S'porean man, 47, talks to 3 people in Thailand, somehow gets 1,000 baht notes swapped with 100 baht notes

A 47-year-old Singaporean man who was recently travelling alone in Thailand lost over S$250 after seven 1,000 baht notes in his wallet were replaced with seven 100 baht notes.

As a result, he lost 6,300 baht (around S$253).

This comes after the man, Bai, went to Bangkok, Thailand, on Feb. 21, 2026, Shin Min Daily News reported.

Approached

Shortly after Bai got off the plane, he visited a shopping mall in the city to exchange Thai baht.

While looking at products in a store, two people suddenly approached him while holding medicine and asking him what it was.

Bai then suggested that they consult a doctor, as he did not know what it was.

"After thanking me, they started chatting and then asked where I was from," he told Shin Min.

Wallet

When they learned that Bai was from Singapore, they excitedly said they were going to Singapore for a holiday in a few months and curiously asked him what the Singapore currency looked like.

Having no suspicions at that time, Bai took out his wallet and opened it to show them.

During the process, one person suddenly reached out to take Bai's wallet, but Bai pulled back, and they failed to get his wallet.

The two then left immediately, and Bai did not think much of it.

He claimed that the man seemed to be 40 or 50 years old while the woman appeared to be in her 30s.

Bai added that after the two people left, another elderly woman approached him, holding some Thai currency and asked if this could be used in Thailand.

"Looking back now, I suspect they might have been working together," he said.

Police report

Following his encounter with the three people, Bai returned to his hotel that evening and opened his wallet, only to discover that out of the nine 1,000 baht notes he exchanged that afternoon, only two remained.

The other seven 1,000 baht notes had turned into 100 baht notes.

Bai said, "I don't understand what methods they used, and I immediately went to the local police station to report the case that night."

He revealed that though he was affected by the scam, he still stayed in Bangkok for four days, and used his credit card to make purchases when he did not have enough cash.

Top photos via Canva