who was accused of operating a fraud and money-laundering network worth more than 70 billion baht in Thailand.
Investigators later traced financial transactions to his Chinese wife, Chen Baojiao, whose three children were found to hold Thai nationality.
Further checks allegedly uncovered a system in which Thai men were paid to register sham marriages with Chinese women and falsely acknowledge their children as their own, allowing the children to qualify for Thai citizenship.
Hospital Employee Accused of Acting As Broker
Authorities allege that an employee at a prominent private hospital in Bangkok acted as a broker for Chinese clients.
The employee is accused of arranging maternity care packages and preparing documents required for birth registration, while a district registrar allegedly helped facilitate the unlawful applications.
Records obtained by the Department of Provincial Administration’s National Identity Crime Enforcement unit, known as DOPA N.I.C.E., found 164 birth registrations involving Chinese mothers and Thai fathers linked to the hospital between 2023 and 2024.
DNA tests have so far confirmed that 19 children were not biologically related to the Thai men registered as their fathers. Authorities have since revoked the affected birth registrations.
Investigators said Chinese clients were charged about 70,000 baht for childbirth packages, along with an additional 20,000-baht fee for document services.
The Thai men allegedly received between 2,000 and 15,000 baht to register marriages or formally acknowledge paternity.
Police also found that one of the accused “fake fathers” holds a 10.2% stake in China Railway No.10 (Thailand) and is suspected of serving as a Thai nominee shareholder for the company.
China Railway No.10 (Thailand) was among the contractors linked to the collapse of the State Audit Office building in Bangkok in March 2025, which killed 95 people.
During Thursday’s operation, officers searched a luxury housing estate in Bangkok’s Rama II area and discovered a child who allegedly possessed both a Thai birth certificate and Chinese birth documents.
Authorities believe the case could involve offences covered by Thailand’s anti-money laundering laws. Amlo is now examining financial transactions and assets connected to the suspects and the wider network.
DoPA said birth registration procedures involving Thai and foreign parents have been strengthened in response to the investigation.
Both parents must now appear before registration officials, undergo separate interviews and provide verified hospital birth documents. DNA testing may also be ordered when officials identify suspicious circumstances.
Investigators are continuing to examine the network, while several other private hospitals in Bangkok are reportedly being investigated for possible involvement in similar schemes.
Authorities said anyone found to have participated in the operation would face legal action.
