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.
  • 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…

  • Crime NewsPolice fire 30 shots at suspected child rapist in central Thailand

    Police fire 30 shots at suspected child rapist in central Thailand

    Thai police yesterday fatally shot a man wanted under suspicion of raping a child. The police were about to arrest the man when he allegedly fired a single shot at the police. In response, police fired over 30 shots at the man’s car, instantly killing him at a petrol station in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province in central Thailand. According…

  • 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…

  • Thailand NewsWhere to see tonight’s ‘supermoon’ in Thailand, even in the rain

    Where to see tonight’s ‘supermoon’ in Thailand, even in the rain

    Today marks the world’s biggest celestial event of the year, with the full moon orbiting at its closest point near the Earth, creating a “supermoon” or “buck moon.” Once the sun goes down tonight in Thailand, the sky will reveal the biggest, brightest moon of the year that can be seen by the naked eye… provided that it isn’t cloudy…

  • 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+…

  • Bangkok NewsCommunication cables set fire in Bangkok

    Communication cables set fire in Bangkok

    At around 7am this morning, communication cables caught fire causing a big blaze in Bangkok. The fire occurred at Soi Lad Phrao 111 in Khlong Chan subdistrict, Bang Kapi district. No injuries were reported. Firefighters from Hua Mak Fire Station received a notification of the fire at 7.21am and rushed to the scene. The firefighters successfully extinguished the fire. When…

  • 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…

  • Transport NewsVistara launches new nonstop Thailand – India route

    Vistara launches new nonstop Thailand – India route

    Vistara Airlines is launching nonstop flights between Mumbai and Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport 5 times per week, starting next month on August 5. Vistara’s 3 cabin Airbus A320neo aircraft will operate the route on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. The new route is the airline’s second service to the Thai capital. In August 2019, Vistara launched direct flights between Delhi…

  • 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…

  • Bangkok News“Corpse” floating in Bangkok canal turns out to be old man meditating

    “Corpse” floating in Bangkok canal turns out to be old man meditating

    Onlookers rightly called the police when they saw a stiff body floating along a murky Bangkok canal. In a frenzy, dozens of people were shouting from the canal side, but the floating man did not respond. Everyone thought he was dead. Until… A brave man jumped into the canal and waded through the mud to check whether the floating man…

  • 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…

  • Thailand NewsPolice bring home 6 Thai women forced into prostitution in Myanmar

    Police bring home 6 Thai women forced into prostitution in Myanmar

    Police brought home 6 Thai women who posted videos on social media to say they had been forced into prostitution in Myanmar and needed help. The police picked up the women from the Thailand – Myanmar Friendship Bridge in Mae Sai district, Chiang Rai province, after coordinating with Burmese authorities. The group includes 31 year old Nanny from Nonthaburi, 25…

  • Covid-19 NewsBREAKING: CCSA address face masks, emergency decree, and foreign arrivals

    BREAKING: CCSA address face masks, emergency decree, and foreign arrivals

    Today, Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha met with the Covid-19 Situation Administration – the CCSA – to discuss Covid rules and restrictions in Thailand. Namely, the use of face masks, the extension of Thailand’s emergency decree, and foreign arrival figures. The CCSA started by saying that cases of Covid subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 are on the rise in Thailand. Face…

  • Crime NewsUPDATE: Police arrest man who stabbed elderly lady to death in central Thailand

    UPDATE: Police arrest man who stabbed elderly lady to death in central Thailand

    UPDATE: Police arrest man who stabbed elderly lady to death in central Thailand Police have caught and arrested the man who broke into an elderly woman’s home in Cha-am district in Phetchaburi province and stabbed her to death on Tuesday. Police arrested him in Bang Saphan district in Prachuap Khiri Khan province yesterday at about 3pm and took him to…

  • Road deathsNorwegian man drives into ravine in southern Thailand, 1 killed & 5 injured

    Norwegian man drives into ravine in southern Thailand, 1 killed & 5 injured

    A Norwegian man drove his car off a cliff and into a ravine at a viewpoint in Nakhon Si Thammarat province in southern Thailand yesterday. His Thai mother-in-law died from her injuries and 5 more were injured in the crash. Jorn Silva of Norwegian nationality was driving the car and inside were his wife Suwandee Silva, his daughters Natalie and…

  • Road deathsYoung Frenchman dies in motorbike accident in central Thailand

    Young Frenchman dies in motorbike accident in central Thailand

    A 22 year old Frenchman died in a motorbike accident this morning in Samut Prakan province in central Thailand. The man lost control of his motorbike while driving over a bridge and fell off onto a footpath, breaking his neck in the fall. At 10:30am this morning, police at Bang Bo Police Station received a report that a man had…

  • Crime NewsThailand: Don’t answer calls starting with +697, it’s a scam

    Thailand: Don’t answer calls starting with +697, it’s a scam

    If a number starting with +697 rings you, don’t answer. Thailand’s Ministry of Digital Economy and Society (DES) says it is most likely a scam call centre trying to swindle you out of money. In a smart move to combat call centre scams, Thailand’s National Broadcasting Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) has purposefully added the prefix +697 to IP calls to help people…

  • Pattaya NewsBritish man beaten up and robbed in Pattaya, Thailand

    British man beaten up and robbed in Pattaya, Thailand

    A British tourist who woke up in his underwear on the floor on a Pattaya path says he got beaten up and robbed by 4 Thai men after a night of heavy drinking. Police found 29 year old Farnie (surname reserved) of British nationality covered in bruises on the floor of North Pattaya Road yesterday at noon. Farnie was missing…

  • Crime NewsGrandmother stabbed more than 20 times in brutal murder in central Thailand

    Grandmother stabbed more than 20 times in brutal murder in central Thailand

    Police have launched a murder investigation after a man stabbed a 75 year old woman to death at her home in Phetchaburi province, central Thailand, on Tuesday. The woman’s daughter, 39 year old Yok, said she had been unwell and had been taking sleeping pills. Yok woke up at noon to find her mother – 75 year old Suthasinee Phansawat…

  • Things To DoRadisson’s ambitious plan to add 100 hotels to its Thai portfolio by 2025

    Radisson’s ambitious plan to add 100 hotels to its Thai portfolio by 2025

    Radisson Hotel Group revealed an ambitious plan to add 100 hotels and resorts to its small portfolio of properties in Thailand. The hospitality company currently operates 4 hotels in Thailand – all located in Bangkok – and has 2 more opening in Phuket and Pattaya. The hotel group will focus on developing properties and signing deals in “key business and…