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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Sponsored 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...
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Tourists or illegal workers? Police raid Pattaya host club and arrest six
Police raided a host club in Pattaya in the early hours of yesterday morning and arrested the manager and five Lao men following a complaint about the employment of illegal workers. Four of the accused Lao men denied they were working at the bar and insisted that they were tourists. Officers from Mueang Pattaya Police Station raided the host club,…
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Cops bust 6 overstayers in northeast Thailand ahead of Songkran
Cops busted six overstayers in northeast Thailand’s Buriram province ahead of the Songkran festival. A crackdown by Immigration Police in Buriram led to the detention of six foreigners for overstaying their visas. The operation took place from March 27 to April 10 and was aimed at preventing and suppressing crime during the Songkran Festival, according to Naewna. Pol. Maj. Gen.…
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Bangkok backpacker haven Khao San Road to close from noon to 8pm for Songkran
Khao San Business Association today announced that the Bangkok backpacker haven will be closed for business between noon and 8pm every day so revellers can enjoy the Songkran celebrations. Businesses, bars and restaurants will reopen as usual straight after the 8pm cut off. Khao San Business Association President Sanga Ruangwattanakul revealed that the closure of Khao San Road, for the…
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Thai man’s Emerald Buddha Songkran office party outfit is ‘inappropriate,’ monk says
A Thai man won 5000 baht for ‘best outfit’ at his office’s Songkran party in Udon Thani province yesterday, but a senior Buddhist monk says that dressing like the Emerald Buddha is “inappropriate.” The Emerald Buddha is a statue of the historical Buddha in a meditative pose, made out of the semi-precious stone jasper and considered the “sacred palladium of…
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RTA suspends AWOL sergeant major turned cyberpunk after hacking 55 million Thais’ personal data
The sergeant major turned cyberpunk who was accused of hacking the personal data of 55 million Thais has been suspended by the Royal Thai Army (RTA). Police on Friday reported that the suspect and his wife were detained and questioned about the alleged crime, but the couple has since disappeared. Maj. Gen. Sirichan Ngathong, the deputy spokesperson, stated that “SM2…
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Police bust gang of thieves targetting foreigners in northeast Thailand
Police announced the results of their investigation into a gang of thieves targetting foreigners with families all over the Isaan region this afternoon in front of the Provincial Police Region 3 Headquarters in Nakhon Ratchasima province in northeast Thailand. Police seized stolen assets worth an accumulative 3 million baht. The gang found its victims by sitting in shopping malls around…
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Repeat offender arrested in Bangkok after drugging woman, swindling over 1 million baht
The Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau arrested a Thai man at a shopping mall in the Sukhumvit neighbourhood of Bangkok yesterday after he allegedly drugged and swindled over 1 million baht from a woman. He was twice arrested on the same charge last year. The scammer, 32 year old Phachara Ninjiasakun, was arrested inside the shopping mall following a complaint made…
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Unveiling the dark side of sex doll collecting: Thai man’s spooky encounters with his new doll
A Thai sex doll collector took to Facebook to share some spooky stories that would not look out of place in a horror movie after he bought a new doll from a stranger online. The man, who runs a Facebook page called the Imaginary Diary of a Drink Vendor (ไดอารี่สุดกาวของพ่อค้าร้านน้ำ), believes the sex doll he bought is haunted by a…
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Splash into Songkran! Silom Road to remain open for water fights in Bangkok
Bang Rak District Office officially announced that Silom Road, a popular destination for water fights in Bangkok during Songkran, will remain open this year. Locals and tourists can take part in the water fights on the streets and sidewalks of each Soi. After three years of being affected by the pandemic, the Songkran Festival and its accompanying water fights will…
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Mother and 8 year old son murdered in northern Thailand
Police have launched a murder investigation after the bodies of a woman and her eight year old son – from Myanmar – were discovered yesterday in a rented room in Lamphun province in northern Thailand. At 7.15pm, officers from Mueang Lamphun Police Station were called to a rented room in Ban Hua Fai in Nong Chang Kwan subdistrict after locals…
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South Korean Embassy in Thailand ‘boogies’ to celebrate Songkran Festival (video)
The South Korean Embassy in Thailand got down and boogied in preparation for this week’s Songkran Festival. The embassy staff, including the South Korean Ambassador to Thailand, Moon Seoung-hyun, got into the Thai New Year festive spirit by taking part in the traditional “Ram Thai” dance. The two-minute video went viral, receiving over 400,000 views in just four days on…
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Bangkok voted No.3 top destination for backpackers 2023
Thailand‘s capital Bangkok sits among the top destinations for backpackers in 2023, according to UK retail company Cotswold Outdoor. Bangkok is a backpacker’s dream with cheap accommodation, delicious street food for a bargain, inexpensive beers, free activities, and a variety of public transport systems. While Thailand offers plenty of luxury travel options, it’s easy to have a blast in Bangkok…
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Airline industry blames rising costs for expensive airfares, is this true?
Expensive airfares look set to stay for the foreseeable future according to the airline industry. The industry is trotting out the usual excuses that the recent spike in expensive ticket prices is attributed to a rise in operational costs, including surging fuel prices and other factors. Nok Air CEO, Wutthiphum Jurangkool, cited a surge in prices for aviation supply chain…
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Thailand prepares for 14000+ flights this Songkran
Thailand will facilitate 14,180 domestic and international flights over the Songkran holidays, from today until April 17, according to the Aeronautical Radio of Thailand (Aerothai). This represents a 66% increase in flights compared with the same period last year. On average, there will be 2,026 flights per day, Aerothai President Nopposit Chakrapitak revealed yesterday. The president said Thailand’s aviation industry…
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Thai woman attempts to commit suicide at a neighbour’s house in Bangkok
A Thai woman survived a suicide attempt at a neighbour’s house in Bangkok yesterday. The homeowner, a 70 year old woman named Kannika, alerted a rescue team after discovering a woman, later identified as 35 year old Bee, cut her own throat in her house in Soi Thoet Thai 21 in the Thon Buri district of Bangkok. Upon arrival, the…
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Police capture one suspect in cop with a grudge killings in southern Thailand
UPDATE: Police managed to capture one of the two suspects on the run in the cop with a grudge killings in southern Thailand. Pol. Snr. Sgt. Maj. Atthaporn Wichian remains at large but police managed to arrest his accomplice Manop Wang-ngan at 2pm yesterday at a house in Thap Put district, Phang Nga province. Both men are wanted in connection…
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Thai zoo successfully breeds Asian king vulture for the first time in Thailand in 30 years
Nakhon Ratchasima Zoo in the Isaan region of Thailand announced that their team has successfully bred a red-headed vulture, commonly known as the Asian king vulture. This is an important milestone as it signifies the first successful breeding of this species in Thailand in the last 30 years, and only the second instance worldwide. Korat Zoo announced today that a…
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6 elderly Thais killed in collision with soldier’s pickup truck filled with illegal cigarettes
Six elderly Thais were killed in a collision with a soldier’s pickup truck in Buriram province, northeast Thailand, this morning. The soldier – the only person to survive the crash – was carrying 257 sleeves of illegal cigarettes which he attempted to hide in the woods nearby. Six elderly Thais dressed in traditional outfits were on their way to set…
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Ride into the Wild West at Phuket Bike Week 2023
The Phuket Bike Week Association and Phuket City Municipality announced they are promoting Phuket Bike Week 2023. The event, also known as 27th Phuket Bike Week, will take place from April 28 to 30 at Dolphin Park on Patong Beach, with the theme, “Cowboy on the Beach.” Visitors can look forward to a wide range of activities, including an auto show…
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Foreigner slips and breaks his neck on mossy seawall steps at Thailand beach
A 55 year old foreign man slipped on some mossy steps and “broke bones in his neck” at Cha-am Beach in Phetchaburi province, Thailand, his wife reported on Friday. On Friday, the Facebook page ‘Beach for life‘ was contacted by a Thai woman seeking justice for her foreign husband who is still being treated in hospital after an incident at…
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RTA condemned after ordering bedridden patient to report for conscription
Thai netizens criticised the Royal Thai Army (RTA) for their lack of empathy after a woman had to take her bedridden disabled son to report for conscription in the northern province of Lamphun. A former Thai actor, 21 year old Thanakit “Off” Wutthirothong, left the movie industry after a motorcycle accident rendered him disabled. A drunk woman crashed her car…
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Young Thai-Italian man vanishes in Hong Kong
A mother from Nonthaburi, central Thailand, filed a missing person report yesterday for her Thai-Italian son who disappeared during a trip to Hong Kong last month, reports CH3. The young man, 22 year old Danilo “No” Benjakul, travelled from Thailand to Hong Kong with a friend on March 8 before disappearing without a trace, his 41 year old mother Chotika told reporters last…
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RTA threatens to prosecute draft dodging Thai activist monk
The Royal Thai Army (RTA) announced it will prosecute an activist turned monk if he fails to give a valid reason why he dodged the mandatory conscription process. Phra Netiwit Jaranasampanno faces a court trial and possible compulsory drafting into the army without the benefit of drawing a ballot because of his draft dodging exercise. RTA deputy spokesperson Maj. Gen.…
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Thai man found dead in front of coffin shop due to extreme heat
The owner of a coffin shop in the central province of Kanchanaburi found a dead man in front of the shop yesterday. It is believed the deceased died from the extreme heat as the temperature reached 40 degrees Celsius on the day he was found. Officers from Tha Muang Police Station reviewed the area in front of the coffin shop,…
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Customer finds bait hook inside tin of fish in Thailand
A customer was reely taken aback when he discovered a bait hook floating in a tin of fish produced by a famous brand in Thailand. Luckily, he spotted the sharp hook before chewing it. Consumer protection Facebook page “Phuboripok” (“consumers”) posted a photo of the offending tin of fish yesterday with the caption… “A #consumer was about to eat tinned…
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Efforts doubled to preserve Koh Kradan, the Best Beach of Earth 2023
Koh Kradan took centre stage last week after being voted the “best beach” on earth. Now, Hat Chao Mai National Park made public it is doubling its effort to ensure it stays at the top of the list by preserving the beach and the surrounding area’s ecosystem. Hat Chao Mai National Park chief Prit Narasrit Koh Kradan revealed the marine…
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Kazakhstani tourist arrested for rampage on southern Thailand beach (video)
Police arrested a Kazakhstani tourist for attacking people and destroying property yesterday at Haad Rin Beach in Koh Pha Ngan, Surat Thani province, southern Thailand. Yesterday evening, Koh Pha Ngan Tourist Police were informed that a foreign tourist was “going crazy” at Haad Rin Beach, chasing and attacking locals and invading and destroying property at resorts and restaurants along the…
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Woman jumps off 4th floor building to escape abusive husband’s torture
A Thai woman jumped off the fourth floor of a dormitory in Samut Prakarn province near Bangkok to escape from her abusive, alleged drug addict husband who scalded, assaulted and thrust a glass bottle into her vagina. A rescue team from the Poh Teck Tung Foundation rushed to Soi Bang Pla 22 in the Bang Plee district of Samut Prakarn…
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Gang attacks Swedish tourist for defending waitress in Chiang Mai, Thailand
A Swedish tourist was brutally attacked by a gang of young men after he tried to stop them from assaulting a waitress at a karaoke bar in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand, on Friday. The gang also stole the victim’s gold necklace before throwing him into a canal. Yesterday, police arrested three men of Tai Yai ethnicity (an ethnic group from Shan state…
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Police officer’s grudge turns deadly: Four killed in tragic family dispute in southern Thailand
A tragic family dispute led to the killing of four people by a police officer with a grudge in southern Thailand. The incident occurred over the weekend when four men were shot dead by a police officer attached to the Khirirat Nakhom Police Station in Surat Thani and his three accomplices. According to Provincial Police Region 8 commissioner Pol. Lt.…
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