Bangkok News

Bangkok news, politics, business, crime, and nightlife—stay updated with breaking stories, events, and expat updates from Thailand’s capital. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Bangkok news source.

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  • Thanathorn faces more charges from EC over media shares | Thaiger

    Thanathorn faces more charges from EC over media shares

    Future Forward’s Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit, the 40 year old leader of the new party, has cut short his trip to Europe over an ‘unexpected incident’ The Thai Election Commission yesterday unanimously resolved to press charges against Thanathorn over an alleged violation of Thai media shareholding rules. Citing investigations by two EC panels, Sawang Boonmee, the EC deputy secretary-general, told a press…

  • Mother says customer paying for sex with 5 year old daughter was girl’s father | Thaiger

    Mother says customer paying for sex with 5 year old daughter was girl’s father

    PHOTOS: tnews.co.th A 28 year old woman, arrested in Chachoengsao, east of Bangkok, for allegedly selling her five year old daughter for sex, has revealed to police that the 52 year old customer who was allegedly caught in the act, and arrested at the time, was the young girl’s biological father. The woman – whose name is being withheld to…

  • Thon Buri pub raid, 38 patrons test positive for drugs | Thaiger

    Thon Buri pub raid, 38 patrons test positive for drugs

    Sur-PRIIISE! Troops and police have raided a nightclub in Bangkok’s Thon Buri district at 3am this morning and found that 38 of its patrons tested positive to illicit drug use. The Bangkok office of the Internal Security Operations Command conducted the early morning raid against the Wave Pub (formerly known as the Poseidon Pub) on Ratchadapisek Road in Talad Plu…

  • Beware exploding phones – warning about leaving phones in hot cars | Thaiger

    Beware exploding phones – warning about leaving phones in hot cars

    PHOTOS: Facebook/Ying Yupa Anan Don’t leave your mobile phone in your car if it’s going to be parked outside in the hot Thai sun. That’s the take-away message after an exploding mobile phone punched a hole in this woman’s pick-up truck windscreen after leaving the phone sitting on the dash. Samut Prakan, south of Bangkok city, resident Ying Yupa Anan…

  • Bangkok named most popular city for Japanese tourists | Thaiger

    Bangkok named most popular city for Japanese tourists

    Thai PM Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha says he was happy after hearing that Bangkok was named the most popular destination for Japanese tourists during their Golden Week, a five-day long holiday which begins in late April. The survey was conducted by Agoda, the online booking platform. Pattaya and Phuket were also ranked among the most popular destinations at #4 and #10…

  • Third runway for BKK Suvarnabhumi Airport | Thaiger

    Third runway for BKK Suvarnabhumi Airport

    The Thai cabinet yesterday approved the construction of a third runway at Suvarnabhumi International Airport as part of the country’s ambition to become the aviation hub of ASEAN. The 21.7 billion baht project will increase the combined capacity of Suvarnabhumi international airport’s runways to 94 arrivals and departures per hour from the current 64, said Lt-Gen Weerachon Sukonthapatipak, deputy government…

  • Newborn baby dumped beside garbage bins | Thaiger

    Newborn baby dumped beside garbage bins

    FILE PHOTO A newborn baby has been found abandoned near rubbish bins in Chon Buri province, south-east of Bangkok, earlier today. 18 year old city sanitation worker, Anucha Boonkhai, has told police that he had loaded garbage from all the bins on Soi 4 of Ban Kao village in Tambon Ban Kao, Muang district, when he spotted a pile of…

  • Summer storms leave 6,900 homes damaged this month | Thaiger

    Summer storms leave 6,900 homes damaged this month

    More than 6,900 houses, mostly in a patch through the central-north regions of Thailand, have been hit by summer storms since the beginning of April, according to the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department. Chayapol Thitisak, the director-general, says the department has received reports that 6,940 houses in 1,010 villages in 307 tambon of 115 districts had been damaged by storms…

  • Junta warned to be careful targeting rivals with petty litigation | Thaiger

    Junta warned to be careful targeting rivals with petty litigation

    PHOTO: Piyabutr Sangkanokkul reports to police yesterday using the, now popular, anti-government three-finger salute – The Nation by Kai Chanwanpen While members of pro-democracy parties continue to be targeted with politically-motivated lawsuits, a political scientist is warning this tactic of eliminating political rivals through trivial matters of law could backfire and lead to a legitimacy crisis down the track. In…

  • Rattanakosin Island roads closed for royal coronation rehearsals | Thaiger

    Rattanakosin Island roads closed for royal coronation rehearsals

    PHOTO: Royal funeral procession for the Late King Bhumibol on Rattanakosin Island by Jessada Chantharak Forty roads around Bangkok’s Rattanakosin Island are being closed this afternoon (Wednesday) for rehearsals leading up to the May coronation of His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn. The 4pm to 9.30pm closures will allow a test run for security and traffic-directing measures. To minimise congestion, Rajadamnoen Avenue,…

  • Princess Chulabhorn recovers after cataract surgery and back pain treatment | Thaiger

    Princess Chulabhorn recovers after cataract surgery and back pain treatment

    The Palace is reporting that HRH Princess Chulabhorn is recovering satisfactorily at Ramathibodi Hospital after cataract surgery and treatment for back pain. The medical team at the hospital report that the Princess’s back pain had eased satisfactorily so that medication will now be taken orally, instead of intravenously, until April 30. The Princess underwent cataract surgery on March 22 and…

  • Taxi bike driver asks for death penalty after murder of pregnant stepdaughter | Thaiger

    Taxi bike driver asks for death penalty after murder of pregnant stepdaughter

    by Supachai Phetchthewee A 57 year old motorcycle taxi driver has admitted to beating his seven-month pregnant stepdaughter to death out of jealousy. He told police he killed her at her home in Bangkok on April 11 and is asking the court to give him the death penalty for his crime. Phumjai Leungthong, who then allegedly tried to commit suicide on…

  • The coronation of King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun | Thaiger

    The coronation of King Maha Vajiralongkorn Bodindradebayavarangkun

    PHOTO: A younger King Maha Vachiralongkorn with his father, the Late King Bhumibol Adulyadej May 5, 1950. King Bhumibol Adulyadej was coronated in a grand ceremony at the Grand Palace and around the streets of Bangkok. That’s nearly seven decades ago when the last coronation took place in Thailand. The 1950 coronation ceremony began the reign of King Rama IX,…

  • Businessman could face death penalty for DUI murder of policeman | Thaiger

    Businessman could face death penalty for DUI murder of policeman

    PHOTO: Daily News A leading Bangkok businessman faces the death penalty after being charged with murder for the death of a top Crime Suppression Division policeman and his wife last Thursday night. Pol Col Jatuporn Ngamsuwitchakun died at the scene in his Suzuki Swift. His 44 year old wife Nutchanat died later in hospital. Their 16 year old daughter Piyapha…

  • Sacred water drawing ceremony led by Bangkok Governor | Thaiger

    Sacred water drawing ceremony led by Bangkok Governor

    PHOTO: The grand parade was just part of the lead up ceremonies for the forthcoming Coronation of His Majesty – Thai PBS Bangkok Governor Aswin Kwanmuang has led city officials in a ceremony to draw water from a pond at the Haw Sastrakhom, a small building inside the Grand Palace. The ceremony is part of the lead up to the forthcoming royal…

  • Bangkok hit by zombie apocalypse? Songkran 2019. | Thaiger

    Bangkok hit by zombie apocalypse? Songkran 2019.

    Is it the apocalypse? Have zombies invaded Bangkok and taken everyone away? No, it’s the one time of the year when one of Asia’s biggest and busiest cities is calm and peaceful, for just one day. Well, actually just the morning because this afternoon they come out to play, Songkran style. Welcome to Songkran 2019, Bangkok. Whilst the residents have…

  • Suspect on the run after killing pregnant Bangkok woman | Thaiger

    Suspect on the run after killing pregnant Bangkok woman

    Bangkok police are searching for a man who has murdered his pregnant step-daughter with a domestic hammer. Police speculate that he was driven by jealousy to commit kill his step-daughter. Police were called to Ram Inthra Soi 109 in the northern suburbs of Bangkok. When they arrived they found 29 year old Nanthachaya “Noon” Janmokha dead on the second floor in…

  • Princess celebrates Songkran at Laos mission in Bangkok | Thaiger

    Princess celebrates Songkran at Laos mission in Bangkok

    Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn graciously attended a Songkran ceremony at the Lao Embassy in Bangkok yesterday. The Princess, who visits the Lao mission on Songkran every year, participated in the ceremonial tying of white thread on people’s wrists for good luck, and watched a performance of traditional Thai dance. Thailand and Laos mark the traditional New Year…

  • Mexican restaurant complains about sex toy stall outside his front door | Thaiger

    Mexican restaurant complains about sex toy stall outside his front door

    PHOTO: Manager Online Ay, caramba! A Mexican restaurant owner in Silom Soi 4, Bangkok, has had enough of a stall selling sex toys and sex aids in front of his store. He’s complaining that his customers have to push their way past the vibrators and fake Viagra to get to his nachos and tacos. He says he’s convinced that ‘persons of…

  • UPDATE: 2 confirmed dead, 20 injured in Central World Bangkok fire | Thaiger

    UPDATE: 2 confirmed dead, 20 injured in Central World Bangkok fire

    The Erawan Medical Centre has confirmed that two people were killed and another 20 injured in last evening’s fire at Centara Grand Hotel and CentralWorld Shopping Centre at Bangkok’s Ratchaprasong Intersection. One person was found dead at the scene (a staff member who jumped out of a fourth storey window), whilst the other fatality, identified as 50 year old Arthit…

  • UPDATE: 2 dead and 15 injured in Central World shopping complex fire, Bangkok | Thaiger

    UPDATE: 2 dead and 15 injured in Central World shopping complex fire, Bangkok

    At least two people have died with 15 others reported injured and hospitalised after a blaze broke out at the Central World shopping complex last night around 5.40pm in Bangkok. Many were hospitalised with smoke inhalation. The popular Central World shopping mall is close to the corner of Sukhumvit and Ratchadamri Roads, aka. Ratchprasong intersection. Some people were seen jumping…

  • Three people reported dead, others injured, 100s flee blaze at Central World Hotel Bangkok | Thaiger

    Three people reported dead, others injured, 100s flee blaze at Central World Hotel Bangkok

    PHOTO: Orchidmo A big fire has broken out on Ratchadamri Road, Pathumwan in the busy Sukhumvit shopping zone in Bangkok. Videos and photos posted online show the blaze and thick smoke spreading from the Centara Grand Hotel, located next to the CentralWorld shopping mall. The Bangkok governor has reported that the death toll of the blaze is three people. One…

  • Deputy police chief denies foreign diplomats present at Thanathorn interrogation | Thaiger

    Deputy police chief denies foreign diplomats present at Thanathorn interrogation

    The deputy national police commissioner is denying that a group of foreign diplomats were present at a questioning session when the Future Forward party leader reported to Bangkok police on Saturday morning over sedition charges. Pol General Srivara Rangsibhramanakul said the diplomats were invited to a briefing after the interrogation of Thanathorn Jungrungruengkit at Pathum Wan police station. The Future…

  • PM uses Article 44 powers to sack Surachate | Thaiger

    PM uses Article 44 powers to sack Surachate

    PHOTO: Spring News Thai media is reporting that the PM Prayut Chan-ocha used his Article 44 powers to remove Lt-Gen Surachate Hakparn from his job as Immigration chief and side-line him to office duties, pending an enquiry. Following Friday night’s transfer of the Immigration chief it has now been announced that PM Prayut placed the Lt-Gen on a list of…

  • 3 metre python hides in toilet. Bites man’s penis. | Thaiger

    3 metre python hides in toilet. Bites man’s penis.

    SOURCE: Pattaya One News Before you read the story, The Thaiger notices that the video used in the Pattaya One story dated today, is dated four month’s ago. Slow news day in Pattaya? Maybe. But here’s the harrowing tale anyway about the hungry python and the unlucky Thai 45 year old. 45 year old Terdsak Kaewpangpan, went to the bathroom…

  • Surachate has nothing to say to media in his first public appearance | Thaiger

    Surachate has nothing to say to media in his first public appearance

    Former Immigration Bureau chief Surachate Hakparn, and confidant of Deputy PM Prawit Wongsuwan, said nothing yesterday about his abrupt transfer to an inactive post at the RTP HQ in Bangkok. In his first public appearance following the transfer order from the national police chief Pol General Chakthip Chaijinda back to ‘inactive duties”, Surachate reported to work at the Royal Thai Police…

  • Surachate reports to the Royal Thai Police HQ | Thaiger

    Surachate reports to the Royal Thai Police HQ

    …but there was nothing to say from the man that’s had a lot to say in the past. Surachate “Big Joke” Hakparn, you know, the guy who’s been in our news almost every day for the past year, has reported to the RTP HQ today, but soon after was seen leaving the building. No talking to the media today, strange…

  • BTS conclude their record-breaking Love Yourself world tour in Bangkok | Thaiger

    BTS conclude their record-breaking Love Yourself world tour in Bangkok

    Seven young South Koreans came to Bangkok over the weekend to complete a sell-out world tour and the finish of a year that saw them rise from a K-Pop anomaly to a global pop sensation. BTS (Bangtan Sonyeondan – Bulletproof Boyscouts) have toured the world with their ‘Love Yourself’ tour in an eventful year that has seen them break through…

  • Regular street racing crackdown nets 79 motorbikes | Thaiger

    Regular street racing crackdown nets 79 motorbikes

    FILE PHOTO Police arrested 83 motorcyclists and seized 79 motorcycles in this week’s regular crackdown on the streets of Bangkok. The motorbikes were found to have been illegally modified for road racing. 4 of the arrested were of people under the age of 18 and one was arrested over illicit drug abuse. Pol Maj Gen Nithitorn Jintakanon, traffic police chief…

  • Sacred waters begin their journey to Bangkok for Royal Coronation | Thaiger

    Sacred waters begin their journey to Bangkok for Royal Coronation

    PHOTOS: Phuket – Kritsada Meuanawong Thailand’s 76 provinces have taken part in a nationwide ceremony to draw sacred water from 108 water sources to be used during the Coronation of HM King Maha Vajiralongkorn on May 4. The ceremony began in all provinces at the same time of 11.52am. The only exception was Bangkok where the same ritual will be held on April 12 at the Haw Sastrakhom, inside…