Three civil servants in Nakhon Ratchasima have been arrested for their alleged role in issuing fake Thai birth certificates and transferring household registrations for more than 10 Chinese children. The Department of Provincial Administration confirmed on Saturday that investigations had identified 13 fraudulent registrations so far, with Thai men listed as fathers denying any biological connection to the children.
Arrest warrants were issued on Friday for a senior municipal registrar from tambon Pho Klang in Mueang district, a former district chief, and an employee from Huai Thalaeng district. Their names have not been disclosed. The three were interrogated at the Counter Corruption Division of the Central Investigation Bureau in Bangkok. Police said the registrar admitted to using false paternal names and records from the army-run Fort Suranari Hospital in Korat to issue the birth certificates.
The army clarified on Saturday that it cross-referenced the province’s birth registration list with its hospital database and found no birth records matching those claimed. The Royal Thai Army said it stands ready to provide data and documents to support the investigation and legal proceedings against those responsible.
The Korat arrests followed an earlier operation in Bangkok last Wednesday, where six suspects, including a Thon Buri district official, were detained for similar offences. The group allegedly hired Thai men to register false marriages and acknowledge paternity, enabling Chinese children to obtain Thai nationality.
Further investigations in Nakhon Ratchasima uncovered numerous Chinese children registered in Pho Klang municipality. Many were listed as residents of two houses in Lung Pradu and Huai Khaen in Huai Thalaeng district. Provincial officials found only vacant lots at both addresses, as the houses were demolished in 2023. The registrations also included mothers from China and Myanmar.
Officials noted that obtaining Thai nationality for children opens pathways for long-term residency and, in some cases, asset transfers. During a visit to one of the sites in Huai Thalaeng district, officials confirmed it had been used as a registration address for multiple Chinese children and their mothers.
On Friday, immigration police at Suvarnabhumi Airport stopped a Chinese national from leaving Thailand with a 10-month-old boy whose birth certificate was issued in Pho Klang. The child was unaccompanied by his mother and lacked the required consent documents.
Municipal mayor Kittipong Pongsurawet said cases under investigation in Pho Klang now total 50. Of the 45 fraudulent registrations identified by the municipality, 29 involved genuine births with stolen identities, while 16 showed no birth records at all. Five additional cases were uncovered by the Department of Provincial Administration.
Efforts are underway to review and cancel fraudulent documents obtained through Chinese networks over the past five years, Kittipong added. The Department of Provincial Administration, under the Interior Ministry, has seen its budget grow by 20% over five years to more than 50 billion baht, reflecting expanded responsibilities across digital ID systems, civil registration, and local security. Among its initiatives is DOPA N.I.C.E. (National Identity Crime Enforcement), a task force dedicated to tackling registry fraud, reported Bangkok Post.
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