Immigration Bureau arrests American man claiming to be a life coach selling a course to treat depression using cow dung mushrooms.
At 2:00 PM today (6 September), Pol. Col. Panthana Nuchnara, deputy commissioner of the Immigration Bureau, Pol. Col. Ratchote Chotikhun, deputy commander of the Immigration Bureau’s Crime Suppression Division, Pol. Col. Chitdecha Songhong, deputy commander of Investigation Division 7, performing duties at the Immigration Bureau’s Crime Suppression Division, Pol. Col. Ratthapong Kaewyot, superintendent of the Immigration Bureau’s Crime Suppression Division 4, and Pol. Col. Thawatchai Narinrat, superintendent of the Immigration Bureau’s Crime Suppression Division 1, held a press conference. Pol. Col. Panthana said that he had been informed that an American was offering a course to treat depression in the Bangkok area, advertised on a famous foreign website. He therefore expanded the investigation until he discovered that the suspect was Mr. Darius, aged 62, an American. Secretly
opened a treatment center as a course for treating depression in a house in Soi Lat Phrao 108, Chom Phon Subdistrict, Chatuchak District. He claimed to be a life coach with a master’s degree in psychology, with more than 20 years of experience, providing treatment and rehabilitation for those with mental wounds or mental defects that lead to depression.
Later, police officers went in to investigate and found that the house was not a rehabilitation center but a normal house with 1-2 beds for patients to relax on. A search of the refrigerator found 13 bags of dried cow dung mushrooms weighing more than 1 kilogram, which were recently seized for examination. In addition, money that the undercover agent used to make a sting operation and record a complaint was found in a bedroom on the second floor.
During questioning, the person claimed that he had a degree in treating patients with cow dung mushrooms, but when the officers asked to see the document, he could not show it. After that, he claimed that he did not
have a certificate but that it was a subject passed down from his ancestors that cow dung mushrooms had an important extract that could be used to fight depression. He did not know that cow dung mushrooms were a Category 5 narcotic that was illegal in Thailand. He confessed that he would sell treatment courses for 2,000 baht each, mixing chocolate, fruit juice, or inhaling cards before playing soothing music to make the treatment easier. He had been open for about a month and did not have many customers, which was consistent with the financial information that the police had investigated.
An in-depth investigation found that Mr. Darius is not a doctor as claimed. He has been in Thailand for several years, starting out as a language teacher before turning to the aforementioned treatment clinic.
Pol. Col. Ratchoti revealed that previously, the Immigration Bureau had already arrested three similar treatment centers, most of which were located on coastal islands in various provinces. Most of them were open and
claimed to be able to treat depression or mental wounds. However, it is believed that the customers were unaware that the therapists were mixing cow dung mushrooms in their food or in the aromatic smoke. While the patients were intoxicated by the drug, they would trick them into giving them their assets. While they were intoxicated, the patients would unknowingly transfer the assets. In Case 1, the victim on Koh Phangan unknowingly gave several million baht in assets to the therapist. Therefore, we would like to warn foreigners and Thais to be careful of criminals who disguise themselves in this manner because they could lose a lot of assets like this.
Source: Thai News Agency