BANGKOK — US and Thai officials have arrested a group of 12 Chinese nationals accused of obtaining fake visas to try to gain entry to the United States.

The Thai Immigration bureau says the arrests were made Tuesday after the group came to Thailand from China. The bureau says the three men and nine women were preparing for a flight to Los Angeles to look for work.

Officials said Wednesday the suspects confessed to each paying a Taiwanese man in Bangkok $24,000 for a forged visa and other expenses for the journey. An investigation found that the visas bore the same numbers as authentic ones issued by the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw to Polish citizens.

The Chinese suspects face charges that could land them in prison for up to 10 years.