> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://whalehunting.projectbrazen.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Only School Parents - The Photo Proof That Shatters Vorapak's Denial - URL: https://whalehunting.projectbrazen.com/only-school-parents-the-photo-proof-that-shatters-vorapaks-denial/ - Published: 2025-10-25T11:56:47.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-12T13:01:23.000Z - Description: We have obtained photos that shatter Thai former Deputy Finance Minister Vorapak Tanyawong's claim he was only a school-gate acquaintance of Benjamin Mauerberger. - Author: Tom Wright - Tags: Cambodia, Benjamin Mauerberger, #headlines **Welcome to Whale Hunting**, where we follow the money from Southeast Asian scam centers to Manhattan penthouses, exposing the criminal networks that cost Americans billions each year. Thailand's former **Deputy Finance Minister Vorapak Tanyawong** resigned this week—just hours after our reporting revealed his wife received $2.94 million in cryptocurrency from a Chinese-Cambodian criminal network. [He denied our reporting and threatened to sue for defamation.](https://whalehunting.projectbrazen.com/he-resigned-he-denies-everything-here-are-the-documents/) His most audacious defense? He only knew Benjamin Mauerberger, the alleged South African front for the $1.5 billion network, as a casual acquaintance from his child's school. ## What Vorapak Said About His Relationship With Benjamin Mauerberger > Regarding Mr. Benjamin Mauerberger, I know him because my child and his child attend the same school in Thailand. I have never known in depth what business Mr. Benjamin conducts or what his business relationship with Mr. Leak Yim is, as Mr. Benjamin and I are only parents of students who are the same age, in the same class, and at the same school. **That claim is demonstrably false.** --- This story is open to all who subscribe. But investigations like this aren’t cheap. If you believe accountability journalism matters, consider [upgrading to a paid subscription](https://whalehunting.projectbrazen.com/#/portal/signup)—or sending [a one-time boost](https://whalehunting.projectbrazen.com/#/portal/support). Every contribution directly funds more reporting like this. Have a tip? Reach us at: 📩 whalehunting@projectbrazen.com 📧 projectbrazen@protonmail.com 🔒 Secure contact details [here](https://github.com/bradleyhope1/contact?ref=whalehunting.projectbrazen.com). We protect our sources. For the wider investigation, read [our guide to Benjamin Mauerberger, the records and the responses](https://whalehunting.projectbrazen.com/benjamin-mauerberger/). We have obtained photos from a business trip in **2020** showing Vorapak Tanyawong, Benjamin Mauerberger and Mauerberger's wife, **Cattaliya Beevor,** together. Yim Leak, Mauerberger's Cambodian business partner, was also on the trip. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/22/0b/220b5681-5254-4689-bce8-1d73ec72c461/content/images/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-25-at-7.55.03---PM.png) Vorapak and Mauerberger, center, with Beevor behind them The photos completely contradicts the "school-gate acquaintance" narrative. | Individual | Role in Scandal | | -------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------- | | **Vorapak Tanyawong** | Resigned Thai Deputy Finance Minister | | **Kanokporn Seetavorarat** | Vorapak's wife; sold shares for $2.94M in crypto | | **Cattaliya Beevor** | Benjamin Mauerberger's wife; sold shares for $21.15M in crypto | | **Benjamin Mauerberger** | Alleged $1.5B money launderer at the center of the network | The photo evidence confirms a relationship between the families dating back years—not a casual acquaintance from school. This established, close relationship makes the coordinated $24 million cryptocurrency transaction on **January 7, 2025**, even more damning: 1. **Same Day:** Both wives sold shares in a Singapore fund that had rights to a 24% stake in Thai finance company Finansia X PCL. 2. **Same Buyer:** **Beteverse Limited** (a shell company directed by **Li Hang**, an executive for **convicted money-laundering crypto exchange** **KuCoin**). 3. **Same Wallet:** Both payments went to the exact same crypto address. 4. **Same Relationship:** Both families had a business relationship dating back to at least **2020**. These secret coordinated actions [gave KuCoin and the Mauerberger network control of Finansia](https://whalehunting.projectbrazen.com/chinese-cambodian-financial-network-protected-by-thai-political-figures/), and a channel to move money between crypto and the regular financial sector without oversight. Mauerberger isn't just a fixer—he's a critical financial bridge. He launders billions in proceeds from a sanctioned, Chinese-owned business in Cambodia tied directly to scam centers. This is the source of the largest financial crime today in the U.S., costing Americans an estimated $10 billion in lost savings annually. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/22/0b/220b5681-5254-4689-bce8-1d73ec72c461/content/images/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-10-25-at-10.54.52---PM.png) Yim Bun Leang The guy on the right of the photo is Yim Bun Leang, a cousin of Yim Leak, and the man entrusted with handling Chinese investors who wanted to launder money through BIC Bank – and then into Thailand the global financial system. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/22/0b/220b5681-5254-4689-bce8-1d73ec72c461/content/images/2025/10/Screenshot-2025-09-23-at-5.52.02---PM-1.png) BIC Group listed Vorapak as an adviser Vorapak denies being an adviser to BIC Bank, which Mauerberger and Yim Leak set up in 2017\. But these new photos show his connections to the Cambodians – as well as Benjamin Mauerberger and his wife. Vorapak's insistence that he was merely a victim of defamation and a distant school associate is utterly refuted by the photographic evidence. The photos, combined with the corporate filings and blockchain evidence, prove the two families were not merely school parents, but long-time associates coordinating a major financial transaction with a convicted money-laundering exchange. --- *For the full documentation and blockchain evidence on the $24 million transfer,* [*read our story from this week*](https://whalehunting.projectbrazen.com/he-resigned-he-denies-everything-here-are-the-documents/) *(free with email signup).* --- ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/22/0b/220b5681-5254-4689-bce8-1d73ec72c461/content/images/2025/10/image-8--4.jpg) Catch Tom's radio interview [here](https://omny.fm/shows/moneyfm-saturday-morning-show/saturday-mornings-scams-stocks-secret-deals-project-brazen-exposes-southeast-asia-s-1-5b-dirty-money-network?ref=whalehunting.projectbrazen.com) 🐋 This is **Whale Hunting*, a newsletter and podcast delving into the secret worlds of money and power that [we](https://projectbrazen.com/about/?ref=whalehunting.projectbrazen.com) became obsessed with during our investigation into the globe-sprawling 1MDB scandal. That project changed our entire worldview. We wrote a [book](https://bookshop.org/a/107584/9780316436472?ref=whalehunting.projectbrazen.com) about it. Back then, we were long-time reporters for **The Wall Street Journal*. Now, we’ve struck out on our own to uncover more brazen stories than ever. At **Whale Hunting*, we’re immersing ourselves in the murky waters of the ultra-wealthy and influential, from billionaires and kleptocrats to criminals, spies and corrupt officials. *Got a question or a tip for us? Get in touch at* [*whalehunting@projectbrazen.com*](mailto:whalehunting@projectbrazen.com)*. You can also contact us securely* [*here*](https://github.com/bradleyhope1/contact?ref=whalehunting.projectbrazen.com)*.* *You can also follow* Whale Hunting *on Instagram, Threads and on X (Twitter). To chat with fellow Whale Hunters and stay in touch with Bradley and Tom,* [***join our Discord server***](https://discord.gg/Wm74CRXhnF?ref=whalehunting.projectbrazen.com)*.* *For unlimited access to Whale Hunting’s investigative reporting, consider signing up for a paid subscription. You’ll get special editions of the newsletter and the Weekender, as well as premium podcast access and discounted merch.* *Enjoying Whale Hunting but not ready to subscribe? Show your support by leaving a tip (via* [*credit/debit card*](https://whalehunting.projectbrazen.com/#/portal/support) *or* [*crypto*](https://brazen.fm/wallets/?ref=whalehunting.projectbrazen.com)*) instead.*