leah

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.
  • Crime NewsTangmo: ‘Speedboat gang’ to pay 2 million baht plus salary to Tangmo’s mother

    Tangmo: ‘Speedboat gang’ to pay 2 million baht plus salary to Tangmo’s mother

    Seven months after famous actress Nida “Tangmo” Patcharaveerapong fell from a speedboat and drowned in the Chaophraya River, the court has ordered all six defendants in the case to pay damages to Tangmo’s mother. Today, Nonthaburi Provincial Court ordered all six defendants – the “speedboat gang” – to pay a collective upfront sum of 2 million baht in damages to…

  • South Thailand NewsRoadside bomb blast kills police officer and injures four more in southern Thailand

    Roadside bomb blast kills police officer and injures four more in southern Thailand

    A roadside bomb blast killed one police officer and injured four more officers in Pattani province in southern Thailand yesterday. The officers were patrolling Mai Kaen district in a pickup truck when suspected insurgents hiding nearby detonated a roadside bomb in front of Mai Kaen Hospital at around 7.40pm. In the blast, the pickup truck was launched into a power…

  • Thailand NewsForeigner’s ad looking for highly paid Thai girlfriend attracts hundreds of applicants

    Foreigner’s ad looking for highly paid Thai girlfriend attracts hundreds of applicants

    A Thai woman posted a job advertisement online last week on behalf of her two Chinese friends who are looking to hire Thai girlfriends. The positions come with a 100,000 baht salary per month with a chance to earn even more if the girlfriends do a good job. Facebook user ‘Ok Mai Mai’ posted the following message last week… “Looking…

  • Crime NewsCustomer masturbates in front of delivery driver in central Thailand

    Customer masturbates in front of delivery driver in central Thailand

    Yesterday, a delivery driver filed a police complaint after he was sexually harassed by a customer in Nonthaburi province in central Thailand last week. The young driver waited more than one week to submit his evidence to police because he was scared he would be arrested for violating Thailand’s Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA), a law introduced in June which…

  • Visa InformationThailand officially grants longer stays to tourists with extended visa on arrival

    Thailand officially grants longer stays to tourists with extended visa on arrival

    Tourists arriving in Thailand will soon be permitted to stay in the kingdom for longer. Today, Government Spokesperson Traisulee Traisornkul announced that Thailand’s Cabinet had approved the temporary extension of both visa on arrival stays and visa exemption stays. The government hopes the extensions will stimulate tourism and the economy, which is still recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic. Between October…

  • World NewsOfficial warns against touching foreigners after monkeypox arrives in China

    Official warns against touching foreigners after monkeypox arrives in China

    A top Chinese health official advised the public against touching foreigners after China recorded its first monkeypox infection in the southwestern city of Chongqing on Friday. Chief Epidemiologist at the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Wu Zunyou posted on Weibo to advise Chinese people to avoid “skin-to-skin contact with foreigners” if they want to be safe from…

  • Crime NewsThai police bust illegal piranha trafficking operation in Bangkok

    Thai police bust illegal piranha trafficking operation in Bangkok

    Police arrested a man in Bangkok yesterday for illegally smuggling and selling piranha fish, following a joint investigation by Thailand’s Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) and the Department of Fisheries. An investigation into illegal aquatic operations in Thailand revealed that 21 year old Abhisit Wisetsee had been illegally selling piranhas via the Internet for over a year. Each piranha sold for…

  • Thailand News‘Nazi’ the Pit Bull mauls its owner in northeast Thailand

    ‘Nazi’ the Pit Bull mauls its owner in northeast Thailand

    A pit bull mauled and seriously injured its owner – who named it “Nazi” – in Nakhon Ratchasima province in northeast Thailand. At 2pm yesterday, Korat rescue workers were called to a two-storey house on Soi Thaekingphon 5 in Mueang district, where they found the dog’s 60 year old owner Supaporn seriously injured and lying in a pool of blood…

  • Thailand NewsNok Air suspends new domestic route in Thailand after just six weeks

    Nok Air suspends new domestic route in Thailand after just six weeks

    Nok Air has temporarily suspended all Chiang Mai – Korat flights just six weeks after the route’s inaugural flight on August 2. The suspended route was the only commercial flight going in and out of Isaan’s Nakhon Ratchasima Airport, which is now a ghost town and at risk of closing again. The service had high potential, linking the capital of…

  • Thailand NewsTomb raiders dig up mass grave in search of winning lottery numbers in Thailand

    Tomb raiders dig up mass grave in search of winning lottery numbers in Thailand

    At 4am today, a gang of money-hungry lottery fanatics dug up a mass grave, for people with no relatives, at a cemetery in Mueang district in Chon Buri province, eastern Thailand. The group were searching for the winning numbers of today’s national lottery draw, as evidenced by the incense and equipment used in lottery rituals found strewn around the scene.…

  • Crime NewsThai woman ‘clicks one link’ and loses 40 years of savings in terrifying tax scam

    Thai woman ‘clicks one link’ and loses 40 years of savings in terrifying tax scam

    A 63 year old woman from Trang province in southern Thailand says she “clicked one link” on Tuesday morning and lost her life savings of 1.5 million baht in the blink of an eye. Nis went from having millions in her bank account – which she saved up by selling pork at a market for 40 years – to just…

  • Thailand NewsQueen Elizabeth II’s interpreter during royal visit to Thailand turns 101 years old

    Queen Elizabeth II’s interpreter during royal visit to Thailand turns 101 years old

    Yesterday, a glamorous 101 year old lady in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand, reflected on her experience of interpreting for Queen Elizabeth II during Her Majesty’s visit to Thailand 50 years ago. Srithong Ariwong is pictured in a red outfit alongside Queen Elizabeth and Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip in the northern province of Chiang Mai on February 14, 1972. Queen…

  • World NewsEuropean tourists apologise for peeing on sacred mountain in Indonesia

    European tourists apologise for peeing on sacred mountain in Indonesia

    A European couple are under fire by Indonesian netizens who are not happy that one of them peed on the sacred Mount Bromo in the Tengger mountains in East Java, Indonesia. According to Coconuts, the pair posted a video on Instagram of their trip to Bromo National Park. In one part of the video, the male tourist is pictured weeing…

  • Thailand NewsThai frog farmer says country music is his key to success

    Thai frog farmer says country music is his key to success

    A 72 year old man from Trang province in southern Thailand says that Thai country music, or “Luk Thung,” is the key to a successful frog farm. Not only do frogs love country music, but it makes them healthier, stronger and grow faster, he claims. Rit Lomkong has been raising frogs for five years and he says they can’t live…

  • Thailand NewsMissing German/Finnish tourist leaves Thailand

    Missing German/Finnish tourist leaves Thailand

    UPDATE An investigation into Tim Pösel’s TM30 documents reveals that the he left Thailand and entered Laos via land border in Chiang Rai province, northern Thailand, on September 5. Spokesperson for the Tourist Police Bureau Pol. Maj. Gen. Apichart Suriboonya said that Pösel left Thailand tvia the fourth Thai-Laos Friendship Bridge at the Chiang Saen immigration checkpoint in Chiang Rai.…

  • Bangkok NewsLightning strike sets car on fire in Bangkok

    Lightning strike sets car on fire in Bangkok

    Cars being safe from lightning must be a myth, because a Sedan parked in the Rama 9 area of Bangkok burst into flames when it got struck by lightning during a thunderstorm last night. At 7.29pm, Rama 199 Radio Centre received a report that a car was on fire at the Government Housing Bank carpark in Huai Khwang district. Luckily,…

  • Bangkok NewsCheap plane tickets go on sale today and tomorrow in Bangkok

    Cheap plane tickets go on sale today and tomorrow in Bangkok

    Today and tomorrow discounted plane tickets will be on sale at Bang Sue Grand Station in Bangkok’s Chatuchak district at the event ‘Transport United for Happy Journey,’ hosted by Thailand’s Ministry of Transport. The ministry is hosting the event at Gate 1 from September 15-16 to stimulate tourism, exchange knowledge about transportation facilities and make travelling around in Thailand more…

  • Thailand NewsYoung German/Finnish man missing in Thailand

    Young German/Finnish man missing in Thailand

    A 24 year old German man named Tim Pösel is missing in Thailand. Pösel is 198 centimetres tall (6’6) and his mother tongue is Finnish, but he also speaks German. Pösel arrived in Thailand on August 16 and last had contact with his family in Germany on August 20 when he texted his mother via Instagram messenger. A missing persons…

  • Crime NewsVIDEO: Pervert picks the wrong woman to secretly film in the bathroom in Thailand

    VIDEO: Pervert picks the wrong woman to secretly film in the bathroom in Thailand

    A Thai man snuck into a women’s public bathroom in Chachoengsao province, eastern Thailand, on Sunday and secretly filmed a woman while she was in the cubicle. He picked on the wrong woman, as it turns out the victim has a black belt in Taekwondo. The whole incident was captured by CCTV. The 28 year old woman, Ms. A (pseudonym)…

  • World NewsThai VietJet launch flights from Bangkok to a Vietnamese island paradise

    Thai VietJet launch flights from Bangkok to a Vietnamese island paradise

    Thai VietJet announced a new international route between Bangkok and the tropical island paradise of Phu Quoc in Vietnam. The route’s inaugural flight will take off on October 12. The route will fly between Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport to Phu Quoc International Airport four times per week on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, with an approximate flight duration of 1 hour…

  • Politics NewsCourt to decide fate of suspended Thai PM Prayut on September 30

    Court to decide fate of suspended Thai PM Prayut on September 30

    On September 30 at 3pm, Thailand’s Constitutional Court will read the verdict on suspended Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha’s eight-year term limit. According to Section 158 of Thailand’s constitution, “The Prime Minister shall not hold office for more than eight years in total, whether or not holding consecutive term.” Prayut reached his eight-year limit serving as PM in August after becoming…

  • Bangkok NewsBREAKING: Shooting in Thai army building in Bangkok, 2 dead, 1 injured

    BREAKING: Shooting in Thai army building in Bangkok, 2 dead, 1 injured

    At 8.45am, a Sergeant Major opened fire in the Royal Thai Army College on Thoddamri Road in Bangkok’s Dusit district, killing two soldiers and seriously injuring one more. The gunman has been arrested. The army chief shot one of his colleagues in the head who has since died at Vajira Hospital. The deceased have been identified as Sergeant Major Nopporat…

  • Thailand NewsEarthquake strikes in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand

    Earthquake strikes in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand

    At 1.03am today, a 3.6 magnitude earthquake struck Fang district in northern Thailand’s Chiang Mai province, according to the Meteorological Department. No injuries, deaths or damages have been reported. The earthquake’s epicentre in the Mae Kha subdistrict had a considerably shallow depth of 4 kilometres, causing people in the region to feel strong shaking. Strong shaking was reported in Mae…

  • Crime NewsThailand orders 20th Century Fox to pay 10 million baht to restore Maya Bay

    Thailand orders 20th Century Fox to pay 10 million baht to restore Maya Bay

    Today, Thailand’s Supreme Court ruled that Hollywood movie company 20th Century Fox – now renamed 20th Century Studios – is required to pay 10 million baht in environmental damages caused by the movie “The Beach” (2000) starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Filming for “The Beach” began at Maya Bay at the Phi Phi Islands in Krabi province, southern Thailand, in 1998. The…

  • Crime NewsPro-wakeskater charged with causing danger for surfing in Bangkok floods

    Pro-wakeskater charged with causing danger for surfing in Bangkok floods

    UPDATE Pro-wakeskater Daniel Grant has been charged with causing danger to traffic – violating Thailand’s Traffic Act and Highway Act – for his surfing stunt in the Bangkok floods on Friday. The 24 year old half-Thai, half-English watersports champion was summoned to Khlong Luang Police Station this morning to acknowledge the allegations made against him by police after they saw…

  • Transport NewsThai VietJet to increase frequency of Japan and Taiwan flights

    Thai VietJet to increase frequency of Japan and Taiwan flights

    Thai VietJet announced the addition of flights to both the Bangkok – Fukuoka route to Japan and the Bangkok – Taipei route to Taiwan. The airline commenced the Bangkok – Fukuoka route, their only service linking Thailand and Japan, back in July. Initially, the route between Suvarnabhumi Airport and Fukuoka Airport operated three times a week. The route turned out…

  • Thailand NewsThai woman hires delivery driver to investigate her boyfriend’s alleged affair

    Thai woman hires delivery driver to investigate her boyfriend’s alleged affair

    Yesterday, A LINE Man driver working in Nonthaburi province, central Thailand, revealed how he ended up working as a spy for a customer who thought her boyfriend was having an affair. LINE Man provides food, grocery, parcel delivery, messenger and taxi services – and in this case, detective services. Back in July, Mr A (pseudonym) was working a normal night…

  • Crime NewsAlleged Thai ‘love scammer’ denied bail in Australia

    Alleged Thai ‘love scammer’ denied bail in Australia

    A Thai national detained in Sydney, Australia, for allegedly committing “romance fraud” was denied bail yesterday. Siriluck Fatima Chimmalee is accused of stealing from men she met online through a dating app. She is facing trial for over 100 charges of fraud. Police say 30 year old Siriluck allegedly pretended to be a registered remitter and charged customers steep inflation…

  • Thailand NewsVIDEO: King cobra slithers into closet in southern Thailand

    VIDEO: King cobra slithers into closet in southern Thailand

    A terrified homeowner in Trang province, southern Thailand, woke up yesterday morning to find a 2.1 metre long king cobra taking a nap in his wardrobe. He locked the snake inside the closet and urgently called a rescue team for help. At 9am, a snake rescue foundation received a request for help from a villager in Palian district and deployed…

  • Crime NewsActivist sentenced to 2 years in prison for wearing Thai dress that ‘mocks’ H.M. Queen

    Activist sentenced to 2 years in prison for wearing Thai dress that ‘mocks’ H.M. Queen

    A 23 year old Thai activist has been sentenced to two years imprisonment for royal defamation, under Section 112 of the Criminal Code, for attending a protest in traditional Thai attire. Her catwalk show was interpreted by royalists as “mocking” H.M. Queen Sirikit, the queen mother of Thailand. Bangkok South Criminal Court read the verdict of Jatuporn “New” Saeoueng’s sentence…