Crime

Phuket Thailand is it Safe or Not?

Tourist Police Sign in Phuket Thailand

Chiangrai Times – The Island of Phuket is one of Southeast Asia’s premier vacation spots, with an average of over 3 million visitors each year. Tourists come to Phuket to enjoy the exotic tropical beaches, the authentic Thai cuisine, and the beautiful weather. Over the years Phuket has transformed from a quiet little Island resort town catering to a small amount of backpackers and sex tourists, to a world renowned travel destination. The enormous growth in the local tourism industry has resulted in a big business, with millions of tourist dollars up for grabs.

The Island has been growing at an amazing rate, with new exclusive 5 star resorts and enormous mega shopping centers popping up all over the place. The only thing that seems to be holding Phuket back is the lack of affordable transportation, and the constant reports of violence and corruption affecting tourists. Many tourists are now wondering if Phuket is a safe place to travel to, especially those who are traveling with their family. I wouldn’t go as far as to say that people should be afraid to visit Phuket, however I think that people need to be aware of the dangers. The fact is that with all the money at stake, the government and local media often do their best to downplay, or even cover up incidents involving violence against tourists.

Many of the high profile incidents of violence against foreigners are associated with tuk tuk drivers. The local taxi mafia is ruthless in Phuket; disputes over fares often result in violent beatings, with dozens of taxi drivers beating on 1 or 2 tourists. There have also been several reports of female tourists being raped by drivers when they have taken a taxi back to their hotel after a night out in Patong Beach. The police are well aware of these incidents yet they seem to do nothing about it.

Another well documented problem in Phuket is the legendary “jet-ski scam“. This involves rental jet-skis that somehow sustain mysterious damage after a short rental, and then hundreds or thousands of dollars are demanded as compensation. Often the police will work with the jet-ski operators to extort money from tourists. The problem has attracted so much attention that the Australian Department Of Foreign Affairs has recently produced video warning travellers about Phuket’s jet-ski scams.

There are also serious concerns about the amount of mysterious deaths that are reported in Phuket, it seems that at least once per week there is a report of some bizarre suicide or accidental death. Nobody knows for sure how many murders are covered up and made to look like accidents, but most residents believe it is common practice. These types of crimes are more often involving expats, however in some cases robbery is the suspected motive.

The reality is that Phuket is a dangerous place, and unless you are aware of the potential dangers then you could be at serious risk. Anyone that tells you that there is nothing to worry about is doing you a huge disservice. You can have a safe holiday in Phuket if you avoid tuk tuks and jet-skis, and be careful when you go out at night. Most of the people that end up getting in trouble in Thailand have put themselves in a bad situation because they have been careless. Most likely they didn’t realize the risks, perhaps they had spoken to somebody like Jamie Monk, and when he told them “Phuket is safe, what are you worried about?” they decided to let their guard down. Don’t make that same mistake! – Read full article By Jesse Schule TravelinAsia

We searched Google News and found these articles in Minutes about recent Tourist Attacks in Phuket!

British Tourist Reports Phuket Stab Attack – June 2012

Australian Daniel Ketley 21 Allegedly Beaten and Left for Dead in Phuket – June 2012

Four European Tourists Killed in Phuket, Bringing Total Fatalities to 14 in Weeks – March 2012

Accidental Death Reach Epidemic Proportion On The Island Of Phuket – March 2012

British expat resident and his Thai wife were brutally murdered at a small resort– March 2012

Phuket Thailand Is Not Safe, The Media Is Lying To You – February 2012

Eerie silence cloaks the Phuket death of a Swedish tourist – March 2012

Three Women Tourists Attacked – March 2012

25 expat deaths in Phuket in 3 months – February 2012

Phuket Pub Bar Attack – January 2012

Wounded Aussies Aim to Hit Back at Phuket’s ‘Uncontrolled Patong Violence – January 2012

Aussie Tourists Warn of Phuket ‘Planned’ Attacks – January 2012

Tourist’s Thumb Severed by Laughing Attackers – March 2012

Journalist killed in targeted attack on tourist island of Phuket – January 2012

Tourist stabbed by gang of boys – December 2011

4 Australians attacked and knifed by 15 Thai tuk tuk drivers – December 2011

Phuket taxi wars take tourism to the brink – September 2011

Golf Club Attack on Phuket Tourist October 2011

Phuket Expat Attacked After Chalong Crash – June 2011

Crime

Police Officer Being Ordained at Temple Arrested for Running Scam Call Center

Police in Northern Thailand have arrested a fellow officer as he was being ordained at a temple in Ngao district of neighbouring Lampang province.

Pol Lt Col Bandit Khonkan chief inspector from the Hang Dong police station was disrobed and taken to the Chang Puak station in Chiang Mai. He was arrested on charges of running a call centre scam gang in Chiang Mai Province.

According to Thai Media Chiang Mai Provincial Police Region 5 obtained an arrest warrant for Pol Lt Col Bandit on Friday from the Chiang Mai Provincial Court for procuring illegal telecom equipment, setting up a station and using public airwaves to run a telecommunications business without permission.

Pol Lt Col Bandit reportedly told investigators that he was not the ringleader and was only a member of the gang with Chinese partners.

His arrest followed the apprehension of his 26-year-old daughter, Miss Wanuchapond, 26, and three others during raids at three housing projects in Chiang Mai on Friday, Pol Maj Gen Weerachon Boontawee, deputy chief of Provincial Police Region 5 told Thai media.

During the raids police police discovered around 12 GSM gateways, or SIM boxes, which are devices used for converting cellular networks into mobile phone numbers used domestically.

The chief inspectors daughter Miss Wanuchapond told the arresting officers that she was paid 8,000 baht a month at each of the three locations for renting thr rooms and monitoring devices.

She claimed she had no idea what the devices were and accepted the job because the pay was attractive.

Police investigators working with telecom regulators used a special tracking device to monitor the gang’s communications and learned that its base was in Myanmar opposite Mae Sai district of Chiang Rai.

The call center gang used the GSM gateways to make calls over the internet to scam people in Thailand out of million of baht.

The GSM gateways transmitting signals via SIM boxes to convert them into domestic phone numbers, duping victims into thinking they were being called from Thai government agencies.

Pol Maj Gen Weerachon said that each SIM box held 32 SIM cards, with a capacity of up to 300,000 calls a month. The seized devices had made fraudulent calls over 3.6 million times.

He said the their investigation is ongoing and they are working to track down the remaining conspirators, including Chinese and other Thai suspects.

Authorities are still deciding whether Pol Lt Col Bandit will be dismissed from the force, he said, adding that so far, no other officers are known to have been involved.

Police in Chiang Rai Launch Crackdown on Cyber Criminals in Golden Triangle

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Settha Thavisin has authorized the establishment of an emergency cyber center operated by the Royal Thai Police to combat transnational crimes committed by call center gangs along the Thai border in Chiang Rai province.

On July 19, Prime Minister Settha Thavisin directed the Center to combat information technology crimes. The Royal Thai Police (Royal Thai Police) will crack down on call center gangs in Myanmar, Laos, and along the border.

His directive comes as call center gangs ratchet up their scams to defraud people of their money, causing concern among Thais and jeopardizing the country’s economic and social stability.

Related Police News:

Machete Wielding Man Shot an Killed by Police in Chiang Rai

https://www.chiangraitimes.com/chiangrai-news/machete-wielding-man-shot-an-killed-by-police-in-chiang-rai/

Crime

Thai Immigration Police Arrest Colombian Tourists Over Home Invasions

Immigration police officers have arrested four Colombian nationals in connection with a series of home burglaries at luxury housing complexes in the Bangkok metropolitan area and Chiang Buri Province.

Pol Maj Gen Panthana Nuchanart, deputy commissioner of the Immigration Bureau, told a press briefing that three of the suspects were apprehended in Nonthaburi Province and the fourth in South Pattaya, Chon Buri Province.

According to the Bangkok Post, the Colombians were charged with stealing conspiracy and seized around 3 million baht (US$82,500.00).

According to Pol Maj Gen Panthana, the criminals rode motorcycles through housing estates, scoping out the properties and waiting for the owners to depart before committing their crimes.

He stated that all four of the accused denied any involvement in the home break-ins, but the arresting squad discovered evidence that implicated them.

Police called to home invasion

Meanwhile, police were dispatched to a luxury housing development in Tambon Nong Prue, Chonburi Province, after a Chinese man was attacked during a house invasion.

When they arrived, they discovered the house owner, Mr. Qian Peng Yi, visibly scared and with marks from being tied up with a cable. He informed police that three Chinese males broke into his home at 9 p.m., one of whom brandished a gun at him and directed him to his bedroom.

They bound his hands and feet, gagged him with fabric, taped his head, and forced him into the bed. The intruders then attempted to compel him into transferring 10 million baht in cryptocurrencies to them, endangering the life of his 33-year-old cousin who was in a second-floor bedroom.

While they scoured the house in search of riches, Mr. Peng Yi managed to flee and hide; he subsequently observed them leave with his cousin. Officials investigated the property and analyzed security camera footage from the incident and surrounding areas.

Around 9 p.m., a 30-year-old van driver came at the Bang Lamung police station after being contacted by an agency to carry Chinese customers from Pattaya to Suvarnabhumi Airport.

The driver informed authorities that he was supposed to pick them up at a motel about a kilometer from the Chinese businessman’s home. He then drove them to Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport, arriving at 1 a.m. and receiving 1,800 baht.

The driver took a snapshot of the group smoking at the airport gate and identified one of them as the victim’s cousin. Police suspected coordination between her and the three suspects in her cousin’s heist, who all departed Thailand on the same aircraft.

Other Bangkok News:

Police in Bangkok Discover Six Vietnamese Tourists Dead in 5 Star Hotel

Police in Bangkok Discover Six Vietnamese Tourists Dead in 5 Star Hotel

Crime

Son of Thailand’s Leading Legal Scholar on Corruption Arrested for Running Online Gambling Network

The son of a former senator and leading economist and expert on corruption and gambling in Thailand has been arrested for on charges of running an online gambling network and its payment system.

Police from Thailand’s Technology Crime Suppression Division (TCSD) have confiscated assets worth more than (US$ 11.1 million) 400 million baht.

Narote Piriyarangsan, 33, was arrested following crackdowns in three sites around the city, according to Pol Maj Gen Athip Pongsiwapai, commander of the police Technology Crime Suppression Division (TCSD).

Mr Narote’s father, Sangsit Piriyarangsan, is an economist who has written articles and books about corruption and gambling. He was one of the appointed senators that were investigating the government’s intention to legalize casino gaming before their terms expired.

Police also detained 39-year-old Narayut Narakaew, the owner of the gambling website 69pgslot.com. The Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for the couple for operating an internet gambling service and money laundering.

According to the Bangkok Post, police seized two desktop computers, one laptop computer, 14 mobile phones, 21 bank passbooks, 53 ATM cards, and four high-end cars — a Ferrari 926 GTS, an Aston Martin, a Lexus, and a Subaru — totaling more than 400 million baht.

Police launched the inquiry after discovering the online gambling site, which accepted funds via an automatic deposit-withdrawal system through bank accounts and deposits in the AskMePay system. Players scanned the VPay QR code as well as the QR codes for Heng Online 888 or Heng Pay Company.

Police also discovered that payments received via QR code scans were transferred to the account of Heng Pay Co and then to the gambling website’s mule accounts using AskMePay, which did not use banks’ face recognition scanning. An inquiry indicated a monthly turnover of approximately 5 billion baht.

According to investigators, the website has been up and running for around four years, with the payment mechanism in use for roughly eight months.

According to Pol Maj Gen Athip, Mr Narote owns the gaming website’s payment systems and is the director of Heng Pay Co. After gathering evidence, authorities requested arrest warrants for 14 people.

Thailand does not allow almost any kind of gaming. Even though the law doesn’t say anything specific about online gaming, it is still considered gambling. The country has pretty strict rules about gambling. Thai punters can bet on the national lottery and horse races, but they can’t bet on any other types of games.

But it’s not a secret that there is a huge illegal gaming business in Thailand, even though it’s illegal.

The illegal casinos, online betting shops, underground lotteries, and pop-up bookies that take bets on everything from cockfights to Muay Thai make a shadow economy that is worth billions of dollars every year.