Petch Petpailin

Petpailin, or Petch, is a Thai translator and writer for The Thaiger who focuses on translating breakingThai news stories into English. With a background in field journalism, Petch brings several years of experience to the English News desk at The Thaiger. Before joining The Thaiger, Petch worked as a content writer for several known blogging sites in Bangkok, including Happio and The Smart Local. Her articles have been syndicated by many big publishers in Thailand and internationally, including the Daily Mail, The Sun and the Bangkok Post. She is a news writer who stops reading news on the weekends to spend more time cafe hopping and petting dwarf shrimp! But during office hours, you can find Petch on LinkedIn and you can reach her by email at petch@thethaiger.com.
  • Pattaya NewsUPDATE: Chon Buri police couldn’t find victim of car crash… on the back seat | Thaiger

    UPDATE: Chon Buri police couldn’t find victim of car crash… on the back seat

    UPDATE The Director of the Inter-City Motorway Division, Highway Department, Thanasak Wongthanakijcharoen, defended his highway officers after they were criticised for their slapstick approach to a car crash investigation which couldn’t find the body of the dead driver in the rear of the vehicle. The director said his team didn’t look for the driver’s corpse because it is a department…

  • Thailand NewsOpposition to Thailand govt hosting former Sri Lanka president | Thaiger

    Opposition to Thailand govt hosting former Sri Lanka president

    The former president of Sri Lanka, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, is expected to travel from Singapore to Thailand today to seek temporary shelter. But an international relations expert suggests the Thai government shouldn’t host an official ceremony to welcome the ex-leader as the issue is politically sensitive. The 73 year old Rajapaksa was pressured to leave his position as president of Sri…

  • Northern Thailand News2018 Thai cave rescue inspires new attraction in Chiang Rai | Thaiger

    2018 Thai cave rescue inspires new attraction in Chiang Rai

    Taking inspiration from the 2018 cave rescue in the northern province of Chiang Rai, one billion baht will be invested in a new attraction and exhibition called The Caventure. A soft opening is expected in October next year. The 17-day rescue in 2018, or the Tham Luang cave rescue, at Tham Luang Nang Non Cave in Chiang Rai, was an…

  • Pattaya NewsChon Buri police couldn’t find victim of car crash on back seat | Thaiger

    Chon Buri police couldn’t find victim of car crash on back seat

    Chon Buri Highway Police rescue team has been slammed by Thai netizens for their slapstick approach because they couldn’t find the dead body of a man who crashed his car. The dead body of the driver lay in the car’s wreckage for 12 hours after the accident before he was found. The body of 68 year old Pattarachai Auttaporn was…

  • Krabi NewsWhale shark washed up on a Krabi beach in Thailand | Thaiger

    Whale shark washed up on a Krabi beach in Thailand

    The carcass of a male whale shark washed up on Long Beach on Koh Lanta Island yesterday in the southern province of Krabi. Officials made it known that this is a first for Krabi, no dead whale sharks had washed ashore before. The manager of the Sayang Beach Resort on Koh Lanta, Somboon Kaengraeg, spotted the dead whale shark and…

  • Thailand NewsThailand’s new narcotics laws offers drug offenders treatment | Thaiger

    Thailand’s new narcotics laws offers drug offenders treatment

    The Thai Cabinet yesterday introduced a new set of narcotics laws, downgrading a number of acts to give people a second chance if they have committed minor offences. Some drug offenders will be offered drug treatment instead of prosecution. Yesterday, the prime minister’s deputy spokeswoman, Traisuree Traisaranakun, reported that the Cabinet approved the new laws under the Narcotics Act. The…

  • Bangkok NewsMan caught taking drugs inside a Bangkok police booth didn’t give a crap | Thaiger

    Man caught taking drugs inside a Bangkok police booth didn’t give a crap

    You might think taking drugs inside a police booth toilet was a loo-dicrous idea. But a Thai man in the Tung Kru district in Bangkok didn’t give a crap and just rolled with it. A video of the man taking drugs in the police toilet went viral on Thai social media. It was posted on a local Facebook news page…

  • Thailand NewsThai minister insists minimum wage increase is not electioneering | Thaiger

    Thai minister insists minimum wage increase is not electioneering

    The Labour Minister, Suchart Chomklin, insists the government’s promise to increase the minimum wage in Thailand by 5-8% this year is not electioneering. With an election due in March next year cynics could be forgiven in thinking it is a government ploy to buy or win votes. Suchart denies this is the case. The Labour Minister said the government is…

  • Phuket News9 year old boy kills a 7 year old girl with a police pistol in Phuket | Thaiger

    9 year old boy kills a 7 year old girl with a police pistol in Phuket

    A 7 year old girl was shot dead by a 9 year old boy with a policeman’s pistol at a house in Ratsada Sub-district, Mueng District in Phuket. The police officer, a relative of the homeowner, later said he forgot he had left a loaded gun at the house. The girl was sent to Phuket Provincial Administrative Organization Hospital with…

  • Road deathsInnocent woman killed after high-speed race near Bangkok | Thaiger

    Innocent woman killed after high-speed race near Bangkok

    The mindless driver of a pickup faces prison after an idiotic road race ended in the death of an innocent bystander. A woman was instantly killed after being hit by an out of control pickup as it embarked on some high jinks with another speeding car on a public road in Pathum Thani province near Bangkok. The 35 year old…

  • Bangkok NewsBlaze at US office near German Embassy in Bangkok | Thaiger

    Blaze at US office near German Embassy in Bangkok

    A fire broke out last night at the US Security Assistance Organisation, or JUSMAGTHAI, on Sathorn Tai Road in Bangkok. The building is located near the German Embassy, but the office was reported to be safe from the blaze. Firefighters from Bonkai Fire and Rescue and Tung Mahamek Fire Station rushed to the scene at 7.35pm to suppress the blaze…

  • Central Thailand NewsThai woman murders her abusive boyfriend in front of a monk | Thaiger

    Thai woman murders her abusive boyfriend in front of a monk

    A woman in an abusive relationship said she shot and killed her boyfriend in front of a monk because she couldn’t take any more of his violence. The 40 year old woman, Tharinya, shot her boyfriend, Supornchai, also 40, several times to the chest and stomach while he was offering food to a monk in front of his shop at…

  • Thailand NewsRed Shirts lead rally against Thailand PM on August 23 | Thaiger

    Red Shirts lead rally against Thailand PM on August 23

    The leader of the National United Front of Democracy Against Dictatorship, or Red Shirts, yesterday invited people to protest against Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha on August 23, the day before he officially stands down as Thailand’s PM. The 68 year old prime minister is expected to resign on August 24 after two concurrent four year terms. In Section 158 of…

  • Thailand NewsNetizens slam cannabis firm for encouraging underage users | Thaiger

    Netizens slam cannabis firm for encouraging underage users

    Thai netizens raised questions about the easy accessibility of a cannabis vending machine that has mysteriously appeared in Bangkok. Last Saturday, a Thai Twitter user, C.Veasarach, posted a picture of a cannabis vending machine in Bangkok, although did not state its exact location, named This Machine Is Green, with a caption that said… “Here it is… This is a vending…

  • Northern Thailand NewsSexy Thai model fined at 5,000 baht for dancing topless in club | Thaiger

    Sexy Thai model fined at 5,000 baht for dancing topless in club

    A sexy Thai model has been fined 5,000 baht for a public obscenity act after a video of her went viral dancing topless at a nightclub in the Isaan province of Khon Kaen. The nightclub was also fined for operating without a license. Paphavee “Oil” Chaimongkol, aka Oil Roi Joob, which means Oil Kissyface, was working as a DJ at…

  • Bangkok News83 Bangkok bars don’t meet safety standards | Thaiger

    83 Bangkok bars don’t meet safety standards

    Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt revealed that 83 bars in Bangkok lack the necessary safety standards to legally open and that the Chatuchak district is the worst offender. He insisted that if nothing improves those bars would be closed permanently. Chadchart yesterday answered media questions on health and safety in the capital’s entertainment venues. He revealed that he introduced strict safety…

  • Central Thailand NewsMan escapes death after pickup slams into unfinished drain in Thailand | Thaiger

    Man escapes death after pickup slams into unfinished drain in Thailand

    A pickup driver was lucky to escape with his life after his vehicle crashed into an unfinished water drain on a poorly lit road in Nakhon Pathom, in central Thailand. The driver walked away from the accident relatively unscathed after his vehicle had careered into the ditch in treacherous rainy conditions. The incident happened on the Malai Man Road in…

  • Bangkok NewsBangkok bootleggers face jail after 2 million baht of booze seized | Thaiger

    Bangkok bootleggers face jail after 2 million baht of booze seized

    Two bootleggers in Bangkok were arrested yesterday and 2 million baht of smuggled booze was seized as part of a successful joint police and Excise Department operation. The smugglers face four years in jail and a fine of up to 400,000 baht Police officer Somboon Tienkhao revealed officers were tipped off that an illegal alcohol operation was being exercised on…

  • Thailand News2 Thai activists released on bail after 64-day hunger strike | Thaiger

    2 Thai activists released on bail after 64-day hunger strike

    Two Thai female political activists were released on bail yesterday after a 64-day hunger strike. They had been jailed under the Section 112 charge of defamation of the Thai royal family. The political activists, Natchanit “Baipor” Duangmusit, and Netiporn “Bung” Sanesangkom were imprisoned in May under the lèse majesté laws. The court had refused bail many times during their imprisonment…

  • Pattaya NewsChon Buri night club blaze kills 13 & injures 40 people | Thaiger

    Chon Buri night club blaze kills 13 & injures 40 people

    Thirteen people died and more than 40 were injured last night after a fire broke out at the Mountain B night club in Chon Buri province. Located on Sukhumvit Road in the Sattahip District of Chon Buri, a blaze ripped through the one-story glasshouse, that has only one entrance in and out of the building, at about 1am when the…

  • Chiang Mai NewsMahout asks media to help find elephant tail hair thieves | Thaiger

    Mahout asks media to help find elephant tail hair thieves

    The managing director of the Maesa Elephant Camp in the northern province of Chaing Mai has appealed to the media to help track down thieves who broke into the camp to steal elephant hair to craft talismans. Anchalee Kanlamapijit, the managing director of the camp, contacted Thai media yesterday and asked them to spread the news about the elephant story,…

  • Crime NewsPedo father & 2 stepbrothers jailed for raping 12 year old Thai girl | Thaiger

    Pedo father & 2 stepbrothers jailed for raping 12 year old Thai girl

    The father and two stepbrothers of a 12 year old Thai girl have been jailed for the alleged rape of the child. The father, 46 year old Yapard Aree-air, and two stepbrothers, 19 year old Arun Saeng-atit, and a 17 year old Khao, were arrested and charged, after the girl reported the incident to police in the southern province of…

  • Northern Thailand News2 dead & 5 injured in gunfight between teens in Northern Thailand | Thaiger

    2 dead & 5 injured in gunfight between teens in Northern Thailand

    Two teenagers were reportedly killed and five injured when a gunfight broke out in the car park of an entertainment venue in the Isaan province of Ubon Ratchathani. Eyewitnesses revealed that about a dozen teenagers clashed in the car park of Talat Nikon Thani on Chayangkun Road in the Nai Mueng District of Ubon Ratchathani, and about 70 to 100…

  • World NewsAirlines urged to avoid Taiwan airspace amid China’s military drills | Thaiger

    Airlines urged to avoid Taiwan airspace amid China’s military drills

    China warned airlines operating in Asia to avoid airspace over Taiwan over the next four days as the mainland’s military conducts a series of exercises until Sunday, August 7. In response to US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan yesterday, the People’s Liberation Army Eastern Theatre Command of China announced that the country would conduct a series of military…

  • Northern Thailand NewsEight women killed in drug driving accident in central Thailand | Thaiger

    Eight women killed in drug driving accident in central Thailand

    A minibus driver allegedly under the influence of drugs who fell asleep at the wheel faces time in prison after killing eight elderly women passengers in the Isaan province of Khon Kaen. The minibus overturned and landed in a ditch on the Khon Kaen – Kalasin Bypass Road in the Phra Lap Sub-district, Mueng Khon Kaen District, Khon Kaen province…

  • Thailand NewsHopalong thief stole 150,000 baht of jewellery to fund cannabis biz | Thaiger

    Hopalong thief stole 150,000 baht of jewellery to fund cannabis biz

    A lame-leg university student who used a fake gun to rob a jewelry store of gold necklaces worth 150,000 baht in the Isaan province confessed he only did it to fund a cannabis plant business. The 24 year old, named Pornthep, held up the gold shop at gunpoint on Chom Pon Road in Thesaban Nakhon Ratchasima District in Nakhon Ratchasima…

  • Bangkok NewsChadchart to level up quality and safety of Bangkok street food | Thaiger

    Chadchart to level up quality and safety of Bangkok street food

    Chadchart Sittipunt yesterday met up with the National Food Institute to discuss the launch of a new Bangkok Safety Street Food project. The Bangkok governor headed a meeting with the project’s committee at City Hall to discuss plans to improve the quality and safety of street food in the capital. Now that almost all home working has stopped and most…

  • Pattaya NewsBanned vendors relocated opposite Na Jomtien Beach | Thaiger

    Banned vendors relocated opposite Na Jomtien Beach

    The local vendors banned from setting up shop and selling food and drinks on Na Jomtien Beach in June have been relocated and are now open for business again. Vendors may be still miffed by having to move but it’s good news for tourists and travelers who now have more space to enjoy the golden sands, instead of having to…

  • Bangkok NewsWoman demands cash from Bangkok mall after being bitten by a venomous snake | Thaiger

    Woman demands cash from Bangkok mall after being bitten by a venomous snake

    A Thai woman complained on social media that a Bangkok shopping mall refuses to take responsibility after she got bitten by a venomous snake in the mall’s car park in the Bang Kae district. The woman posted her story on Facebook under the account name, Apple Samart, on July 31, where she uploaded pictures of the offending snake, a red…

  • Northern Thailand NewsBodies of a couple found buried in Isaan province remain unknown | Thaiger

    Bodies of a couple found buried in Isaan province remain unknown

    The naked corpses of a Thai woman and a foreign man discovered buried in a forest near Baan Tung Arun Community in Chok Chai district, Nakhon Ratchasima, or Korat, Isaan province, remain unidentified. Police reported yesterday that the investigation to find out who they were continues after revealing enquiries had been made to a number of hospitals specializing in silicone…