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Thailand hot news, breaking stories, crime, politics, tourism, and business—stay updated with in-depth reports and exclusive interviews on the latest events across the country. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Thailand news source.

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    Thinking of retiring in Thailand long-term? Here’s your health checklist before the move

    Thinking of retiring in Thailand long-term? Thailand is a popular choice for retirees because of its beautiful landscapes, warm climate, and affordable living. Cities like Chiang Mai and coastal areas offer a relaxed lifestyle with friendly communities. The country also...

  • Pattaya ping pong bomb hooligans injure 2 women

    Pattaya ping pong bomb hooligans injure 2 women

    A group of teenage hooligans in Pattaya threw ping pong bombs at two women in the early hours of this morning, leaving them with injuries. The victims, 30 year old Nantawan Kosakun and 20 year old Saowalak Kanpratuyod, were riding their motorcycles home on Sukhumvit Road in North Pattaya. At around 1am, a group of approximately 10 teenagers on five…

  • Loutish foreigner arrested for running amok in Pattaya restaurant

    Loutish foreigner arrested for running amok in Pattaya restaurant

    Another loutish foreigner did himself proud by running amok in a Pattaya restaurant in the early hours of this morning. One Thai eyewitness alleges that the half-naked man from the waist up was either under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Police were called and arrested the unruly man after he refused to calm down at an unnamed Isaan restaurant…

  • 6 Vietnamese timber smugglers arrested in Isaan wildlife sanctuary

    6 Vietnamese timber smugglers arrested in Isaan wildlife sanctuary

    Wildlife rangers and officers from Chaiyaphum Police Station arrested six Vietnamese timber smugglers at the weekend at Phu Khiao Wildlife Sanctuary in Chaiyaphum province in the Isaan region of Thailand. The suppression of the Vietnamese timber smuggling gangs started last year after Phu Khiao Wildlife Sanctuary wildlife rangers were notified that a group of Vietnamese men entered the sanctuary to…

  • Recovered Caesium-137 cannister ‘not a threat to local Thai produce’

    Recovered Caesium-137 cannister ‘not a threat to local Thai produce’

    Thai officials say the recently recovered Caesium-137 canister is not a threat to local produce, despite it being smelted. The concerns over the effects of the tube’s radioactive properties were raised as contaminated furnace dust was discovered at a steel plant in Prachin Buri’s Kabin Buri district this week. Out of fear, customers cancelled purchase orders of fruit from the province,…

  • Chinese netizens critisised Thai tourism for being expensive and dangerous

    Chinese netizens critisised Thai tourism for being expensive and dangerous

    Chinese netizens criticised Thai tourism for being expensive and dangerous. A Chinese male influencer who claims to be a psychiatrist added Thailand also traps Chinese women in prostitution and is a nation of organ trafficking. Thai tourism was a hot topic on Chinese social media last week. It began when a Chinese media agency published an article on March 13,…

  • After Patong bar bust, police on the prowl for human trafficking in Pattaya (video)

    After Patong bar bust, police on the prowl for human trafficking in Pattaya (video)

    After the Patong bar bust that made headlines last week, police are on the prowl for human trafficking in Pattaya. Police on Tuesday night carried out a joint operation in a bid to prevent human trafficking, illegal drugs, minors, and the carrying of weapons in nightspots in the area. The operation involved a police team comprised of officers from Pattaya…

  • Prominent French retiree and Rotarian passes away in Pattaya

    Prominent French retiree and Rotarian passes away in Pattaya

    A prominent French retiree and former Rotarian has reportedly passed away in Pattaya at the age of 85, leaving his loved ones to pen an online obituary. The Frenchman, Pierre Yves Francois Andre Eraud, was born on October 16, 1938. He was described as being a great humanist and as being attached to the respect and benevolence characteristics that are…

  • Thai police shoot dead Phetchaburi gunman after 14 hour standoff, 3 dead, 3 injured

    Thai police shoot dead Phetchaburi gunman after 14 hour standoff, 3 dead, 3 injured

    UPDATE At 4am, SWAT police shot dead the ex-military ranger who went on a gun rampage yesterday killing three people and injuring three more in Petchaburi province in lower central Thailand. Pol. Lt. Gen. Thanayut Wuthiratanayong said that after 14 hours of failed negotiations, the gunman showed no signs of surrender so the police took decisive action to kill him…

  • Monks on drugs: two monks busted at abandoned Phuket hotel

    Monks on drugs: two monks busted at abandoned Phuket hotel

    For the umpteenth time in Thailand, monks have been busted for having a little too much fun. Two monks were found at an abandoned Phuket hotel on Tuesday, with both testing positive for illegal drugs. A village headman and a head monk found the monks at the abandoned hotel in the Thalang district. The monks were originally from a temple…

  • TST pledge to reform military, abolish conscription, a voter winner with Thailand’s youth

    TST pledge to reform military, abolish conscription, a voter winner with Thailand’s youth

    The Thai Sang Thai Party (TST) pledges to reform Thailand‘s military and abolish conscription if they are elected in the upcoming General Election on May 14. This move appears to be aimed at attracting young voters who are often reluctant to undergo military service due to the fear of losing productive years, harsh training, poor welfare, and hazing. Under the…

  • Potential Thai scammers race to close mule bank accounts as new cybercrime law enacted

    Potential Thai scammers race to close mule bank accounts as new cybercrime law enacted

    Potential Thai scammers, particularly in Nakhon Phanom province, are racing to close suspected mule bank accounts after a new cybercrime law was enacted. According to the Pattaya Mail, the new law took effect on March 17, deeming that those who open a bank account or register a SIM card for a third party for illegal use will face jail time…

  • Safari park in Thailand responds to bungee cord incident that nearly killed Hong Kong tourist

    Safari park in Thailand responds to bungee cord incident that nearly killed Hong Kong tourist

    UPDATE Today, staff from Chang Thai Thappraya Safari Park in Pattaya, Chon Buri province, eastern Thailand, commented on the broken bungee cord incident that nearly killed a tourist from Hong Kong last month. The bungee jump operator, 41 year old Natthaphon Yokcharoen, took reporters to see the scene of the incident, a platform about 30 metres high above a lake. Nattaphon…

  • Phuket motorbike accident kills woman, seriously injures man

    Phuket motorbike accident kills woman, seriously injures man

    Another tragic motorbike accident has claimed a life in Phuket. A motorbike accident killed a woman and seriously injured a man on Phuket’s Patong-Kamala road last night. Police were notified of the accident at 9.50pm, The Phuket News reported. Police and emergency responders arrived on the scene about 100 metres away from Panya restaurant. There, they found a blue and…

  • Ex-military ranger opens fire in central Thailand, 2 dead 3 injured, standoff with police continues

    Ex-military ranger opens fire in central Thailand, 2 dead 3 injured, standoff with police continues

    A frenzied gunman who is an ex-military ranger opened fire in Phetchaburi province in lower central Thailand this afternoon, killing two people and injuring three more. Gunfire continues to erupt from the house where he is hiding in an ongoing standoff with police. More than 40 young children have been evacuated from a nearby daycare centre. Over 100 police officers…

  • Chinese tourists walk around Chiang Mai in traditional Thai clothes

    Chinese tourists walk around Chiang Mai in traditional Thai clothes

    Chinese tourists in Chiang Mai are walking around in traditional Thai clothes during their sightseeing tours. After three years of travel restrictions due to Covid-19, Chinese tourists have returned to Thailand with a thirst for authentic experiences. This has created a trend in which Chinese tourists stand out in their finery at historical temples and other attractions in the northern…

  • Bangkok Police seize over 5 million baht of fake brand products from Indian mafia store

    Bangkok Police seize over 5 million baht of fake brand products from Indian mafia store

    Bangkok Police conducted a raid on counterfeit band name products at a store on the third floor of MBK shopping mall in Bangkok today and seized goods worth over 5 million baht. The store was reported to be operated by an Indian mafia gang called Babu. The Department of Intellectual Property Protection was alerted to the activities of the Babu…

  • Wash off the dictatorship: Protesters splash for a cause

    Wash off the dictatorship: Protesters splash for a cause

    For those who love the splashing water of Songkran but wish it was far more serious and political, a protest held yesterday fits the bill. More than 20 protesters from the United Front of Thammasat and Demonstration, a pro-democracy group, gathered outside the Parliament complex to symbolically “wash off the dictatorship” with water. The rally took place the day after…

  • Really Cool Airlines to fly by 2023 close, schedule in June

    Really Cool Airlines to fly by 2023 close, schedule in June

    New carrier Really Cool Airlines is set to take off in Thailand by the end of this year, according to its CEO, Patee Sarasin. The airline will focus on international flights and is expected to help boost the country’s aviation industry, which has been hard hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. The company will announce its flight routes by the end…

  • Police nab Chinese kidnapper at airport before he flees Thailand, 2 hostages saved

    Police nab Chinese kidnapper at airport before he flees Thailand, 2 hostages saved

    Police arrested a Chinese man before he boarded a flight out of Thailand last night. He is one of three men who abducted a Chinese woman and her brother-in-law in Pattaya on Monday for a ransom of 4.7 million baht. The two hostages were saved by police and returned home at 2am today. On Monday, 33 year old Ma Mingshan…

  • Thai businesses expect minimal effect from US Bank collapse

    Thai businesses expect minimal effect from US Bank collapse

    Thai businesses are optimistic that they will experience only minimal impact from the collapse of US banks. A recent survey by the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (UTCC) interviewed 600 business owners to gauge the economic damage of the US banking turmoil. The survey found that 73.5% believe the effects of the US banking crisis will have only…

  • Thai influencer arrested after promising over-valued gift boxes to customers

    Thai influencer arrested after promising over-valued gift boxes to customers

    Thai influencer Nara Crepe Katoey is under arrest for public fraud over online sales of gift boxes that she promised would be worth more than the prices paid. Nara, whose real name is Aniwat Prathumthin, was picked up in Ayutthaya after the Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for her alleged advertising or encouraging illegal acts, defrauding the public, fraudulent…

  • Angry Thai man crashes car into PPRP election poster

    Angry Thai man crashes car into PPRP election poster

    An angry Thai man was prosecuted for damaging an election campaign poster belonging to the Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP). He deliberately crashed his pickup into the poster. The suspect’s family revealed he was angry at the party because his request for unemployment compensation was rejected. With the General Election set to take place on May 14, every political party has begun…

  • A gorilla’s plight in Thailand continues after 30 years in a concrete hell

    A gorilla’s plight in Thailand continues after 30 years in a concrete hell

    A gorilla’s disturbing plight in Thailand continues after staying alone atop a Bangkok shopping mall in a zoo that resembles a concrete hell. Bua Noi, dubbed the “world’s loneliest gorilla” has spent 30 years alone at the top of the Bangkok shopping mall of Pata. Over the years, protests and pressure from celebrity campaigners, such as Cher, have not seemed…

  • Russian man arrested in Koh Pha Ngan for overstaying visa 993 days

    Russian man arrested in Koh Pha Ngan for overstaying visa 993 days

    An unidentified Russian man has reportedly been arrested on the island of Koh Pha Ngan for overstaying his visa by 993 days or over 2.5 years. According to TPN National, the 34 year old man was arrested and taken to the Koh Pha Ngan Police Station to face charges of overstaying and will be deported. The arrest followed the Surat…

  • Chinese woman in Pattaya abducted, 4.7 million baht ransom demanded

    Chinese woman in Pattaya abducted, 4.7 million baht ransom demanded

    A Chinese woman has reportedly been abducted in Pattaya as she went to get her child from school. The suspects have allegedly demanded a 4.7 million baht ransom in exchange for her freedom. Her husband, Ma Mingshan, filed a complaint with the police, saying his 33 year old wife, Shan Qi Qiang, was abducted. The 33 year old man said…

  • German pedophile arrested for producing child pornography in Pattaya

    German pedophile arrested for producing child pornography in Pattaya

    Thailand’s Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB) arrested a German pedophile for shooting and distributing child pornography involving his teenage stepdaughter from his home in Pattaya. The 76 year old perverted expat, Wilfried Wilms, was taken into custody on Saturday, March 18 following an alert from the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency, which traced child pornography back to Wilms’s Meet4U and…

  • ‘Defeat Andaman’ nets 320 arrests, 200,000 meth pills

    ‘Defeat Andaman’ nets 320 arrests, 200,000 meth pills

    Not to be outdone by their counterparts in the south, Region 8 Police carried out an anti-crime operation, titled “Defeat Andaman.” The raids resulted in the seizure of over 200,000 meth pills and 96 firearms with 320 suspects being arrested. Defeat Andaman aims to reduce crime and improve life in the area, despite a name implying the opposite. The operation…

  • Thailand welcomes 5.5 million foreign tourists so far this year

    Thailand welcomes 5.5 million foreign tourists so far this year

    In the first three months of 2023, more than 5.5 million foreign tourists entered Thailand, generating over 200 billion baht for the economy, government spokesperson Trisulee Trisoranakul reported this morning. Between January 1 and March 18, 5,578,721 foreign tourists arrived in Thailand, generating 215 billion baht in tourism revenue, according to data provided by the Ministry of Tourism and Sports.…

  • 3 police arrested for kidnapping Chinese man and Thai woman

    3 police arrested for kidnapping Chinese man and Thai woman

    Din Daeng Police Station apprehended three police officers from Immigration Division 1 yesterday following allegations made by a Thai woman that they kidnapped and extorted 1 million baht from a Chinese man. The three suspects denied the accusations, and one officer involved in the incident is currently on the run. According to the complaint filed by a 38 year old…

  • Thai and Indian couple allegedly scammed Americans of over 3 billion baht (video)

    Thai and Indian couple allegedly scammed Americans of over 3 billion baht (video)

    A Thai and Indian couple allegedly scammed Americans of over 3 billion baht. Police arrested the couple after raiding a house in Bang Lamung district in Pattaya yesterday at around 10am. Officers raided that house following a notification from the US Embassy stating that the house was being used as a hideout by scammers. The raid was conducted by a…