Thai authorities have made multiple arrests and seizures pertaining to The iCon Group.

The iCon Group is an MLM company marketed across Thailand in Thai. Products detailed on The Icon Group’s website, which is still active, reveal a typical nutritional supplement offering.

Compensation details aren’t provided but if The iCon Group is in fact a pyramid scheme, it’s probably a typical autoship recruitment model.

That is an MLM company full of distributors who’ve recruited distributors, earning commissions on monthly orders by recruited distributors. In such companies retail sales are virtually non-existent, making them pyramid schemes.

As per an October 20th report from the Bangkok Post;

Victims reported the company lured them with online marketing courses costing less than 100 baht and pressured them into further financial commitments, resulting in substantial losses.

A 61-year old victim who asked not to be named said she learned about the company’s business from a television show during the Covid-19 outbreak a few years ago.

After an online orientation session, she said she paid more than 250,000 baht to apply to be a company dealer and buy the products after the people who were above her, also known as uplines, assured her that she would earn hundreds of thousands of baht.

She tried to use products herself first to test their qualities, but it turned out the products were not as good as advertised so she did not sell them to others, she said.

She tried to return the products to the uplines only to be refused, she said.

They told her the only solution was for her to recruit new members and to share the percentage of her recruits’ sales, she said.

From what I can tell, The iCon Group appears to have collapsed earlier this month. This prompted a flood of complaints to authorities.

As of October 18th, Thai authorities had received over two thousand The iCon Group complaints. Alleged losses from the complaints topped $25 million.

Following an investigation into The iCon Group, authorities made arrests on Wednesday, October 16th.

Authorities have already seized 24 luxury cars, 7.5 million baht in cash, 51 watches, and numerous brand-name bags and products from suspects linked to The iCon Group fraud case, with the total value of seized assets reaching approximately 210 million baht.

Some suspects who transferred assets to others could face additional charges for money laundering.

The arrested suspects include Waranthaphon Wratyaworrakul (aka “Boss Paul), The iCon Group’s founder and CEO.

Currently, 18 suspects, including Waranthaphon “Boss Paul” Wratyaworrakul, founder and CEO of The iCon Group, have been arrested on charges of public fraud and falsifying information in a computer system. All suspects are currently in custody.

Mr Warnthaphon, 41, appeared stressed as he was escorted from the CIB to the court on Ratchadaphisek Road at 9.15am.

Following his arrest Warnthaphon didn’t apply for bail. He remains in custody pending the outcome of his case.

Seventeen suspects were sent to court on Thursday. All were taken to jail after the court rejected bail requests submitted by three high-profile celebrities, citing flight risk, while the others did not apply for release.

The three celebrities are actor Yuranunt “Boss Sam” Pamornmontri, actress Pechaya “Boss Min” Wattanamontree and television host Kan “Boss Kan” Kantathavorn.

One celebrity caught up in the scam is Min Pechaya Wattanamontri.

Following The Icon Group’s collapse, Pechaya distanced herself from the scam by denying “any involvement”.

In a tearful press conference, Min apologized to the victims of the alleged fraud and expressed shock at the turn of events.

She clarified that she had been hired as a presenter and public relations officer, and that her role did not extend to being a shareholder or partner in the company.

Min revealed that she had been working with iCON Group for over a year and had checked the company’s registration status and product quality before signing on.

She expressed regret for not conducting a more thorough investigation, and vowed to fully cooperate with any investigations into the matter.

Perchaya and two other celebrity accomplices were arrested on October 18th.

A Bangkok court issued arrest warrants for Min, TV host Kan Kantathavorn, and actor Yuranunt Pamornmontri, accusing them of participating in public fraud and entering false information into a computer system.

Before their arrest, the three were interrogated fro over five hours. Investigations showed that all had roles within The iCon Group … Min served as the company’s communications director.

Owing to its localization and focus on Thailand, BehindMLM wasn’t aware of The iCon Group till the arrests last week.

Evidence presented by Thai authorities suggests money stolen through The iCon Group may have been converted to cryptocurrency and laundered out of Thailand. Some of the ill-gotten gains is alleged to have been used to pay bribes to Thai state agencies.

On Thursday, Pol Maj Gen Jaroonkiat Pankaew, deputy commissioner of the CIB, had questioned Mr Warathaphon about an audio clip featuring a conversation between two men.

The company’s CEO admitted the audio clip that went viral on social media was his own voice. However, he insisted he had never paid bribe money to any state agencies as alleged.

His lawyer also refuted claims made by Ekkapop Luangprasert, an advisor to the interior minister, regarding asset conversion into cryptocurrency for bribes.

The Nation reports the number of iCon Group complaints has risen from ~2000 to over 4700 between October 18th and 20th. Reported losses have climbed to $123 million.

Pending ongoing investigations by Thai authorities, the majority of funds paid into The iCon Group remain unaccounted for.