Year: 2014
- Thailand News
Myanmar workers’ DNA matches semen found on Koh Tao murder, rape victim, say police
PHUKET: A police source has confirmed that DNA samples from two of three detained Myanmar workers matches the DNA extracted from semen found on the body of British tourist Hannah Witheridge. Ms Witheridge and fellow national David Miller were brutally murdered on the popular island on September 14. — The Nation
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Thousands packed Phuket streets for final day of Vegetarian Festival
PHUKET: Thousands of people celebrated the end of the Phuket Vegetarian Festival last night, packing the streets as processions from each of the island’s shrines made their way to Saphan Hin for the midnight finale. Each of the Chinese shrine processions carried images of the Jade Emperor and the Nine Emperor Gods on palanquins as firecrackers blazed a pathway for…
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Phuket’s new top cop determined to protect island’s bottom line: tourists
PHUKET: Phuket’s new top cop took up his position yesterday, full of strategies to make the island a safer and happier place. Maj Gen Patchara Boonyasit, previously the commander of the Nakhon Sri Thammarat Provincial Police, paid his respects to Phuket’s illustrious history and cultural heritage by visiting the Baan Muang Mai stone and the Heroines’ Monument, before checking in…
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Woken by prayers, Phuket man kills brother
PHUKET: A man has confessed to killing his brother for “praying too loudly” at their home in Phuket’s Wichit subdistrict yesterday morning. A local resident called police after discovering the body of Chaiyadol Nawee, 43, amid undergrowth by the side of a street across from the Villa California housing estate on Chao Fa East Road. “CCTV footage taken from the…
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Don’t let emotions cloud financial judgment
PHUKET: There are two emotions that tend to cloud our collective judgments and cause major swings in the financial markets: fear and greed. They lead to the ever-repeating cycle of boom and bust and are not likely to disappear anytime soon, so gaining a good understanding of them – as well as how they can affect an investor’s financial decision…
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Myanmar migrant worker confesses to Koh Tao murders, say police
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Migrant ‘confesses to Koh Tao murders’ The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A migrant worker has confessed to the murder of two British tourists on Koh Tao in Surat Thani province, deputy national police chief General Jakthip Chaijinda said yesterday. He is among three Myanmar men…
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Thai women’s volleyball team win first Asian Games medal in 48 years
PHUKET: Thailand suffered mixed fortunes at the Asian Games yesterday when the women’s volleyball team made history by clinching a bronze medal, the first ever for the country at an Asiad, while the men’s soccer team ended fourth – for the fourth time. The Thai spikers made the country proud after ending the 48-year Asiad medal drought following a hard-fought…
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Phuket’s Nepalese community celebrates Dashain
PHUKET: Phuket’s 3,000-strong Nepalese community celebrates Bijaya Dashami tomorrow, the final and most important day of the 15-day-long national festival of Nepal. Celebrations in Phuket center around the Nepali Hindu Temple located in Soi Kuan Yang on Patong Hill. Most of the island’s Nepalese are expected to show up at the temple at least once during Dashain, with the largest…
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Video Report: Phuket’s new governor arrives, Maitri says farewell
PHUKET: A welcoming committee and hundreds of joyous people greeted Phuket’s new governor, Nisit Jansomwong, at Phuket International Airport yesterday. “Phuket is home to many nationalities, not just Thais. I would like to encourage these people to learn to love Phuket as their real home, so that it becomes a place of real value to them – not just a…
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Koh Tao killer confesses
PHUKET: A Myanmar national has confessed to killing two British tourists on Koh Tao in Surat Thani, acting Deputy Police Commissioner Jakthip Chaijinda said today. David Miller and Hannah Witheridge were brutally murdered on the island on September 14. Both suffered serious head wounds. Police said Ms Witheridge was also sexually assaulted. The migrant worker was identified only as “Win”,…
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Boat operators ordered to move away from Phuket Navy base, or face jail time
PHUKET: The Phuket Marine Office has issued an official order for boats to stay at least 500 meters away from the Royal Thai Navy’s Third Area Command base in Cape Panwa, or face jail time. The directive was handed down by the Marine Office on Tuesday, following an order from the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) to re-organize…
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Phuket flash floods lead to tailbacks on Thepkrasattri Road
PHUKET: Flash floods inundated Thepkrasattri Road in front of SuperCheap’s flagship store early this afternoon, causing a kilometer-long tailback of traffic leaving Phuket Town. “The flood continued for more than an hour, but drained away by about 2:30pm,” Wirat Sinthuwong, chief of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM) for Rassada Municipality, told the Phuket Gazette. “However, flooding is…
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Patong beachfront power cables to go underground: Mayor
PHUKET: The power cables along the Patong beach road will go underground, the party town’s Mayor Chalermluck Kebsup has confirmed. The Patong Municipality Council finally agreed at a meeting on Tuesday how to source the required funds, a sticking point that saw councilors deny approval for the project twice earlier this year. “We have informed the Provincial Electricity Authority [PEA]…
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Russian killed in crash after leaving Phuket reggae bar
PHUKET: A helmet-less Russian national was killed in Phuket after he lost control of his motorbike and crashed into the sidewalk early this morning. Chalong Police and Ruamjai Foundation rescue workers were called to the scene next to the canal near Nai Harn lagoon at about 1am. “We found the body of Pavel Dzembo, 23, on the sidewalk that circles…
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Phuket ladyboys arrested for drunken “hug and run’ thefts
PHUKET: A pair of pick-pocketing ladyboys were arrested in Phuket yesterday after two tourists reported having been robbed by the duo while receiving a hug. Pavel Abramov, 24, from Russia, and Moris Fosaati, 38, from Italy, both reported at separate times to Karon Police on Monday that they had been pick-pocketed by two ladyboys, said Karon Police Deputy Superintendent Sophon…
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Phuket truck driver held after woman crushed by 18-wheeler
PHUKET: A truck driver has been taken into custody after one woman was crushed under his 18-wheeler and another woman injured at the Tah Chat Chai checkpoint yesterday morning. The driver of the truck and trailer, Niran Sawasdee, 37, told police that he was driving onto Phuket from Phang Nga when the accident occurred at about 11am. “I didn’t see…
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Woman caught smuggling drugs in pumpkins
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Woman caught smuggling drugs in pumpkins The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Police yesterday caught a woman allegedly trying to smuggle in marijuana and amphetamines stuffed in pumpkins. Kanjana Srijuisai, 37, was arrested at a border checkpoint in Ubon Ratchathani after returning from Laos. Noticing her…
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Koh Tao Murders: Taxi driver accuses police of intimidation, bribe for false testimony
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Police promised cash reward to buy false testimony: taxi driver The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A taxi driver on Koh Tao, off the Surat Thani coast, yesterday went public with his accusation that police investigating the murders of two British tourists had tried to intimidate…
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Phuket freedive floats Wierenga to third in US rankings
PHUKET: American Katie Wierenga was ranked third among the USA female Dynamic No Fins (DNF) athletes after an outstanding performance at the We Freedive Suunto Series in Phuket on Sunday. Wierenga covered 105m underwater in what many believe is the most technically difficult of the eight Association Internationale pour le Développement de l’Apée (AIDA) freediving disciplines. “She had performed in…
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Phuket Navy base swaps top brass
PHUKET: After three years at the helm, Royal Thai Navy Vice Admiral Taratorn Kajitsuwan has been transferred from his post as the commanding officer at Phuket’s Third Area Command, the leading naval base for the entire Andaman coast. An assembly of sailors welcomed his replacement, Rear Admiral Sayan Prasongsamrej, at a handover parade at the base at Cape Panwa yesterday.…
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Australian seriously injured in Phuket balcony fall
PHUKET: An Australian tourist has suffered serious head trauma after falling from a second-floor balcony at the Phuket Graceland Resort and Spa in Patong last night. “Paul Hanson, Anthony Jones and Jean Cover, all 24 years old, were drinking on the balcony at about 9:10pm,” said Lt Col Pratuang Polmana of the Patong Police. “Then something happened, and they all…
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Phuket’s Patong tunnel project balloons past B10bn, to include flyover
PHUKET: The Patong tunnel project, now slated to cost more than 10 billion baht, is to be accompanied by a flyover to prevent a bottleneck at the Thung Thong Intersection in Kathu, it was revealed on Sunday. “Of the three options considered [story here], we have decided for the final plan to include the flyover,” said Aiyanut Tinaphai, governor of…
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Krabi tourism officials accuse EGAT of being “dishonest’
PHUKET: The Koh Lanta Tourism Association has lashed out against a coal-fired power plant slated for Krabi province, east of Phuket, claiming that the authority initiating the project has been dishonest with locals. “The Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) held a third public hearing at Ban Klong Ruo, Nua Klong district, on Sunday. We believe it was insincere, as…
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Car licence plate sells for record Bt25m
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Car licence plate sells for record Bt25m The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Car licence plate number 1 Kor Kor 1111 was yesterday passed to a 19-year-old student, who bid Bt25 million for it, making it the most expensive number sold at an auction organised by…
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Policeman gets 57 years for drunken gun rampage
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Policeman gets 57 years for drunken gun rampage The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The Criminal Court yesterday gave a former crowd control policeman a total of 57 years and 10 months in prison for six cases in which he reportedly shot at motorists in Bangkok.…
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Media, police forensic experts leave Koh Tao
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Media, police forensic experts leave Koh Tao The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Forensic police yesterday pulled out of Koh Tao after completing their task collecting DNA samples from a large number of men, both Thai and migrant workers, in their hunt for the killers of…
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New Army chief vows no coup
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community New Army chief vows no coup The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Newly appointed Army chief General Udomdej Sitabutr vowed yesterday there would be no military coup to oust the Prayut Chan-o-cha administration. “There won’t be [a coup], be it by those [in power] now or…
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Siriraj comes up with an antibody for Ebola
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Siriraj comes up with an antibody for Ebola The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A Thai medical school has successfully produced an antibody for the treatment of the deadly Ebola haemorrhagic fever. Mahidol University’s Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital is preparing to announce its success at…
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Phuket police chief says “no regrets’, names replacement
PHUKET: The outgoing commander of the Phuket Provincial Police told the Phuket Gazette today that he had no regrets about his time in Phuket and had complete faith in his replacement. “I did my best,” said Gen Krajang Suwannarat, who left Phuket yesterday to return to his post as one of the seven deputy commanders heading Region 8 Police. “The…
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Video Report: Krabi Police hunt gibbon tout east of Phuket
PHUKET: Krabi Police are looking to pull gibbon touts out from their hiding places after a video surfaced on Facebook showing a man photographing the protected species with tourists. “We haven’t received a complaint about gibbons being used this way in the Ao Nang area yet. However, I’ll put together a task force and deal with it immediately,” Col Witaya…
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Suicide victim’s mum reveals letter calling for return of Phuket beaches to vendors
PHUKET: A letter presented at a ceremony commemorating a financially distressed Phuket beach vendor found dead last week implored Thailand’s leaders to return the beachfront to those who used it to make a living. At the memorial service on Patong Beach on Saturday, Jirasak Sae-Koo’s mother, Pranee Piromrit, revealed the letter, and explained that her son had written it before…
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Breaking News: Army to probe Phuket visa run “cash for clearance’ claims at Sadao
PHUKET: Reports of foreigners returning from visa runs to Malaysia being asked to pay 200 baht in cash to clear immigration at the Sadao checkpoint are to be directed to the regional Army chief for Southern Thailand, the Phuket Gazette confirmed yesterday. “I was doing a trip with a visa-run company to Penang, Malaysia,” said one British expat, who asked…
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Railway staffer child rapist-murderer sentenced to death
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Railway child rapist-murderer sentenced to death The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The Criminal Court today sentenced to death State Railway of Thailand employee Wanchai Saengkhao, 22, for raping and strangling a 13-year-old girl before dumping her body from a moving train in July. He was…
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Myanmar worker saved after Phuket retaining wall collapses
PHUKET: A Myanmar worker escaped serious injury last night when a retaining wall at a Phuket construction site collapsed, pinning him in a hole and covering him with earth. The accident occurred at a housing estate under construction in Baan Ao Por, near Ao Por pier, at about 9:30pm, Lt Suporn Muangkhai told the Phuket Gazette. “Mr Htat, 22, as…
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Phuket provides easy access to tech-diving world with PADI Tec Xplor Day
PHUKET: All divers in Phuket and the surrounding regions are invited to get a taste of the technical diving world with the PADI “Tec Xplor Day” on October 9. Kiwidiver, Blue Label Diving, Aquamaster and Dive Supply will have rebreathers, sidemounts and twin tank setups available for participants interested in “tech rec”. The technical diving community has a reputation around…
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Judge kills his wife, himself
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Judge kills his wife, himself The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Phitsanulok Court judge Chalermpol Butrdee shot dead his wife before turning the gun on himself early yesterday morning at their home in Nakhon Sawan’s Muang district. Following the report of the incident at about 2am,…
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Koh Tao party zone plan amid security concerns
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Koh Tao party zone plan amid security concerns The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Designated entertainment and activity areas and a special management team will be implemented on Koh Tao, Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul said yesterday.The scheme, dubbed the “Koh Tao Model”, is a…
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