News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. The Thaiger delivers the latest national news that matters.
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Phuket killer: “I just wanted the money’
PHUKET: Surasak Suwannachote, the man who earlier today confessed to stabbing Australian travel agent Michelle Smith, told a press conference after the re-enactment of the crime that he had no idea what he was going to spend the money on. “I just wanted to steal the money. I had no idea what I was going to do with it,” Surasak…
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BREAKING NEWS: Aussie killers confess in Phuket
PHUKET: The two men arrested for the brutal stabbing murder of Australian travel agent Michelle Smith were presented to the media during a re-enactment of the crime outside the Katathani Hotel in Phuket this morning. During a press conference at the resort after the re-enactment, Deputy National Police Chief Pansiri Prapawat told some 50 media personnel that the pair confessed…
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Phuket man critically injured in head-on motorbike smash
PHUKET: A Thalang man is in critical condition at Vachira Phuket Hospital after suffering head injuries sustained in a head-on collision between two motorbikes last night. Thalang Police were notified of the accident at the Baan Lipon u-turn on Thepkrasattri Road at 9:15pm. Rushing to the scene with Kusoldharm Foundation workers, they found 40-year-old Chamni Ninyang lying unconscious on the…
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Phuket villagers plead for new road
PHUKET: Tired of plowing through the mud every time it rains in order to reach their homes, residents at Baan Nai Thon on Phuket’s west coast today filed a complaint at Phuket Provincial Hall to finally get the ball rolling on a road project that has stalled.About 20 villagers arrived at the Damrongtham Center (provincial Ombudsman’s Office) at about 10am…
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Rabbit stew: Phuket FC thrash hapless Hares
PHUKET: Four goals each side of half-time saw a rampaging Phuket FC rout the hapless Chanthaburi FC “Hares” 8-1 last night. There was some concern that Phuket FC might be overconfident going into the match. The Islanders were coming off a big win against Bangkok FC, their first home win of the season, and taking on last place Chanthaburi, winless…
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Breaking News: Two men arrested for stabbing murder of Phuket tourist Michelle Smith
PHUKET: Two suspects wanted for the stabbing murder of Australian travel agent Michelle Smith are in custody in Chumphon province and are expected to be returned to Phuket later today, the Phuket Gazette has learned.News of the arrests came from Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha this morning during a meeting with local officials and tourism industry representatives.The meeting, also attended by…
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Phuket Live Wire: Get legal, get locked down
PHUKET: Last week I talked about the likely increase in the amount of spam being generated by botnets running on PCs here in Phuket. I don’t have any numbers – nobody does – but Thailand’s Internet Service Providers are getting blocked left and right by spam filters, all over the world. The reason is simple. An enormous number of people…
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Weird World News: What the public just can’t handle: penguin sex, F-bombs and root foods
PHUKET: This week’s “Weird World News Round-up” is dedicated to those things deemed unseemly for the public, but have still wiggled into international headlines. The 100-year-old record of horrid penguin sex antics that was snuffed out before going to the public press has resurfaced; in parts of the US, laws are issued on public cursing; and it turns out root…
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Phuket Business: Vespa dealer to kick-start sales
PHUKET: Drago Andaman Company, Phuket’s first and only authorized Vespa dealership, reported the sale of over 200 brand new scooters in 2011, the firm’s inaugural year of operation. “This year our sales target is 300,” showroom Manager Supamat Thammakoranont told the Gazette. The annual sales goal increase of 50% has already faced some bumps along the road, she admits. “Up…
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Phuket Police release sketch of Michelle Smith murder suspect
PHUKET: As the manhunt continues in Phuket for the killers of Australian tourist Michelle Smith, police have released a composite sketch of the prime suspect in the hope that some member of the public can identify him. Phuket Provincial Police Commander Maj Gen Chonasit Wattanavrangkul said that both men involved in the attack were probably in their late 20s and…
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Phuket car crashes into overpass, 1 dead
PHUKET: A Phuket man was killed instantly this morning when his car slammed full force into a pedestrian overpass on Thepkrasattri Road in Thalang District. Thalang Police were informed of the latest tragedy on Phuket’s deadliest road at 2:20am. Duty officer Somchai Nuboon, police and Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers raced to the scene, on Thepkrasattri northbound in front of the…
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Michelle Smith murderers still unidentifed: Phuket Police
PHUKET: One of the most intensive manhunts in Phuket’s history continues as police scour the island for the two men responsible for the shocking, stabbing murder of Australian travel agent Michelle Smith. Although police have numerous images and descriptions of the pair, their identities remain unknown, police confirmed today. Following a re-enactment of the crime near the Kata Thani Hotel…
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Pungent piggery prompts Phuket petition
PHUKET: Residents of a residential housing estate in Thalang have filed a letter of complaint to Phuket Provincial Hall, charging that filth from a nearby pig farm is contaminating the local water supply and casting a putrid pall over their community. Representatives of The Valley 2 housing estate in Srisoonthorn said they decided to file a formal complaint at the…
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Aussie slaying in Phuket prompts increased security measures
PHUKET: Local officials gathered at Phuket Provincial Hall on Thursday to draw up measures to try and prevent violent crimes like the stabbing murder of Australian tourist Michelle Smith in Kata earlier this week. The slaying has prompted the Government to order beefed up security for tourists throughout Thailand “The incident that occurred that night [June 20] was totally unexpected,”…
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Myanmar to lure Mice to Phuket
PHUKET: The emergence of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) and the opening-up of neighboring Burma will generate more high-yield visitors for Phuket and Thailand in general, delegates attending a recent tourism industry conference were told. Emerging opportunities, as well as accompanying challenges, were the primary topics of discussion at the first Thailand MICE International Forum (TMIF) held in Bangkok on…
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Phuket Sports: Olympic torch update
PHUKET On its way to London, the Olympic Torch traveled aboard the Tern one of the oldest steamers on Lake Windermere, England’s longest lake. The torch was carried by local schoolgirl Stephanie Booth on the vessel, which is operated by Windermere Lake Cruises. Managing Director Nigel Wilkinson said “The Tern was built in 1891, 5 years before the start of…
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Phuket yachting legend Rolly Tasker dies, at 86
PHUKET: Australian yachting icon and long-term Phuket resident Rolly Tasker has died, age 86. Staff at the Rolly Tasker sail loft on Chao Fa West Road today confirmed that Mr Tasker passed away in Australia overnight (Phuket Time) after a long battle with cancer. The general manager of the loft, Michael Tasker (no relation), who had been working for Mr…
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Phuket Sports: The other Euro tussle
PHUKET: The European Grand Prix (EGP) was originally an honorific title for the Italian Grand Prix in 1923, followed by the French and Belgian Grands Prix. In 1983, the F1 schedule was disrupted by a track cancellation three months before the event, and as a stopgap Brands Hatch was able to create an EGP in its place. The success of…
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Phuket update: Krabi Police tight-lipped over Belanger case
PHUKET: The governor of Krabi has named the provincial police commander as the only person authorized to release information to the media concerning the deaths of Noemi and Audrey Belanger, Canadian tourists who died of apparent poisoning on Phi Phi Island last week, the Phuket Gazette has learned. Recently-released media reports have revealed that the hotel’s CCTV system captured images…
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Phuket Gazette: Gender inequality; Public debt; 4 Forbes’ heroes
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Gender inequality still a problem among police cadets, say female students Phuket Gazette / The Nation PHUKET: The Royal Police Cadet School is proud of a recent workshop it conducted on ending violence against women in the community. However, in practice, its female students still experience…
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Phuket Live Wire: Goodbye to CAT EV-DO; Tips for iPad; PCs4Kids update
PHUKET:I remember the day well. October 1, 2007. The people at CAT let me take a sneak peek at their new “AirCard” service – the first wireless broadband service in Phuket. I’m sad to say that, by the end of this year, that service will be officially phased out. I call the service “EV-DO”, although the technology is actually called…
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Blood donation drive at Bangkok Hospital Phuket today
PHUKET: Phuket Town residents will have a chance to make some real merit today, when the Phuket Regional Blood Center’s (RBC’s) mobile donation clinic visits Bangkok Hospital Phuket. The stop is just the latest in the RBC’s relentless efforts to keep up blood supplies and meet the needs of all hospitals in the Phuket RBC region, which covers Phuket, Phang…
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Medical company steps in to help Phuket kickboxer fight for recovery
PHUKET: An international medical company has made a pledge to find the “best treatment” for an Australian muay thai fighter whose father fears was not in a motorbike accident as Phuket police believe, but was beaten and left for dead. Daniel Ketley, 22, was rushed to hospital in the early hours of June 8 after he was found in Nai…
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Phuket teenager hangs self after break-up with girlfriend
PHUKET: Police are treating as suicide the death by hanging of a 19-year-old construction worker in Phuket Town yesterday. Phuket City Police received a report at 1:15pm of man found hanged in a room on Soi Hatchana-Nivet on Srisena Road, Talad Yai. Police and Kusoldharm rescue foundation workers went to the scene and recovered the body of the teenager, Danupong…
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Phuket Business: When the financial gate slams shut
PHUKET: Since I’m often writing about how I like alternative investment strategies, it may be a good idea to do a few pieces on the features of funds available to managers when they open. This will help you understand what can happen when you invest in such a fund. This week is about gates – since most alternative funds write…
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Phuket Live Wire: What to do if your email is blocked
PHUKET: I send out a lot of email – many dozens of pieces every day. Lately, I’ve been having more and more problems with the email being rejected at the receiving end. Here’s a message I just received in response to a message I sent to a reader in the US last night: “SMTP error from remote mail server after…
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Off-duty cop accused of Phuket street killing gets bail
PHUKET: The off-duty cop who shot a man dead in Phuket Town on May 5 has been granted bail. Though some details about the case have come to light, the exact cause of the argument that led Cpl Rachaporn Semaksorn to shoot Eakkasit Sangangam in the head ,on Phun Pol Soi 11 in Phuket Town, is still unclear. “The shooting…
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Phuket Business: CPI rise slows down; Rice stocks pile high
PHUKET: THOUGH the cost of living in Thailand continues to rise, the rate of increase over the past three months has slowed, Consumer Price Index (CPI) figures indicate.Compiled and released by the Ministry of Commerce (MoC), the CPI national average nudged up 0.45 points to 115.23 in last month, a month-on-month increase of 0.39%.Calculated by comparing current average prices of…
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Burmese fisherman, electrocuted at sea, returned to Phuket
PHUKET: Two Burmese fishermen working on a local fishing boat were brought to Phuket’s Rassada Pier yesterday, after apparently being electrocuted at sea.Once notified, police and Kusoldharm Rescue Foundation workers rushed to the scene to find grieving relatives surrounding the two bodies.“Mr Kham, 25, and Mr Wan, 27, were pulling a fishing net from the sea, when Mr Kham touched…
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Whitewater raft trip widows newlywed wife
PHUKET: Egyptian couple Hossam and Sarah boarded a plane on June 2 bound for their dream honeymoon in Phuket. However, their love story, which began in their mid-teens, came to an unfathomable and abrupt end in Phang Nga, when their tour company decided to brave rough waters and lead a whitewater rafting trip that ended in disaster.It wasn’t until three…
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