leah

Leah is a translator and news writer for the Thaiger. Leah studied East Asian Religions and Thai Studies at the University of Leeds and Chiang Mai University. Leah covers crime, politics, environment, human rights, entertainment, travel and culture in Thailand and southeast Asia.
  • Thailand NewsFreshmen forced to dance naked at university hazing ritual in Thailand

    Freshmen forced to dance naked at university hazing ritual in Thailand

    Electrical engineering students from a private university in Bangkok’s Nong Khaem district were allegedly forced to dance naked in front of women during an off-campus “hazing” ritual. Twitter user @RedSkullxxx posted a video of the incident online on Saturday with the caption… “This is an off campus hazing ceremony for fourth-year electrical engineering students from Southeast Asia University. In which…

  • Thailand NewsMuay Thai fighter declared ‘brain dead’ after boxing match with Frenchman

    Muay Thai fighter declared ‘brain dead’ after boxing match with Frenchman

    A Muay Thai boxer named Phanphet Phadungchai has been in a state of brain death for three days after being knocked out by a French boxer during a match on Friday. His family reported that he is no longer being treated with stimulant medication but is still using a ventilator to breathe, contrary to reports online which stated that his…

  • Transport NewsThailand aims to complete high-speed rail link with China by 2028

    Thailand aims to complete high-speed rail link with China by 2028

    Thailand aims to finish constructing the high-speed rail link which will connect China with the Land of Smiles by 2028, according to the Transport and Foreign Affairs ministries. As it stands, the project is only 5% complete – casting doubts on Thailand’s ability to fulfil their recent pledge to get the job done in the next six years. Beijing plans…

  • Crime NewsThieves steal VIP chairs from Liverpool – Man U match in Bangkok

    Thieves steal VIP chairs from Liverpool – Man U match in Bangkok

    Police have arrested a man under suspicion of stealing VIP chairs reserved for Liverpool and Manchester United players from Rajamangala Stadium in Bangkok on Saturday morning. CCTV footage reveals two nonchalant men wheeling four dugout chairs, valued at 400,000 baht, out of the stadium at 6am. Two of the chairs were used by Manchester United reserve players and two by…

  • Thailand NewsUPDATE: Crashed army helicopter gets into another accident in southern Thailand

    UPDATE: Crashed army helicopter gets into another accident in southern Thailand

    UPDATE: Crashed army helicopter gets into another accident in southern Thailand The Royal Thai army’s Blackhawk which crashed into a rubber plantation in Songkhla on Friday got into a second accident on the roads in Phatthalung province yesterday. The helicopter wreckage was loaded onto an army trailer which collided with another trailer on the Hat Yai – Phattalung road at…

  • Thailand NewsThree Uyghurs escape from detention centre in Thailand

    Three Uyghurs escape from detention centre in Thailand

    Thai police are still searching for three Uyghur men who escaped from an immigration detention centre in Prachuap Khiri Khan province, 200 miles south of Bangkok, on Monday. The trio – 25 year old Ali, 30 year old Abdulla and 29 year old Abdullah – broke out of their cell on Monday morning by using a sharp tool to cut…

  • Thailand NewsArmy helicopter crashes in southern Thailand

    Army helicopter crashes in southern Thailand

    At around 9am this morning, a Blackhawk army helicopter crashed in a rubber plantation in Songkhla province with seven military personnel inside. The commander of the 4th Army Region sustained serious injuries and six others suffered minor injuries in the crash. No casualties were reported. The Blackhawk took off from Sena Narong Military Camp in Hat Yai district, Songkhla province,…

  • Bangkok NewsVIDEO: Bangkok taxi driver pulls out knife on Singaporean tourists

    VIDEO: Bangkok taxi driver pulls out knife on Singaporean tourists

    Video evidence reveals a Bangkok taxi driver pulling a knife out from the pocket of the driver’s seat door to intimidate two Singaporean tourists, who had accused him of not giving them enough change. Although Bangkok taxis are supposed to be metered, the tourists said they had agreed a price of 400 baht for their journey to Suvarnabhumi airport. However,…

  • Transport NewsThai Airways’ revenue finally takes off

    Thai Airways’ revenue finally takes off

    Thai Airways’ July progress report reveals a promising outlook for Thailand’s flag carrier, which expects to exit its financial rehabilitation plan earlier than planned. The airline’s revenue has shot up due to increased passenger traffic, but cutting costs, selling stock, and chasing debts have been Thai Airways’ secrets to getting back on track. After improving its performance, Thai Airways submitted…

  • Environment NewsSay no to shark fin, says new WildAid video featuring Miss Universe Thailand

    Say no to shark fin, says new WildAid video featuring Miss Universe Thailand

    In honour of shark awareness day, WildAid launched a video entitled ‘Sea of Chaos’ to highlight the important role of sharks in the ocean and how the consumption of shark fin is disrupting the ecosystem. The video features activist Maria Poonlertlarp, who is also Miss Universe Thailand 2017, alongside actor Nawat ‘Pong’ Kulrattanarak, who is WildAid’s shark ambassador. In ‘Sea of…

  • Crime NewsHello Kitty Horror Story: Thieves return ‘haunted’ teddy bear stolen from scrapyard

    Hello Kitty Horror Story: Thieves return ‘haunted’ teddy bear stolen from scrapyard

    In a peculiar sequence of events, CCTV footage from a scrapyard in Kamphaeng Phet province, central Thailand, reveals a man and a woman stealing a giant Hello Kitty doll from a written-off car… and then coming back to return the doll in the middle of the night. In May, the driver of the car died in a road accident. The…

  • Crime NewsPolice shoot grenade-yielding man holding woman hostage in northeast Thailand

    Police shoot grenade-yielding man holding woman hostage in northeast Thailand

    Police shot and injured a man who, armed with a grenade, held a woman hostage for three hours this morning in Khon Kaen province, northeast Thailand. After hours of failed negotiation, a SWAT team was called in, who shot the man in his left shoulder and saved the hostage. At 9am, officers at Muang Khon Kaen Police Station received a…

  • Covid-19 NewsCAAT allows food and drinks to be served on domestic flights in Thailand

    CAAT allows food and drinks to be served on domestic flights in Thailand

    The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) has given airlines the green light to serve food and drinks again on domestic flights in Thailand. Yesterday, the CAAT announced that director Sutthiphong Kongpool signed regulations to allow passengers on domestic flights in Thailand to be served food and drinks again, under strict Covid-19 prevention measures, effective immediately. The measures include that…

  • Thailand NewsToday is National No Alcohol Day in Thailand

    Today is National No Alcohol Day in Thailand

    “No Alcohol, No Disease, No Covid-19:” is the official motto for this year’s National No Alcohol Day in Thailand, hand-written by Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha. National No Alcohol Day coincides with “Khao Pansa” (entering Pansa), an auspicious Buddhist holiday celebrated across southeast Asia. Khao Pansa marks the first day of “Vassa,” the 3 month Buddhist Rains Retreat. For three…

  • Crime NewsMan stabs construction worker to death in Bangkok

    Man stabs construction worker to death in Bangkok

    A construction worker was stabbed to death by his colleague last night in Bangkok. At around 7pm, police were called to a house in Don Mueang district where they found 31 year old Wanchai “Nong” Inthuwanit lying dead in a pool of blood, having been stabbed 7 times in the head, throat, and right shoulder. Police tracked down the suspected…

  • Thailand NewsThailand ramps up monkey population control efforts

    Thailand ramps up monkey population control efforts

    Thailand is ramping up simian sterilisation projects to get the country’s urban monkey population under control, especially in Lopburi city in central Thailand, which is famous for its huge macaque population. So far this year, a total of 624 monkeys have been neutered and released back onto the streets. Lopburi’s macaques once depended on tourists to feed them but were…

  • World NewsTravel between Thailand and Malaysia by train for just 50 baht (RM7)

    Travel between Thailand and Malaysia by train for just 50 baht (RM7)

    After two years, the Shuttle Train which connects Thailand and Malaysia will resume services on Friday. The Shuttle Train connects Padang Besar in Malaysia to Hat Yai in southern Thailand. The journey takes around one hour and tickets cost just 50 baht or 7 Malaysian ringgits. The service was temporarily suspended as a Covid-19 prevention measure by the Malaysian government…

  • Bangkok NewsMotorbike burns to a crisp in Bangkok road accident

    Motorbike burns to a crisp in Bangkok road accident

    A teenager is injured after crashing his motorbike into the barrier on the Vibhavadi Rangsit Road in Bangkok at around 1am. The young man said he bounced off the barrier and was flung more than 10 metres through the air. His red Honda PCX instantly set on fire and burned to a crisp. At around 1am, officers from Vibhavadhi Police…

  • Thailand Weather UpdatesFloods in Buriram, northeast Thailand

    Floods in Buriram, northeast Thailand

    Two days of continuous heavy rainfall has caused “the worst floods in 10 years” in parts of Buriram province, northeast Thailand. Heavy rainfall during the early hours of yesterday morning caused flash flooding in Ban Dan district while most people were sleeping. Around 30 houses and restaurants, as well as village roads and agricultural land, have been damaged in the…

  • Bangkok NewsFootball fans scramble for FREE Liverpool – Man U tickets in Bangkok

    Football fans scramble for FREE Liverpool – Man U tickets in Bangkok

    So many seats were available for tonight’s Liverpool versus Manchester United match in Bangkok that Rajamangala Stadium announced via Facebook that they would hand out free tickets to “The Match” at 3.30pm today. Football fans who forked out up to 25,000 baht per ticket are furious. Both teams have huge fan bases in Thailand, so everyone expected that the 59,000+…

  • Environment NewsDead sea turtle with plastic lodged in its throat washes up on Phuket beach

    Dead sea turtle with plastic lodged in its throat washes up on Phuket beach

    A dead sea turtle with plastic lodged in its mouth and throat washed up on Mai Khao Beach in Phuket yesterday, July 11. Winai Seh-ew, the village chief of Mai Khao subdistrict in Thalang district, received a call from lifeguards at Mai Khao beach to say a big Hawksbill turtle carcass had washed up on the shore. Upon inspection, the…

  • Visa InformationCabinet to debate foreign land ownership in Thailand

    Cabinet to debate foreign land ownership in Thailand

    A foreign land ownership act that would allow foreigners to buy houses and up to 1 rai of land in Thailand has been drafted and will soon be debated by the Cabinet, according to Deputy Minister of Interior Niphon Boonyamanee. If the bill makes it through further readings, it could stimulate Thailand’s real estate economy, said Niphon. According to Thailand’s…

  • Thailand NewsBuddhist monks save child from drowning in the Chao Phraya river

    Buddhist monks save child from drowning in the Chao Phraya river

    Two Buddhist monks from Wat Bang Sai temple, located on the waterfront in Samut Prakan province, jumped into the Chao Phraya river on Saturday and saved a child who was drowning. Once 13 year old Khanin recovered from the incident, he explained that he was swimming with his friends when the water underneath him suddenly became very cold. He said…

  • Crime NewsUPDATE: Woman’s corpse “naked and covered in bite marks” found in northeast Thailand

    UPDATE: Woman’s corpse “naked and covered in bite marks” found in northeast Thailand

    UPDATE: Today, police arrested the man suspected of murdering his wife, Daeng, whose body was found naked and covered in bite marks at her home in Buriram on Monday. Police detained and arrested Nithipot, aka “Dao” at a relative’s house in Huai Thalaeng district in Nakhon Ratchasima province this morning. Police brought him back to Buriram for questioning at Phutthaisong…

  • Thailand NewsCost of electricity in Thailand could rise to 5 baht per unit by September

    Cost of electricity in Thailand could rise to 5 baht per unit by September

    Electricity bills in Thailand could become more expensive than ever by September, according to a source at the Office of Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC). In the last 4 months of the year, the cost of electricity in Thailand could break the 5 baht per unit barrier for the first time, rising by 90 to 100 satang per unit. The official…

  • Thailand NewsMan in northeast Thailand pays 3.9 million baht dowry… for a buffalo

    Man in northeast Thailand pays 3.9 million baht dowry… for a buffalo

    The owner of a “high so” farm in Korat, northeast Thailand, gave a “dowry” of 3.9 million baht – in cash – for a 22 month old male buffalo named Chaoboonterm from Khon Kaen province. The man said he wants to breed the buffalo, which he said is a “textbook” Thai beauty. Supachai Winitphon, aka “Sia Noi” is the owner…

  • Pattaya NewsPattaya wants to enact city’s own cannabis-control law

    Pattaya wants to enact city’s own cannabis-control law

    Pattaya’s council is already fed up of waiting for a national cannabis act to be passed, so the city has started to draft its own cannabis-control law. Pattaya’s Deputy Mayor Thitiphan Phettrakul chaired a meeting on Friday to discuss rules and regulations needed to control and prohibit the use of cannabis and hemp, especially in schools. Cannabis was delisted as…

  • World NewsThailand flies flags at half-mast today in memory of Shinzo Abe

    Thailand flies flags at half-mast today in memory of Shinzo Abe

    Thailand’s PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has ordered all government agencies and state enterprises to fly their flags to half-mast today in memory of former-Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who was assassinated while campaigning in the city of Nara in western Japan on Friday. The request was announced this morning by government spokesperson Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana. PM Prayut has asked all government agencies…

  • Crime NewsWoman’s corpse “naked and covered in bite marks” found in northeast Thailand

    Woman’s corpse “naked and covered in bite marks” found in northeast Thailand

    Police have launched a murder investigation after a 55 year old woman’s body was found “naked and covered in bite marks” at a house in Buriram province, northeast Thailand, yesterday. The prime suspect in the case so far is the woman’s husband, who mysteriously disappeared around the time of the murder. Officers from Phuttaisong Police Station rushed to a two-story…

  • Thailand Weather UpdatesFlash flood warning issued for 22 provinces of Thailand

    Flash flood warning issued for 22 provinces of Thailand

    Thailand’s Office of the National Water Resources warns that 22 provinces of Thailand are at risk of heavy rain and flash flooding this week, from July 11 – July 15. Areas at risk of flooding include… Northern Thailand Phayao Province, especially Chiang Kam District, Pong District, Pu Sang District and Ngao District. Lampang Province, especially Chae Hom District, Mueang Pan…