Eastern Thailand News

Eastern Thailand news, Pattaya news, Isaan news, Rayong updates, and Chonburi developments—stay informed on local events, business, tourism, and culture, including attractions like the Sanctuary of Truth and Koh Samet. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Eastern Thailand news source.

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    5 ways retirees in Thailand lose money (and how to stop it)

    Retiring in Thailand can be affordable and enjoyable, but many retirees lose money due to common mistakes. High living costs, scams, and unexpected expenses can quickly drain savings. There are five ways that retirees in Thailand can lose money and...

  • Kidnap ringleader caught after seven-year hunt in Khon Kaen

    Kidnap ringleader caught after seven-year hunt in Khon Kaen

    The Thai authorities have arrested the alleged ringleader of a drug gang in Khon Kaen, who is accused of kidnapping a 13 year old girl to extort 30,000 baht from her father to settle a methamphetamine debt. The 30 year old suspect, identified as Kamonchai, was apprehended after he reportedly went into hiding following media coverage of the incident on…

  • Sakon Nakhon headman caught in 9 million baht heroin bust

    Sakon Nakhon headman caught in 9 million baht heroin bust

    In a major drug bust, authorities in Bueng Kan Province apprehended three individuals, including a prominent subdistrict headman from Sakon Nakhon, for smuggling nearly 10 kilogrammes of heroin. The arrest took place yesterday afternoon at a border patrol police company in Bueng Kan, following a covert operation led by the local law enforcement and border patrol units. The suspects were…

  • Northeast Thailand: Son murders father in family dispute

    Northeast Thailand: Son murders father in family dispute

    A family tragedy unfolded in Non Sang, Nong Bua Lamphu province when a son murdered his father in a moment of apparent self-defence. The harrowing incident, which took place yesterday evening, resulted in an urgent manhunt for the perpetrator, who is now urged to surrender to the authorities. The deceased, Songsakran, was known by locals for his drastic change of…

  • Authorities find makeshift home under Huay Yai flyover

    Authorities find makeshift home under Huay Yai flyover

    During a routine inspection on Tuesday, officials from the rural highway department and the Huay Yai municipality stumbled upon a makeshift home beneath the Ban Bueng-Map Ta Phut flyover in Huay Yai subdistrict. What started as a simple check quickly escalated into a showdown between 57 year old Saiyut Sithlert and his wife against local authorities, who demanded the immediate…

  • Samut Songkhram takes bold steps to save aquatic ecosystem

    Samut Songkhram takes bold steps to save aquatic ecosystem

    To save Thailand’s aquatic ecosystem, the Samut Songkhram Provincial Fisheries Office launched a campaign against the invasive black chin tilapia species. Amidst concerns over the blackchin tilapia’s relentless invasion of natural water resources linked to vital rivers, the Tha Chin and Mae Klong, authorities are taking decisive action. The Samut Songkhram Provincial Fisheries Office took centre stage yesterday, unveiling a vigorous…

  • Young golf caddie’s life cut short in road accident in Sattahip

    Young golf caddie’s life cut short in road accident in Sattahip

    A young golf caddie met a tragic end in a motorcycle crash in Na Jomtien, Sattahip district, Chon Buri province yesterday morning. The accident, which unfolded on the serene stretch of Nong Jap Tao – Khao Chi Chan Road, has plunged a family into mourning and raised urgent questions about road safety. Local authorities were alerted to the accident scene…

  • Motorway mayhem: 26 Chinese tourists injured in bus crash

    Motorway mayhem: 26 Chinese tourists injured in bus crash

    A tourist bus carrying 26 Chinese nationals met with a gruesome accident on the Chon Buri Motorway on Tuesday afternoon. A collision unfolded near the 65 + 900 kilometre marker, inbound towards Bangkok, in the Mueang district of Chon Buri province. When local rescue teams, alongside the highway police, arrived at the accident scene, they were met with a harrowing…

  • Elderly woman fatally crashes into rice field in Udon Thani, two injured

    Elderly woman fatally crashes into rice field in Udon Thani, two injured

    An elderly woman fatally crashed into a rice field yesterday afternoon in the Kum Pha Wa Pi district of Udon Thani province, leaving two seriously injured. The 70 year old woman driving to a medical appointment yesterday, March 19, suddenly lost control of her vehicle, which veered off the road and overturned several times before coming to a stop in…

  • Drunk American flees horror crash leaving British family shattered in Thailand

    Drunk American flees horror crash leaving British family shattered in Thailand

    A drunk American man is on the run after a horror smash left a British family of three hospitalized in Thailand. The British man fears unless the fugitive is brought to justice he will continue to drink and drive and cause mayhem after showing no remorse after the crash. Thai police are actively pursuing the American, who is accused of…

  • Man physically assaulted by teens after Korat festival

    Man physically assaulted by teens after Korat festival

    A 55 year old man was physically assaulted by a group of teenagers in Nakhon Ratchasima, sparking outrage from his daughter who demanded justice and called for witnesses. The incident occurred on Wednesday, March 13 at approximately 3.30am, during the final night of the Thao Suranari victory celebration in the Korat region. The man fell victim to a brutal attack…

  • Decade-old Thai rice from controversial scheme found fresh

    Decade-old Thai rice from controversial scheme found fresh

    Deputy Prime Minister and Commerce Minister Phumtham Wechayachai conducted a rice inspection following an invitation from the Association of Thai Agricultural Product Surveyors. The association, keen to dispel allegations regarding the quality of rice held under the contentious rice-pledging scheme, orchestrated an eventful visit to warehouses owned by Poonpon Trading Ltd and Kittichai Ltd in different districts of the northeastern…

  • Update: Sa Kaeo teen murderers’ parents fined for deadly deed

    Update: Sa Kaeo teen murderers’ parents fined for deadly deed

    In a landmark ruling, the parents of five teenagers responsible for the death of a 47 year old woman in Sa Kaeo province have been fined 10,000 baht each by the provincial juvenile and family court. The lifeless body of Buaphan Pansu was discovered on January 12 in a pond near a school in Aranyaprathet district, Sa Kaeo province, bearing…

  • Tourists attacked as hungry monkeys swarm Bang Saen Beach

    Tourists attacked as hungry monkeys swarm Bang Saen Beach

    In the blistering heat of midday last Friday, March 8, a frenzy of ravenous monkeys cascaded down from Khao Sam Muk, invading Bang Saen Beach in Chon Buri province. With desperation in their eyes, the furry bandits eagerly awaited sustenance from unsuspecting tourists, with some even resorting to car-climbing antics in a desperate bid for food. Reports flooded in of…

  • Father discovers daughter’s body in Udon Thani, sparking village fears

    Father discovers daughter’s body in Udon Thani, sparking village fears

    A father found his daughter dead in a storeroom at their home in Udon Thani, sparking fear among villagers of a malevolent spirit after a series of unsettling incidents. The 48 year old woman from Udon Thani, known only as Orawan, appeared to have taken her own life by hanging, leaving the community in shock and prompting an investigation into…

  • Bank guard confesses to murder of durian farm owner in Rayong

    Bank guard confesses to murder of durian farm owner in Rayong

    A brutal murder case has been resolved with the confession of a bank security guard, who admitted to killing a 60 year old durian farm owner in a cold and calculated manner. The body of Chaweevan Jaichuea, also known as Aunt Eiad, was discovered in a water pool within her durian farm in Rayong Province, with her hands tied behind…

  • Northeast Thailand: Former boxer’s son kills father over farming dispute

    Northeast Thailand: Former boxer’s son kills father over farming dispute

    A former boxer’s son murdered his father yesterday in a fit of dissatisfaction over a farming dispute. The son, after finding only two plots ploughed instead of the expected complete field for vegetable farming, locked his father’s neck and used a steel rod, typically carried by oxen, to stab him multiple times in the neck and abdomen, leading to the…

  • Market thief electrocuted during wire heist in Mae Klong

    Market thief electrocuted during wire heist in Mae Klong

    A female thief’s audacious wire theft act at the Rom Hub Market nearly turned fatal when she was electrocuted during the thievery, sparking concerns among local shop owners. A CCTV system at a catfish shop in Rom Hub Market, Mae Klong, Mueang district, Samut Songkhram province, captured the shocking incident. On the night of March 6, the woman, wearing what…

  • Kalasin celebrates temple land title deed with traditional procession

    Kalasin celebrates temple land title deed with traditional procession

    A ceremonial procession in Kalasin province involving over a hundred participants in traditional attire recently celebrated the issuance of a land title deed for a local temple. The event honoured the revered monk Luang Pu Ha Supharo, affectionately known as Dinosaur Monk, whose passing on November 24 last year marked the end of an era. The procession, which spanned 25…

  • Khon Kaen plans for state-of-the-art light rail transit system

    Khon Kaen plans for state-of-the-art light rail transit system

    Khon Kaen province declared its intention to kickstart the construction of a cutting-edge Light Rail Transit (LRT) system. Planned to begin in 2025, this ambitious LRT project, the first of its kind outside Bangkok, promises to usher in a new era of modernised transit, with its inaugural route encircling the Bueng Kaen Nakhon Reservoir. The maiden phase of this visionary…

  • DSI grills teacher candidates over Khon Kaen exam scam

    DSI grills teacher candidates over Khon Kaen exam scam

    The Department of Special Investigation (DSI) has initiated an extensive interrogation of candidates for assistant teacher positions at the Primary Educational Service Area Office 2 in Khon Kaen, following allegations of widespread exam fraud. Investigators have discovered that exam materials were being sold for 600,000 baht each. The probe, which took place today at the Learning Promotion Office in Ban…

  • Northeast Thailand bus crash leaves students injured, driver dead

    Northeast Thailand bus crash leaves students injured, driver dead

    A bus crash on Si Kew-Chaiyaphum Road near Nakhon Ratchasima on Friday left 47 students and teachers injured and the driver dead. The bus crash occurred at approximately 10.30pm, with the vehicle carrying 39 students and 12 staff members on a field trip from Chaiyaphum province to the revered Temple of the Emerald Buddha in Bangkok met with tragedy. Eyewitnesses…

  • Intoxicated driver crashes into police car in Chon Buri, two injured

    Intoxicated driver crashes into police car in Chon Buri, two injured

    Chaos erupted on Rural Road 2081, Bang Lamung, Chon Buri, as a pickup truck careened into a police vehicle yesterday at 12.06am, leaving two officers injured. Pattaya Rescue Radio Centre received a distress call detailing a collision between a grey pickup truck and a police vehicle. Rushing to the scene, local emergency crews found themselves amidst a forest, confronted by…

  • Thai woman seals 10.5 million baht land deal after divine blessing

    Thai woman seals 10.5 million baht land deal after divine blessing

    After sealing a successful land deal worth over 10 million baht, a former nurse fulfilled her vow at Wat Noen Suk in Rayong province by presenting a grand offering to the deity Thao Wessuwan. The former nurse turned property developer, 31 year old Nawal Jarmjurek, and her colleague 28 year old Sawitree Tungsawanich, were observed meticulously arranging red syrup and…

  • Thailand bids to host International Horticultural Expo 2029

    Thailand bids to host International Horticultural Expo 2029

    Thailand has thrown its hat into the ring to host the International Horticultural Expo in 2029. The Southeast Asian nation has set its sights on attracting up to four million visitors during the four-month-long event. The Foreign Affairs Ministry spokeswoman, Kanchana Patarachoke, announced yesterday that the government has proposed the 25th global event to take place in Nakhon Ratchasima, with…

  • China-Laos high-speed rail to transform northeast Thailand

    China-Laos high-speed rail to transform northeast Thailand

    Krungthai COMPASS Research Centre unveiled a groundbreaking vision, identifying the China-Laos high-speed railway as the cornerstone for transforming the northeast of Thailand into an economic juggernaut within the Greater Mekong Subregion. The centre disclosed that the China-Laos high-speed railway, now operational for both passenger and freight services along the Kunming-Vientiane route, will directly turbocharge trade and investment in Thailand’s northeastern region,…

  • Khon Kaen police issues urgent warning against online fraud

    Khon Kaen police issues urgent warning against online fraud

    In a bid to tackle the rising tide of online fraud, Khon Kaen Police Station took an unprecedented step, adorning its exterior with colossal signs standing up to 3 metres tall. These giant warnings, unveiled yesterday, February 28, aim to arm citizens with crucial advice on dodging the traps set by cunning scammers. With phrases like: Do not believe, Do…

  • Massive amphetamine haul seized in northeast Thailand

    Massive amphetamine haul seized in northeast Thailand

    Minister of Defence Sutin Klungsang convened a press briefing to unveil a significant crackdown resulting in the confiscation of 6 million amphetamine pills, valued at over 180 million baht, in Bung Khla, Bueng Kan on Monday. According to police sources, the operation unfolded on February 25 at 7pm when Surasakmontri rangers and Bung Khla police officers received a tip-off regarding…

  • Phimai farmers hit by early drought, Mun River runs dry

    Phimai farmers hit by early drought, Mun River runs dry

    Farmers in the district of Phimai, Nakhon Ratchasima province, are facing a severe drought that has swiftly dried up the Mun River. On the auspicious day of Makha Bucha, traditionally a time of potential earnings for lotus farmers, the parched riverbeds have left many without income or water for their daily needs. The situation, recorded today, underscores the urgency of…

  • Thai teen drowns in pond in search for clams with drunk dad

    Thai teen drowns in pond in search for clams with drunk dad

    A Thai teenager lost his life while embarking on a clam-hunting expedition with his intoxicated father on Wednesday, February 21, in Soi Mab Song, Nong Prue subdistrict, Bang Lamung district, Chon Buri province. Responding swiftly to the distress call, Nong Prue police and rescue teams descended upon the scene, greeted by a sombre assembly of locals clustered around the pond.…

  • Royal Forest Department investigates land appropriation

    Royal Forest Department investigates land appropriation

    The Royal Forest Department launched a probe into allegations of land encroachment within the Pang Asok woodlot. The claim comes from Chaiwat Limlikhitaksorn, head of the Office of National Parks, who stumbled upon a disturbing sight: a backhoe and tractor clearing swathes of land purportedly for personal gain. Chaiwat asserts that approximately 64 hectares stand despoiled, with a suspicious Sor Por…