UDON THANI, DEC 12 (TNA) – Thai police have arrested
members of a loan shark gang in Udon Thani province, seizing assets worth Bt527
million.
A crackdown operation to combat loan sharks led to the
arrests of Bancha Thitiwatanakarn, 50, leader of the gang at his house.
Previous arrests of Bancha’s agents implicated his crimes
and led to Tuesday’s raids at his house and other properties.
Police have seized 14 vehicles, 14 land plots, two houses, a
storage building and many other items worth Bt527 million.
In separate cases of loan shark in the northeastern
province, police confiscated 249 title deeds of lands worth over Bt1.6 billion
from five other loan shark operators in Kumphawapi district. 
Thousands of low-income people have been victims of loan
shark gangs under unfair loan contracts, mostly using their land as collateral
for loans.
In the past several months, the government has cracked down
on loan shark and helping debtors to regain their land-title deeds.(TNA)
