Fifteen year old Thai girl extorted for 50,000 baht by copyright troll scam artist after making cartoon character Krathongs

NAKHON RATCHASIMA — A local copyright holder of Japanese cartoon character franchise said Tuesday it was not behind an alleged attempt to extort a 15-year-old girl of 50,000 baht for copyright infringement.

T.A.C. Consumer PCL, who holds a copyright for San-X products in Thailand, denies involvement with the sting operation in Korat, in which a man identified himself as a copyright agent and threatened the girl’s family to pay a damage fee of up to 50,000, or face prison terms. The news has sparked widespread anger on social media, where some business owners said they were also victims of a similar scheme.

The girl said the man ordered 136 krathongs, or traditional floats for the upcoming river festival, decorated with cartoon characters from her on Friday. But once the first batch of delivery was made, the customer identified himself as a copyright agent and called the police, according to her father, Thawatchai Polhaeng.

Once she was brought to the police station, Thawatchai said, the self-identified agent demanded a payment of 50,000 baht for copyright infringement or face criminal charges that could land her in jail. He said they eventually settled for a sum of 5,000 baht.

It turns out, the man was a copyright troll, a known scam common in the area.

Read more at Khao Sod English below:

http://www.khaosodenglish.com/news/crimecourtscalamity/2019/11/05/copyright-troll-demands-50000-baht-from-15-year-old-cartoon-krathong-maker/

Source: Khao Sod English

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Adam Judd
Mr. Adam Judd is the Co-owner of TPN Media since December 2017. He is originally from Washington D.C., America, but has also lived in Dallas, Sarasota, and Portsmouth. His background is in retail sales, HR, and operations management, and has written about news and Thailand for many years. He has lived in Pattaya for over nine years as a full-time resident, is well known locally and been visiting the country as a regular visitor for over a decade. His full contact information, including office contact information, can be found on our Contact Us page below. Stories please e-mail Editor@ThePattayanews.com About Us: https://thepattayanews.com/about-us/ Contact Us: https://thepattayanews.com/contact-us/