- Crime News
Pathum Thani man arrested selling child pornography via LINE
A 27 year-old man nicknamed Kij was arrested in the Bangkok suburb province of Pathum Thani, accused of selling child pornography online. The suspect was arrested yesterday and is being charged with profiting from the sale and distribution of child pornography. Police raided the man’s home in the Beung Kham Phroy sub-district of Lam Lukka district outside of Bangkok yesterday.…
- South Thailand News
Insurance fraud ring uncovered after woman breaks her own finger
A woman busted for breaking her own finger led to the uncovering of a syndicate perpetrating insurance fraud around Thailand. The leader of the group and 16 members have now been arrested after at least 16 cases of buying insurance and then cashing in 1 to 2 months later. The group offered a service where they would find someone to…
- Covid-19 News
Top doctor asks tough questions on transitioning Covid-19 to endemic
After a meeting of the National Communicable Disease Committee was held yesterday, Thailand plans to declare Covid-19 as an endemic disease by the end of this year according to the Ministry of Public Health. While this declaration has raised hope and excitement among many who are sick of the seemingly never-ending pandemic, some have questioned some of the details involved…
- Tourism News
WARNING: Thailand Pass spoof email with malicious links
It seems that government websites in Thailand are often the target of successful hacker attacks and now it appears the Thailand Pass site is no exception. Reports are surfacing of people receiving a spoof email regarding the Thailand Pass pointing them to malicious content. It is believed that the email database collected by the Thailand Pass website has been accessed…
- Visa Information
Many foreigners caught unaware of stricter Covid-19 visa rules
Confusion and dismay are hitting long-staying foreign travellers in Thailand, as many were relieved to see the Covid-19 visa exemption extended, but missed the strict revisions in the fine print. While the decree was extended from the January 25 deadline at the last minute to March 25, the people who are allowed to take advantage of the easy-to-extend visa exemption…
- Thailand News
NHSO to give free condoms and birth control to anyone over 15
In a bold move for conservative Thailand, the National Health Security Office is providing free birth control pills and condoms to young people over the age of 15. A new programme by the NHSO is targeting teen pregnancy and the spread of sexually transmitted diseases in a bid to encourage safe sex, especially among Thai youth. The Deputy Secretary-General of…
- Covid-19 News
Warning to Covid-19 test for Korean restaurant in Pattaya area
A new warning has gone out urging everyone who has recently been to a Korean restaurant in the Bang Lamung area of Pattaya to get tested for Covid-19. The Chon Buri Public Health Office put out an announcement yesterday telling everyone who had visited or eaten at Doriwon Restaurant, located in Nong Prue on Pattaya Second Road, to get an…
- World News
Neil Young pulls music from Spotify over Joe Rogan’s misinformation
After slamming Spotify for giving Joe Rogan a platform for spreading life-threatening vaccine misinformation, classic rocker Neil Young demanded that the music streaming service remove his catalogue and they complied. The legendary musician has never shied away from expressing his opinion and wrote an open letter last week calling out Spotify for carrying Joe Rogan popular podcast which gets millions…
- Northern Thailand News
3 men arrested on prostitution charges involving a 16 year old girl
In the Northeastern province of Yasothon, police arrested 3 men on several charges relating to selling a 16 year old girl for sex. Police tracked the 3 men down as part of a larger investigation from a previous suspect they had arrested on similar charges for underage prostitution involving another girl also aged 16. 3 men, aged 27, 32, and…
- Hua Hin News
Forensic analysis ordered for elephant killed with 120 bullets
Grandfather of Pala-U, a 60 year old elephant who died after being shot more than 120 times, will be aided by forensic experts in an attempt to identify his killer. Earlier this month, the elephant was found in Phetchaburi province with more than 100 bullet wounds all over its body. Last Saturday, despite the best efforts of veterinarians who have…
- Bangkok News
AstraZeneca vaccines free for Bangkok walk-ins from Monday
Starting Monday, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration will be offering AstraZeneca vaccinations for people over 18 of any nationality. They are broadening the scope of who can be vaccinated in an attempt to accelerate national inoculation, a criterion announced today in Thailand plan to declare Covid-19 endemic by the end of this year. The vaccinations will be open to anybody as…
- Covid-19 News
Thailand will declare Covid endemic whether WHO agrees or not
Regardless of whether the World Health Organisation agrees or not, Thailand plans to declare Covid-19 as an endemic disease by the end of this year according to the Ministry of Public Health. A meeting of the National Communicable Disease Committee was held today where the decision was made. Thailand will create its own academically acceptable criteria for measuring whether Covid-19…
- Chiang Mai News
Appeal Court upholds ruling: army needn’t compensate for shooting activist
A human rights activist who was shot by the army in 2017 at a checkpoint in Chiang Mai is not entitled to compensation according to the Appeal Court. Yesterday the court upheld a previous ruling by the Civil Court that dismiss the lawsuit arguing that the army pay compensation to the family of Lahu human rights activist Chaiyaphum Pasae. The…
- Pattaya News
2 Pattaya venues acting as “restaurants” busted for Covid-19 violations
In the continuing struggle to rein in restaurants and venues violating the ever-evolving Covid-19 restrictions, police in Pattaya arrested 2 managers of so-called restaurants last night. Police reported that they were in violation of the new 11pm closing time, as well as the Covid-19 health and safety rules for venues that serve alcohol. The Pattaya City Police Chief personally led…
- Covid-19 News
First Pfizer doses for children arrive, vaccination starts Monday
The Department of Disease Control has confirmed the arrival of the first shipment of Pfizer vaccines to be administered to children aged 5 to 11. The lot of 300,000 Covid-19 vaccines arrived in Thailand today, with vaccinations scheduled to begin on January 31. The first round of vaccines will be given to those children considered high-risk due to having one…
- Phuket News
Thai man arrested for shooting a foreign man at a Patong resort
Though few details are available now, a Thai man was taken into custody by Patong Police early this morning for allegedly shooting a foreign man in a resort. The incident took place around 2 am at a resort along the Patong Beach Road and police arrested the local man just outside the resort around 4am. The victim’s condition is currently…
- Economy News
Digital assets as payment requires more regulation in Thailand
After studying the risks and benefits of using digital assets and cryptocurrencies to pay for goods and services, a coalition of financial bodies have decided that more regulation is necessary in Thailand. The Ministry of Finance, along with the Bank of Thailand and the Securities and Exchange Commission, have partnered together to assess the regulation needed for crypto usage in…
- Phuket News
Venues in Phuket selling alcohol must apply for new permit
First, they shut all the bars and entertainment venues selling alcohol in Thailand. Then they said those venues could reopen, but not as a boozy bar, rather as restaurants, who eventually were allowed to sell a bit of alcohol again, now until 11 pm. But now in Phuket, entertainment venues that were originally licenced to sell alcohol but then got…
- Transport News
Blue and Purple MRT lines testing contactless payment from Saturday
Public transportation in Bangkok like the MRT, BTS, buses and boats have been working their way towards a contactless payment system, and this Saturday the first trial runs will begin. The guinea pig for the contactless payment using Visa or MasterCard will be the Purple Line and Blue Line of the Mass Rail Transit system. Beginning on January 29, commuters…
- Economy News
Minimum wage hike proposal up to 492 baht per day being studied
A proposal is being evaluated to raise the minimum wage to 492 baht per day, a significant increase from the 313 to 336 baht per day lowest wage now. The hike proposed is a significant one and the Ministry of Labour is researching the impact of such a large wage. The proposed large increase in the lowest wage legally offered…
- Thailand News
Fake news: report it, don’t share it, urges PM and government
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha is urging people to report fake news rather than share it, especially regarding Covid-19. He says that misinformation shared online through social media is causing confusion in the residents of Thailand and people should help to weed out bad information so facts are more clear and easier to find. The Ministry of Digital Economy and Society has…
- Thailand News
Alcohol until 11 pm at food venues in 8 Blue provinces from tomorrow
Put on your party boots; tomorrow it’s time to go out late for drinks on a Monday! The easing of the alcohol ban for 8 Blue Zone provinces goes into effect tomorrow with restaurants and similar venues allowed to sell drinks until 11 pm now. Bars, pubs, karaoke, nightclubs, and other nightlife and entertainment venues will not be legally allowed…
- Northern Thailand News
Local farmers accused of setting 100 elephant traps near sanctuary
Officials from the Phu Luang Wildlife Sanctuary in Loei province filed a complaint with police about neighbouring villagers, accusing them of setting more than 100 elephant traps. The neighbours were alleged to have set the traps to protect their farms from elephants eating their crops. The sanctuary officials brought several of the elephant traps with them to the police as…
- Covid-19 News
Free Covid-19 testing events in Bangkok daily throughout January
With Covid-19 infections on the rise, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration launched a series of testing events in 80 communities around the city through the end of January. The campaign is aimed at proactive testing to identify and hopefully contain infections as the highly contagious Omicron variant spreads quickly through the city and the country. The series of testing events began…
- Covid-19 News
COVID-19 SUNDAY: 7,686 infections, 13 deaths,
Today, the CCSA reported 7,686 new Covid-19 infections, down 426 since yesterday, and 13 Coronavirus-related deaths, down 6 from yesterday. Since April 1, 2021, in the latest wave of the virus in Thailand, a total of 2,348,627 confirmed Covid-19 infections have been reported, with 22,032 total deaths from the pandemic. In the 24 hour period since the last count,…
- Tourism News
Government plans to gather data, combine tourism databases
In an effort to organize data and bolster tourism for the future, government agencies are looking at merging the databases of tourism-related agencies, businesses, and organizations. They plan to create a unified database in order to bring together all the information in an organized system. A campaign was launched, supported by the Department of Tourism, the Department of Provincial Administration,…
- Northern Thailand News
Truck with 20 tonnes of smuggled pork caught at Laos border
With pork prices skyrocketing and shortages looming, people are turning to chicken until it began being affected too, then crocodile meat, while many merchants call for an increase in the importation of pork products, and accusations fly of companies hoarding frozen pork. Now, instead of the more common busts of trucks full of meth pills or marijuana, police at the…
- Thailand News
Attacker arrested in stabbing of 2 British men in Kanchanaburi
Police in the western province of Kanchanaburi now believe that a man they took into custody is responsible for a brutal knife attack on two British men that resulted in one of their deaths. Yesterday morning at 8:49 am, police found and apprehended a 23-year old Thai man that many suspected was the assailant in the stabbing. New reporting revealed…
- Bangkok News
BMA follows CCSA; Bangkok entertainment venues remain closed
It will likely come as no shock to anyone, but the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration declared today that they will follow the rules of the CCSA and extend the closure of entertainment venues indefinitely. The decision was announced today that bars, pubs, karaoke, nightclubs, and other nightlife and entertainment venues will not be reopening in Bangkok as with the rest of…
- Transport News
Transportation the focus of 2022 for Thailand, with 1.4 trillion baht budgeted
Thailand is aiming to make 2022 the Year of Transportation, with 1.4 trillion baht being allocated for projects to improve travel by air, land, water, and rail. The Ministry of Transport predicts markedly improved transportation safety and timeliness, as well as an economic return of 1.6 times the initial investment. As a part of Thailand’s 20-year national strategy, the development…
