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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Sponsored How to reduce out-of-pocket medical expenses in Thailand?
Managing medical expenses in Thailand is important as healthcare costs continue to rise. The country’s healthcare system includes both public and private options, but even with the Universal Coverage Scheme (UCS) for citizens, many still face high out-of-pocket medical expenses....
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Bangkok’s vaccine rollout brings a sense of optimism to the capital
Mass inoculation against Covid-19 has finally kicked off in Thailand and the sense of relief in Bangkok, epicentre of the latest wave, is palpable. The Bangkok Post reports on the rollout at Bang Sue Grand Station, now serving as a temporary vaccination centre. It’s where 78 year old U-ree Dechdamrong received her first dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine yesterday. A retired…
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235 people in 10 Thai provinces infected with Covid variant first found in India
235 people in 10 of Thailand’s 77 provinces have tested positive for the Covid-19 variant first found in India. Most of the cases are linked to an outbreak at a construction camp in Bangkok’s Laksi district. Thailand’s Department of Medical Sciences tested samples from 3,964 Covid-19 patients to detect mutated variants of the virus. 235 of the samples were positive…
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Many who pre-registered for vaccine had their appointments cancelled today
Many people who pre-registered for vaccines got phone calls this morning telling them their appointment was cancelled. New appointments were not provided. The people that had registered had done so days ahead of time. Lists of recipients were directed to vaccinations sites around Bangkok, before the first day of mass vaccination of Bangkok inhabitants. Of the planned 800 to 1,000…
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Woman has to be rescued after falling through hole in Samut Prakan
Yesterday, a woman fell down a 2 metre hole. She was reportedly on her phone and did not notice the gaping hole that led to her plunging into a concrete water tank. The hole was located in a construction site in the Bang Bo district of Samut Prakan, the province that sits on the Gulf of Thailand. A local rescue…
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#FreePALESTINE billboard taken down in Bangkok
A billboard in Yan Nawa, a district in Bangkok, has been taken down. It was reportedly put up by a group of Thai Muslims who support the Palestinian cause. The billboard consisted of the Palestinian flag with “#FreePALESTINE” superimposed on the bottom of the flag, as well as the dome of the Al-Aqsa mosque. Reportedly, Thai officials had asked the…
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Bangkok shopping centres: stay calm, we’re mostly safe
Earlier this week, there was a minor kerfuffle when 3 shopping centres in Bangkok publicly denied they were the source of a Covid outbreak. Now, 3 different malls in a different district are also trying to calm fears amidst the CCSA stating they are the source of Covid clusters. The news comes from the CCSA showing a graphic of the…
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Taxi driver/alleged drug dealer takes police on chase before being arrested
Yesterday, police had a car chase with a taxi driver who also allegedly worked a second job as a drug dealer in the Bang Khen area of Bangkok. He was arrested in an alley after smashing into a police car, then 10 more cars. 44 year old Narong or “Neung” Kaewkamnert, was arrested by police after they mounted a stakeout.…
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Chulabhorn Royal Academy receives no vaccines from government, postpones first doses
Bangkok’s Chulabhorn Royal Academy says it has to postpone its planned administration of first doses as the Thai government has not allocated it any supplies of the AstraZeneca or Sinovac vaccines. The academy, which is sponsored by Princess Chulabhorn, sister of His Majesty, King Maha Vajiralongkorn, says the administration of first doses will be stopped from June 14. However, those…
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Lat Phrao shopping centres insist they are not the source of new Covid clusters
Central Plaza Lat Phrao, Imperial World, and Union Mall located (mostly) in Bangkok’s Lat Phrao district, deny they are the shopping centres the CCSA was referring to on Wednesday when the CCSA said there was a “Covid cluster from a mall”. The confusion stems from the fact that the CCSA did not specify which mall was responsible for the cluster.…
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Man arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a woman during a live stream
Police arrested a 31 year old man for allegedly sexually assaulting a Canadian woman while she was recording a live stream video near Bangkok’s Lumpini Park. In the video, a man runs up from behind the woman and appears to reach his hand below her waist. The woman made a post on Twitter after the incident saying she was going…
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American suspect in Bangkok kidnap for ransom case arrested at airport
Police arrested an American man, another suspect in the kidnap for ransom case in Bangkok, at the Suvarnabhumi Airport just as he was preparing to leave the country. 38 year old Matthew Wilson is the tenth suspect to be arrested for alleged involvement in the abduction of a Taiwanese businessman after a failed business deal. Other suspects include 2 other American…
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Thai Brewers Association asks for reprieve from alcohol ban
Yesterday, the Thai Brewers Association delivered a petition to the CCSA and the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration asking them to reverse the ban of alcohol sales in restaurants, bars as the ban has been harmful to their businesses and they have not been given any other options. The statement reads: The Thai Brewers Association truly understands the goodwill and purpose of…
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Police officers arrested for alleged involvement in Bangkok kidnap
Two high ranking police officers in Bangkok have been arrested for alleged involvement in the kidnap of a 60 year old Taiwanese businessman for a US$3 million ransom. Police say the man was abducted in broad daylight from a restaurant in the Thong Lor district over a failed business deal for rubber gloves. The March 28 incident where 60 year…
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CCSA shuts down order to reopen 5 types of venues in Bangkok
Just as Bangkok was about to reopen some venues and businesses, the order was shut down by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. After businesses went weeks under a strict closure order, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration agreed to loosen restrictions and decided to reopen 5 types of venues and businesses, with conditions to prevent the spread of Covid-19, but the…
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Bangkok loosens restrictions, allows 5 types of places to reopen tomorrow
Bangkok city officials are loosening restrictions in the capital and are allowing 5 types of venues to reopen tomorrow (May 1) while other venues under the closure order must remain closed at least until June 14. Bangkok remains the epicentre of infections with 1,356 cases reported today and 41,573 infections over the past couple months in the latest wave of…
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DDC focus vaccines on 70% in Bangkok before provinces
The Department of Disease Control has set an ambitious goal to vaccinate at least 70% of Bangkok residents by July. The department will focus on the capital city and prioritise distribution of vaccines to other provinces based on how severe outbreaks are in the area. The DDC chief commented that the department will focus on Bangkok, speculating that if they…
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Bangkok teenagers busted for party, drugs
Police have busted what Thai media is calling a “drug party” early yesterday morning in the Sai Mai district of Bangkok. They arrested 23 teenagers and “confirmed” 17 of them were using illicit narcotics. Locals had reported the teenager’s festivities citing fears that it could lead to a Covid-19 outbreak. When they arrived, police allegedly found almost 2 dozen teenagers…
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Covid UPDATE Saturday: 4,803 cases and 34 deaths, provincial totals
This morning Thailand’s public health department has announced another 34 deaths and 4,803 new Covid infections in the past 24 hours. A staggering 2,702 of the new cases have emerged from Thailand’s overcrowded prisons. More than 30 people have died each day from Covid-related causes over the past 4 days. Bangkok had 1,054 cases reported in the past 24 hours…
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Covid UPDATE Saturday: 4,803 cases and 34 deaths
This morning Thailand’s public health department has announced another 34 deaths and 4,803 new Covid infections in the past 24 hours. A staggering 2,702 of the new cases have emerged from Thailand’s overcrowded prisons. More than 30 people have died each day from Covid-related causes over the past 4 days. A total of 120,916 people in Thailand have now been…
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100 million baht illegal online gambling bust in Bangkok
Continuing their raids on illegal gambling sites and online scams, police have busted an internet gambling ring moving a 100 million baht per month. Today’s bust was in Bangkok following an investigation tracing the origins of a gambling website called PGSLOT889. Police raided a condominium in the Bangkok Noi district today and arrested 19 people allegedly involved in the online…
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93% of Covid samples from April test positive for variant found in the UK
The Covid-19 variant first detected in the United Kingdom is said to have been found in many of the cases detected in April. Out of 300 samples, 93% tested positive for the mutated strain, B.1.117, according to director general of the Public Health Ministry’s Department of Medical Sciences, Supakit Sirilak. The latest outbreak of Covid-19 started in clusters in Bangkok’s…
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Police in Bangkok arrest 6 people on gambling and drug charges
Six recent graduates have been arrested on charges of illegal gambling and using class 5 drugs. The graduates, between the ages of 23 and 25, allegedly used SIM cards to sign up for gambling sites to obtain bonuses from new players. According to media reports, they were allegedly earning between 1,000 to 10,000 baht a day on their gambling operation. Yesterday,…
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Managers of Bangkok clubs blamed for third wave deny any wrongdoing
The managers of 2 nightclubs in the Thong Lor district of Bangkok have denied any responsibility for causing a third wave of Covid-19. The Krystal and Emerald clubs have been widely blamed for sparking a resurgence of the virus that has now spread across the Kingdom, threatening tourism re-opening plans and further decimating an already-fragile economy. Both managers face charges…
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515 test positive for Covid at construction site in Nonthaburi, mostly migrant workers
Another construction site, this time in Nonthaburi, north of Bangkok, has reported an outbreak of Covid-19 after active testing revealed 515 people infected with Covid-19, over half of the 959 total workers who were there and screened. The worksite, Sin0-Thai, has been ordered to close. The majority of those who tested positive were asymptomatic, according to provincial health officials who…
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Man arrested for alleged involvement in 600 million baht lottery ticket scam
Police arrested a man for his alleged involvement in a fraudulent lottery ticket scam which generated an estimated 600 million baht. More than 50 people say they fell victim to the scheme with some claiming they lost thousands of baht after they purchased lottery tickets online, but the tickets were never delivered. Wutthipat Lerlob allegedly coaxed people into investing in…
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Friso and Gregg have been working in Bangkok’s Klong Toey slums for a year
If you would like to help, please send a message at either of these Facebook pages. Bangkok Community Help is a registered Foundation. https://www.facebook.com/BkkCommunityHelp https://www.facebook.com/dinnerfromthesky There are some amazing people helping out their local Thai communities to get through this Covid mess in Thailand; foreigners rolling up their sleeves to help communities hard hit by the Thai government’s restrictions and…
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1000+ Covid-19 infections and Indian variant in work camp
A construction site camp in the Laksi district of Bangkok that had found a Covid-19 outbreak recently has spiralled out of control with over 1,000 Covid-19 infections including the dreaded Indian variant. 66% of the camp workers tested positive for Covid-19, with 36 of the 80 samples analyzed revealing the Indian variant, a strain much more contagious than the original.…
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Covid UPDATE: 3,052 new cases, 24 Covid-related deaths, provincial totals
This morning the public health ministry added another 3,052 infections and 24 new Covid-related deaths over the past 24 hours. Out of today’s new cases, 605 came from the country’s prisons where major clusters have emerged. The daily totals, even without the prison numbers, show a slow upward trend in new cases, the vast majority around Bangkok in high-density housing…
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15 workers in Bangkok test positive for Covid variant first found in India
Workers at a construction camp in Bangkok tested positive for the Covid-19 variant first detected in India. The only other cases reported in Thailand involving the B.1.617 strain were a mother and her 4 year old son who both tested positive for the virus while in quarantine after travelling from Pakistan. Many of the workers at the camp in the…
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Labour Ministry to provide 9.2 million workers with vaccine
Labour Minister Suchart Chomklin announced that under Section 33 of the Social Security Act, over 9 million employees will receive a Covid-19 vaccine and don’t need to register on the Mor Prom Line account. PM Prayut Chan-o-cha posted on Facebook Wednesday that these 9.2 million workers would receive priority vaccines as at-risk essential workers. Insured employees that have to work…
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