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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  • Taxi driver/alleged drug dealer takes police on chase before being arrested

    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.…

  • Chulabhorn Royal Academy receives no vaccines from government, postpones first doses

    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…

  • Monk killed in hit and run

    Monk killed in hit and run

    Phra Charan, a 70 year old monk, was killed in a hit in Bangkok, yesterday. Phra had been a monk for years at the Wat Son temple. 30 metres from the monk’s body pieces of a “black car” were recovered, presumably from the car that struck Phra. When rescue workers arrived at the scene they found Phra’s head and leg…

  • Lat Phrao shopping centres insist they are not the source of new Covid clusters

    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.…

  • American suspect in Bangkok kidnap for ransom case arrested at airport

    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…

  • Thai Brewers Association asks for reprieve from alcohol ban

    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…

  • Thai government allegedly ticked-off with Bangkok Metropolitan Administration

    Thai government allegedly ticked-off with Bangkok Metropolitan Administration

    The government is becoming increasingly irritated by the Bangkok Governor and his administration, according to a Thai Enquirer report. The media outlet says senior officials at the Public Health Ministry and at the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration are critical of the governor’s random handling of the pandemic and its associated restrictions. The report is based on feedback from an…

  • Police officers arrested for alleged involvement in Bangkok kidnap

    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…

  • Bangkok loosens restrictions, allows 5 types of places to reopen tomorrow

    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…

  • DDC focus vaccines on 70% in Bangkok before provinces

    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…

  • Government considering legal action against alleged Covid-19 vaccine provider

    Government considering legal action against alleged Covid-19 vaccine provider

    Duangrit Bunnag and Accap Assets, a real estate company located in Bangkok, with projects throughout Thailand, is facing legal action from The Ministry of Digital Economy and Society for allegedly falsifying documents about the Sinopharm Covid-19 vaccine, as well as allegedly spreading fake news about it. The government points at a document that allegedly shows that the company stated it…

  • Bangkok teenagers busted for party, drugs

    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…

  • Covid UPDATE Saturday: 4,803 cases and 34 deaths

    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…

  • 100 million baht illegal online gambling bust in Bangkok

    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…

  • 2 of the 62 people arrested at Bangkok sex party test positive for Covid-19

    2 of the 62 people arrested at Bangkok sex party test positive for Covid-19

    2 of the 62 people who were arrested at the alleged drug and sex party in Bangkok have tested positive for Covid-19. Large gatherings are prohibited in Bangkok, particularly those where people are in “close contact,” to prevent the spread of the virus. Reports say the large gathering at the Faros Sauna was a “chemsex” event involving drugs to enhance sex.…

  • 93% of Covid samples from April test positive for variant found in the UK

    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…

  • Managers of Bangkok clubs blamed for third wave deny any wrongdoing

    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…

  • 515 test positive for Covid at construction site in Nonthaburi, mostly migrant workers

    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…

  • Trained dogs highly accurate at identifying Covid-19 infections, study shows

    Trained dogs highly accurate at identifying Covid-19 infections, study shows

    Dogs could replace temperature and infrared scanners at Covid-19 screening points. A new study shows that dogs can be trained to identify the coronavirus, even when people are asymptomatic. The dogs are more than 90% accurate, the study says. Socks and face masks from 200 people who tested positive for Covid-19 were collected by researchers from the London School of…

  • Man arrested for alleged involvement in 600 million baht lottery ticket scam

    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…

  • 1000+ Covid-19 infections and Indian variant in work camp

    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.…

  • Covid UPDATE: 3,052 new cases, 24 Covid-related deaths, provincial totals

    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…

  • Covid UPDATE Saturday: 3,052 new infections and 24 Covid-related deaths

    Covid UPDATE Saturday: 3,052 new infections and 24 Covid-related deaths

    This morning the public health ministry has 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…

  • 15 workers in Bangkok test positive for Covid variant first found in India

    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…

  • Foreigners feeding thousands in Bangkok’s Klong Toey slums during Covid

    Foreigners feeding thousands in Bangkok’s Klong Toey slums during Covid

    https://www.facebook.com/BkkCommunityHelp https://www.facebook.com/dinnerfromthesky They’ve been doing it for a year now! There are some amazing people helping out their local Thai communities to get through this Covid mess in Thailand. Without much in the way of concrete day-to-day assistance from the Thai Government, free daily food, care packs and supplies are being acquired and distributed by volunteers. We salute you all!…

  • Man arrested in Bangkok accused of raping 30+ young women

    Man arrested in Bangkok accused of raping 30+ young women

    A man has been arrested in Bangkok, accused of raping many young women who he met through dating apps and then blackmailing them with videos of the sex. Ratchaphol Jinda, a 26 year old salesman from Samut Prakan was sought for 3 arrest warrants for rape, attempted rape, and extortion. At least 10 women have come forward so far with…

  • Americans arrested over Bangkok kidnap attempt released on bail

    Americans arrested over Bangkok kidnap attempt released on bail

    Edited on June 10 Thai police arrested an alleged former US Marines*, along with an American and 2 Thai men, including a senior police officer, for allegedly kidnapping a foreign businessman at a Bangkok restaurant in Thong Lor and then demanding a US$3 million ransom. The men allegedly abducted 60 year old Wen Yu Chung, from Taiwan, over a failed…

  • Bangkok planning to open 25 Covid-19 vaccination centres by end of May

    Bangkok planning to open 25 Covid-19 vaccination centres by end of May

    Bangkok authorities say they are teaming with private entities to open 25 vaccination centres by the end of May, with a goal of opening up vaccinations to the general public by June. The announcement comes as Thailand’s capital has seen new Covid-19 clusters, prompting updated goals of inoculating 5 million residents by the end of July. Now, health officials say…

  • Active Covid-19 clusters reported in 16 Bangkok districts

    Active Covid-19 clusters reported in 16 Bangkok districts

    Bangkok residents living in any of the 16 districts in the capital with active Covid-19 clusters are being advised to strictly follow disease control measures. Spokesperson Taweesilp Visanuyothin made the warning during today’s Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration briefing. In the latest wave of Covid-19 infections, more than 28,000 cases have been reported in Bangkok. Taweeslip says there have been…

  • Man arrested for allegedly exchanging fake US bills for 1.2 million baht

    Man arrested for allegedly exchanging fake US bills for 1.2 million baht

    A man was arrested in Bangkok for allegedly exchanging counterfeit foreign bank notes at a currency exchange kiosk, taking off with 1.2 million baht. Police say Thanat Amatawimut, a 42 year old building contractor, exchanged 360 fake $100 USD bills for 1.2 million baht at a kiosk in Bangkok back in 2019. The staff accepted the cash, but later realised…