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Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
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Ratchaburi man arrested for murder, faking his own death
Police in the western Ratchaburi province say a man, facing a possible jail sentence, faked his own death by killing another man, staging a car crash and burning the body. The announcement comes nearly a week after police discovered the body of a man who had apparently burned to death in a vehicle at a car upholstery shop. It was…
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Second autopsy requested in Red Bull witness’s death
Police in Chiang Mai have asked the family of a key defence witness in the ongoing case of Vorayuth Yoovidhya, heir to the Red Bull drinks empire, to delay the cremation of his body. 40 year old Jaruchart Martthong was killed in a motorbike accident on Thursday involving another driver. Chiang Mai police say CCTV footage shows that Jaruchart tried…
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Hundreds left jobless as Air Force cancels golf club contract
Hundreds of people were left jobless in Chiang Mai yesterday after Wing 41, a property owned by the Royal Thai Air Force and the location of the Star Dome Golf Club, put up a sign cancelling its contracts with all renters. According to Wing 41, all contracts expired yesterday and as of today Star Dome will no longer be open…
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Facemask business dispute leads to shooting
Bangkok police say a business rivalry over facemasks was the reason behind a gunfight that left a man injured in the city’s Bang Khae district. Officers at Lak Song Police Station were informed early this morning that a yellow Porsche was fired at many times in front of a Bang Khae home. The injured man was sent to hospital. Initial…
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Covid-19 UPDATE: 5 new cases found in quarantine, no deaths (August 2)
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration announced 5 new cases of the virus in state quarantine, all Thais returning from abroad. The new cases bring the total number of infections in Thailand to 3,317 since the outbreak began. There hasn’t been a community infection of Covid-19 for over 2 months. 7 people were discharged from hospital today bringing the total…
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7 still missing after Koh Samui ferry capsizes
7 people are missing while 9 others have been safely rescued after a car ferry capsized shortly after leaving Koh Samui for the mainland last night. The ship was loaded with, three 10 wheel garbage trucks and a pickup truck. Onboard were 11 crewmen, 4 truck drivers and the pickup driver, and a saleswoman. The ferry left Koh Samui at…
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Thai Airways to operate repatriation flights to Denmark, Taiwan
Thai Airways has arranged 2 repatriation flights to Taipei and 2 to Copenhagen this month, to bring back foreign nationals who were stranded by the Covid-19 pandemic. The airline’s acting president says the Taiwan flights will fly on August 5 and 14, leaving Suvarnabhumi Airport at 8:25am and arriving in Taipei at 1:05pm local time; Chansin Treenuchagron said the flights…
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Wanted drug dealer killed in Korat shootout
Police in in the northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima, aka. Korat, say the drug dealer who shot and seriously injured an undercover officer and fled, was killed in a shootout in Khong district yesterday. On Wednesday, 38 year old Phadungsil Lohakart allegedly shot officer Song Tuaykrathok, who was posing as a buyer of crystal methamphetamine, after realising it was a…
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State schools told not to fully re-open until the CCSA gives permission
The Office of Basic Education Commission has ordered public schools to wait for a formal approval from the CCSA (Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration) before re-establishing their full timetable. Since schools reopened at the start of July, schools with large classes of students have been required to split upinto two groups, operating on an odd/even basis with half the class…
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“Thailand’s economy will take 2-3 years to recover” – Krungthai
Across the world the hopes of a quick recovery in countries’ economies evaporate as the effects of either the coronavirus, or the effects of the lockdowns, drag on. Even though Thailand has effectively contained Covid-19 at this stage with zero local transmissions for over 2 months, the economy is now stumbling with many businesses shuttered and no tourists coming into…
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Pattani police hunt thief in fatal bag snatching – VIDEO
Police in southern province of Pattani, along the Malaysian border, are hunting for a thief on a motorcycle who snatched the bag of a woman riding pillion on another motorbike, causing her to fall, fracturing her skull and killing her. Video footage from CCTV cameras on the road in Pattani’s central district shows the suspect, wearing a mask and full-face…
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220 kilograms of marijuana seized, 2 arrested in Nakhon Phanom
Authorities in the upper northeastern Nakhon Panom province arrested 2 men last night on charges of smuggling 220 kilograms of marijuana. They reportedly told police they they did it because they needed money after the Covid-19 outbreak left them unemployed. The arrests came after authorities got a tip that a drug gang planned to smuggle marijuana from Laos into Nakhon…
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Korean man in Phuket suicide
In an apparent suicide, the body of a South Korean man was found in a pickup truck in the city district of the southern resort province of Phuket yesterday, his head covered in a plastic bag. Police found the white pickup, with Phuket licence plates, in the car park of the Golden Triangle Been Co. in tambon Vichit after being…
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House agrees to Constitutional amendment
Apparently acquiescing to the demands of anti-government protesters who have held demonstrations across the nation for 2 weeks, a parliamentary committee formed to study problems with Thailand’s Constitution has resolved to change Section 256 of the charter, to clear the way for broader amendments. The protesters, mainly university students, have demanded a rewritten Constitution, a new general election and an…
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Duterte tells Filipinos to clean masks with petrol
Stressing that his advice is not a joke, bombastic Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte yesterday told his people to use petrol as a disinfectant for protective facemasks. The outspoken leader made a similar remark last week which his spokesman said was a joke, reminding the public that Duterte often says things in jest. But in a televised address yesterday, Duterte declared:…
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Jet ski explodes in Chon Buri – VIDEO
A jet ski exploded yesterday at Chon Buri’s Bang Saen beach, near Bangkok. Rescue workers and firefighters arrived to find a blue/black jet ski on fire. They were able to put out the fire but vehicle was completely destroyed. Fortunately, 46 year owner Suthep Jarworrak suffered only minor injuries and some skin burns. The rescue team administered first aid before…
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Road carnage mounts as couple killed in Nonthaburi crash
Thailand’s road carnage continues to mount: police and rescue services were called in Nonthaburi, just north of Bangkok, after an incident in which an Isuzu pickup truck collided with a barrier then crossed over a metal fence at 6:30 yesterday. 2 people, 45 year old Adisak, and his 46 year old wife Suchada, were thrown out of the vehicle and…
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South Korean cult leader arrested for hiding Covid-19 data, embezzlement
Authorities in South Korea this morning arrested the founder of a secretive Christian sect at the centre of the country’s largest outbreak of Covid-19 infections for allegedly concealing crucial data from contact-tracers, and other offences. Police nabbed Lee Man-hee, the powerful head of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, which is linked to more than 5,200 coronavirus infections, or about 36%…
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Vietnam records first Covid-19 deaths
Vietnam announced today that 2 people have now died of Covid-19 complications, just a day after it recorded its first-ever coronavirus death, as it struggles with a renewed outbreak after 99 days without a locally transmitted case. Both patients died in hospital in Da Nang, a hotspot with more than 100 cases in the past week, more than half of…
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Thai delivery app merger gets 3.5 billion baht boost
Homegrown Thai delivery app Line Man is merging with its longtime partner, online restaurant review platform Wongnai Media. Line Man has secured fresh capital investment worth US$110 million (3.5 billion baht) from BRV Capital Management to bolster the new entity. The merger marks the first time any member of the Japan-based Line Group has secured a financial investment of this…
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Korat police offer bounty for drug dealer who shot officer
Police in the northeastern Nakhon Ratchasisma province, aka Korat, are offering a 30,000 baht reward for information leading to the arrest of a drug dealer who escaped after shooting an undercover agent in a sting operation gone bad. 38 year old Phadungsil Lohakart allegedly shot officer Song Tuaykrathok, who was posing as a buyer of crystal methamphetamine, in Korat’s Khong…
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Gold shop heist foiled as owner locks thief inside
Police in Bangkok’s Klong Sam Wa district yesterday arrested a woman after she showed up at a local gold shop, dressed in pink Muslim garb and armed with a pistol, evidently intending to rob the place. Unfortunately for her, the caper was foiled when the owner of the “Yaowarat Gold Department Store” locked her in, called police and waited outside…
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Covid-19 update: 6 new imported cases, deaths still at 58 (July 31)
The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration reported 6 new cases of Covid-19 among returnees from Egypt and the Netherlands, lifting the national total to 3,310 since the outbreak began in January. Spokesman Dr Taweesilp Visanuyothin announced the new figure at this morning’s daily press briefing. Taweesilp said 5 of the new patients recently returned from Egypt; 4 are male students,…
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Khon Kaen police raid drug warehouse
A drug warehouse has been raided in the northeastern province of Khon Kaen. The warehouse is in Khon Kaen City’s main business district, and several types of drugs, which police valued at tens of millions of baht, were seized. The provincial governor, police chief and other authorities reported the arrest of 35 year old “Jetsadaporn” and 34 year old “Jurairat”, …
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First Lady of Brazil has Covid-19
The First Lady of Brazil tested positive for Covid-19 yesterday after her husband spent 2 weeks in quarantine with the virus. The announcement comes just 5 days after President Jair Bolsonaro said he was over his illness and had resumed his normal work routine. His office says 38 year old Michelle Bolsonaro “is in good health and will follow all…
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Nok Air will survive despite bankruptcy: CEO
Thai budget carrier Nok Air is insisting that its business will be able to return to solvency despite filing a business rehabilitation request with the Central Bankruptcy Court, shortly after national flag carrier Thai Airways did the same. Nok Air CEO Wutthiphum Jurangkool said yesterday that the impact of Covid-19 is preventing the airline from flying its 18 international routes,…
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Europe bans US travellers for 2nd time in a month
The EU extended its travel ban on Americans yesterday for the second time in a month, as Covid-19 continues to ravage the US. The EU began lifting its travel restrictions on July 1, welcoming visitors from 14 countries, including Canada, South Korea and Australia. The US was left off of that list, and the EU extended its ban on travellers…
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Police say “Boss” tested positive for cocaine due to dentistry
Police are claiming that illicit drugs, including cocaine, found in the blood samples of Red Bull scion Vorayuth “Boss” Yoovidhya in the infamous fatal 2012 hit-and-run case were for his dental treatment. A parliamentary committee invited officials yesterday for questioning regarding case. A spokesman for the committee told a press briefing that the panel questioned officers who handled the case…
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Hong Kong reverses daytime ban on restaurant dining after workers forced to eat in the street
Hong Kong officials are rowing back on a decision to extend a ban on restaurant dining to daytime hours and will now allow tables of up to 2, until 6pm. The move comes after photos went viral of workers having to balance takeaway boxes on the backs of cars, or on narrow ledges along the side of buildings. Some were…
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Tycoon’s prison term for attempted bribery upheld
The 1 year prison sentence for construction tycoon Premchai Karnasuta for attempted bribery has been upheld by Thailand’s appeals court. Premchai’s case captured national attention in February when the high profile CEO and 3 associates were found surrounded by animal carcasses and guns in a protected wildlife sanctuary. Premchai, president of Italian-Thai Development Corp, was later released by the court…
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