Koh Samui
Mother of man killed in Samui cries for justice two years on

KOH SAMUI: The mother of a German man who was killed two years ago in a bloody altercation in Koh Samui has written a letter pleading with Thai authorities to try those responsible for her son’s death, while bemoaning a lack of progress made on the case.
Volker Schwartges was 46 years old when he was brutally stabbed, allegedly by a group of teenage Thai nationals armed with broken beer bottles and a knife, during a dispute on Soi Green Mango in Chaweng, Koh Samui, on August 20, 2014.
The letter by Gisela Schwartges, dated August 1, states that back in 2014 she was informed of her son’s death in Thailand by two police officers from the Duesseldorf Criminal Investigation Department.
Mrs Schwartges added in her letter that she has spent the past two years collecting media clippings and investigative reports regarding her son’s murder.
“Police have deliberately failed to submit the case to the public prosecutor’s office in time, and for the first 84 days after the incident, the official investigation report read ‘dead’ instead of ‘murdered’,” she wrote.
The letter continues: “My son will never come back, but I hope that his killers will be brought to justice. How do we know that an incident such as this one will not happen again, if the murderers are freely roaming the streets?”
Lt Col Jaru Phetpan, Inspection Department chief of Bo Phut Police, confirmed that police had already handed the case files to the public prosecutor’s office a long time ago. However, he could not recall exactly when that was.
“The case has been processed at our end,” he said.
A clerk at the prosecutor’s office confirmed with the Gazette today that the case had been received at the office, but could not provide any further information as the prosecutor assigned to the case was not available to comment at the time.
— Chutharat Plerin
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Koh Samui
Koh Samui to start Covid-19 vaccinations early next month

Covid-19 vaccinations on Koh Samui will start early next month with 2,500 doses planned to be given to 1,250 people on the island, according to Surat Thani governor Wichawut Jinto. Island authorities are also proposing that foreign visitors be allowed to quarantine on their yacht, at a villa hotel or at a wellness centre.
The tourist island off the coast of Surat Thani in the Gulf of Thailand is deemed as an area of “economic significance” and is included in the first phase of the country’s immunisation plan. The first doses will be given to disease control officials and those in the tourism sector.
The vaccines, which just arrived from overseas yesterday, are expected to be delivered to the island before the end of the month and vaccinations are set to start in early March.
Half of the vaccines are reserved for those in the healthcare field as well as local government officials. Around 26% of the doses would be given to local health volunteers and the general public. 22% of the doses would be given to workers in the tourism industry, including airport employees and hotel quarantine employees. 2% of the doses will go to Covid-19 inspectors.
SOURCE: Bangkok Post
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Coronavirus (Covid-19)
4 top tourist destinations to be prioritised for Covid-19 vaccine distribution

The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration says 4 of Thailand’s major tourism destinations are to be prioritised in the distribution of vaccines. They are Phuket, Chon Buri, Chiang Mai and Surat Thani. In addition, a further 9 provinces with significant infection numbers are being prioritised in the rollout of the first vaccine doses arriving in the Kingdom today.
Taweesin Visanuyothin from the CCSA says 70,000 doses will go to the hard-hit “highest control” area of Samut Sakhon, where Thailand’s second outbreak began late last year. 8,000 doses are being set aside for medical officials in the central province, along with 6,000 for frontline healthcare workers, 46,000 doses for seriously ill patients, and 10,000 doses for migrant workers and local residents.
Another 105,000 doses will be distributed to similar groups in Bangkok, in the central provinces of Pathum Thani, Nonthaburi, Nakhon Pathom, Samut Songkram and Samut Prakan, and in the western province of Ratchaburi and the Mae Sot district of Tak.
The Pattaya News reports that 14,700 doses will be sent to 4 major tourist destinations, with 4,700 going to the eastern province of Chon Buri, 4,000 to the southern island of Phuket, 3,500 to the northern province of Chiang Mai, and 2,500 going to the island of Samui in the southern province of Surat Thani.
In the case of the vaccines going to tourism spots, it is not yet known which groups will be vaccinated first, with that decision being left to the Provincial Communicable Disease Committee and other related authorities.
Meanwhile, the CCSA says other plans for the 4 tourism destinations are being considered, including the possibility of “area quarantine”, which would allow vaccinated foreign arrivals to remain within certain boundaries during their quarantine period. The Tourism Authority of Thailand has been pushing for a vaccine passport policy for vaccinated visitors, while PM Prayut Chan-o-cha says the government may consider lifting quarantine restrictions for vaccinated tourists.
SOURCE: The Pattaya News
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Crime
Police raid “Hippie Festival Samui,” arrest French musicians for allegedly working without a permit

Police on Koh Samui broke up the “Hippie Festival Samui” at a restaurant on Lamai Beach and arrested 4 French musicians, who were performing at the event, for allegedly working without a work permit. The manager of the restaurant, 48 year old Kannika Thongreuang, was arrested for selling alcohol during hours when alcohol sales are prohibited.
Around 100 Thai and foreign customers at the event, according to Thai media. Bo Phut police checked passports and took 2 bottles of beer as well as a some bills as “evidence” of the alcohol sales. The musicians – a drummer, saxophone player, bass player and guitar player – were all taken to the Bo Phut police station. Thai Visa says police had received complaints about an “illegal party.”
Just last month, on neighbouring Koh Pha Ngan, police broke up a party at the ThreeSixtyBar and arrested 111 people, including 89 foreigners, for allegedly breaking a number of laws relating to Thailand’s Emergency Decree put in place to combat the spread of Covid-19.
Koh Pha Ngan and Koh Samui are part of a trio of popular islands off the Surat Thani coast in the Gulf of Thailand.

PHOTO: Bangkok Times

PHOTO: Bangkok Times
SOURCE: Thai Visa
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