Thailand News

Thailand news, politics, business, crime, and lifestyle—get breaking updates from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. Stay informed on Thai society, economy, tourism, and expat life with The Thaiger.

  • Sponsored

    Do foreigners get free healthcare in Thailand?

    Thailand’s healthcare system is well-regarded across Southeast Asia, with options ranging from public hospitals to world-class private facilities. But when it comes to foreign residents or tourists, healthcare access isn’t as straightforward. So, do foreigners get free healthcare in Thailand?...

  • Desperate Thai mother offers to sell organs to keep son alive

    Desperate Thai mother offers to sell organs to keep son alive

    A Thai mother took to social media in a desperate attempt to sell her organs to raise funds to care for her one year old son and to seek a better home for the young boy. The 33 year old woman from the Isaan province of Sisaket initially shared photos of her son on Facebook to find an adoptive family.…

  • Man apprehended in Bangkok over indecent filming charges

    Man apprehended in Bangkok over indecent filming charges

    A 34 year old man was apprehended at a condominium in Bang Sue, Bangkok, following an investigation into allegations of indecent acts. Pirapong was charged under a Nakhon Si Thammarat court warrant for inappropriate behaviour towards people over 15 years old, using force in a public setting, which caused distress and humiliation. The incident occurred in 2023 when a 30 year…

  • Pattaya tour boat boss calls tourists ‘animals’ in foul-mouthed tirade

    Pattaya tour boat boss calls tourists ‘animals’ in foul-mouthed tirade

    A Pattaya tour boat operator has been forced to issue a grovelling apology after being caught on camera swearing at a boatload of foreign tourists: calling them “animals” in a foul-mouthed rant that’s since gone viral. The shocking outburst unfolded aboard a Koh Larn Relax tour boat during a snorkelling trip to Koh Sak last Saturday afternoon, and was exposed…

  • Chon Buri transgender MP seeks expulsion from People’s Party

    Chon Buri transgender MP seeks expulsion from People’s Party

    A Member of Parliament (MP) from Chon Buri urged the People’s Party (PP) leader to expel him so he can join a new party, citing a lack of support for his work and experiences of sexism. Krit Chevathamanon, a transgender MP from the PP, held a press conference at the Parliament building yesterday, May 13, to announce his desire to…

  • Foreign beggar gang busted for using kids as cash bait in Pattaya

    Foreign beggar gang busted for using kids as cash bait in Pattaya

    A foreign beggar gang using children and the disabled to pull in cash from tourists has been busted in a dramatic sting operation by immigration police in Pattaya. Undercover officers, posing as holidaymakers, swooped on a group of Cambodians spotted hustling money from passersby at popular tourist spots around the city. Some of the suspects were seen carrying two or…

  • Military colonel linked to online gambling escapes arrest

    Military colonel linked to online gambling escapes arrest

    A military colonel is facing an arrest warrant for allegedly running an online gambling network and hiding luxury vehicles in a military camp. Police seized assets worth 10 million baht and arrested six administrators. Yesterday, May 13, the Provincial Police Region 7 in Nakhon Pathom, led by Police Major General Pongpan Wongmaneethej, conducted operations at three locations linked to the…

  • Man arrested in Surat Thani for assaulting niece

    Man arrested in Surat Thani for assaulting niece

    A 49 year old man was arrested in Surat Thani after being accused of sexually assaulting his wife’s 13 year old niece. The arrest followed a warrant issued by the Surat Thani Provincial Court on February 2, 2024. The suspect, Samphan, allegedly took advantage of his wife’s night shifts at a hospital to commit the assaults, threatening the girl not to…

  • Brake point: Biker gang batters Pattaya mechanic over 100 baht

    Brake point: Biker gang batters Pattaya mechanic over 100 baht

    A Pattaya mechanic was left bloodied and bruised after a gang of angry teens stormed his workshop and beat him senseless, all over a 100-baht parking fee. The shocking attack happened yesterday, May 13, at 1pm, when police were called to a motorcycle repair shop on Soi Khao Noi, near the railway in Chon Buri province. Responding officers found 27…

  • Thai man murders 2 year old stepdaughter for interrupting sex

    Thai man murders 2 year old stepdaughter for interrupting sex

    A Thai stepfather murdered his two year old disabled stepdaughter for interrupting him while he was having sex. The child’s body was later found in a river in the northern province of Chiang Rai, . Police apprehended the stepfather yesterday, May 13, after the girl’s family reported her missing on May 10. They stated to officers at Mae Fah Luang…

  • Toyota Fortuner accident in Phetchabun claims life, injures another (video)

    Toyota Fortuner accident in Phetchabun claims life, injures another (video)

    A Toyota Fortuner yesterday veered off course and crashed into two people waiting for a bus under a tree by a dual carriageway. The accident, yesterday, May 13, occurred near an intersection in Na Chaliang, Mueang Phetchabun district, resulting in one death and one injury. The incident was captured on CCTV and shared on the Facebook page ข่าวคนรักบ่อไทย (Khao Khon…

  • Message in the sand: Nepali tailor found dead on Phuket beach

    Message in the sand: Nepali tailor found dead on Phuket beach

    A mystery death on one of Phuket’s most popular beaches has left locals and tourists shaken, after a Nepali tailor was found hanged with a chilling message written in the sand beside him. The body of the man, later identified as Marike, was discovered beneath a pandanus tree on Kata Beach in the early hours of yesterday morning, May 13,…

  • Swedish man denies sexually harassing his Thai-Swedish daughter

    Swedish man denies sexually harassing his Thai-Swedish daughter

    A Swedish man denied sexually harassing his half-Thai, half-Swedish biological daughter at a hotel in the Isaan province of Udon Thani and accused his Thai ex-wife of fabricating the crime for financial gain. The 29 year old Thai woman, Suay, lodged a sexual harassment complaint with Muang Udon Thani Police Station and urged officers to rescue her 16 year old…

  • Phuket red mist: Daft foreign tourist climbs traffic light to go green

    Phuket red mist: Daft foreign tourist climbs traffic light to go green

    A hapless foreign tourist in Phuket sparked outrage after climbing a traffic light pole in the middle of the night, in a bizarre bid to turn it green. The impatient biker, riding through the Samkong intersection at 1.20am, today, May 14, decided he’d had enough of waiting at a red light. So, in a moment of madness, he ditched his…

  • Escaped Thai prisoner recaptured after 50,000 baht reward offered

    Escaped Thai prisoner recaptured after 50,000 baht reward offered

    A prisoner convicted of drug-related charges has been apprehended after escaping from Na Thawi district prison. This followed the offering of a 50,000 baht reward for information leading to his capture. Today, May 14, the Na Thawi district prison’s Facebook page, under the Department of Corrections and Ministry of Justice, announced the escape of a male prisoner convicted under the…

  • High stakes: Teesside teen busted in cannabis smuggle shock

    High stakes: Teesside teen busted in cannabis smuggle shock

    A Teesside teen feared missing in Thailand has turned up 4,000 miles away, busted in handcuffs and facing a possible life sentence after allegedly trying to smuggle a massive haul of cannabis into the ex-Soviet state of Georgia. Bella May Culley, from Billingham, County Durham, in the North-East of England, sparked a frantic international search after vanishing during what was…

  • Bomb attack injures two officers in Pattani’s Yaring district

    Bomb attack injures two officers in Pattani’s Yaring district

    An explosive attack on a military truck belonging to the 44th Ranger Regiment Task Force in Pattani has left two officers injured. The attack took place at 1pm yesterday, May 13, when unidentified assailants planted a bomb in Yaring district. The explosive device, weighing approximately 15 kilogrammes, was hidden in the median of Highway 41. The blast injured two officers…

  • Brace yourself: It’s a ‘rai-ny’ day forecast for 46 Thai provinces

    Brace yourself: It’s a ‘rai-ny’ day forecast for 46 Thai provinces

    The Thai Meteorological Department (TMD) today issued a weather warning, predicting thunderstorms and heavy rainfall across 46 provinces in Thailand, including significant downpours in Bangkok, affecting 70% of the area. Residents are cautioned against possible flash floods and sudden flooding, particularly in hilly regions and areas near water flow paths. In the next 24 hours, the southern and upper regions…

  • Audit and buried: Bangkok earthquake horror sparks 17 arrest bids

    Audit and buried: Bangkok earthquake horror sparks 17 arrest bids

    Bangkok cops are gunning for 17 suspects over the deadly collapse of a 30-storey government tower during the March 28 earthquake, with a damning probe pointing fingers at engineers, site managers and bosses from the firms behind the doomed build. Those facing arrest include execs from Italian-Thai Development and China Railway No.10 Engineering Group, whose joint venture was constructing the…

  • Family of 11 under scrutiny for alleged incest and porn production

    Family of 11 under scrutiny for alleged incest and porn production

    A Thai woman clashed with the founder of a non-profit organisation in the central province of Phetchabun after her family was accused of incest and pornography production. The alleged incest and pornography production involving a family of 11 members garnered significant public attention after the news Facebook page, Tan Bao, shared the story on Saturday, May 10. In the post,…

  • Strong wind topples tree onto motorcyclist in Chon Buri

    Strong wind topples tree onto motorcyclist in Chon Buri

    A 21 year old woman suffered a broken arm when a tree fell on her motorcycle during a strong wind, causing significant damage to the vehicle. The accident occurred at 11pm, yesterday, on May 12 on the Phanat Nikhom-Nong Samet road in Mueang district, Chon Buri province. Emergency services were called to the scene by the Sawang Het Ban Thung…

  • Thai woman publicly severs ties with scam mother

    Thai woman publicly severs ties with scam mother

    A Thai woman publicly announced that she cut ties with her biological mother after the mother repeatedly used her identity to deceive men online. The woman’s daughter, Phantiwa, took to her Facebook account to inform her followers that she would no longer be involved with her mother, Suphat, and would not be held responsible for any damages caused by her.…

  • Call centre scam costs elderly woman 760,000 baht

    Call centre scam costs elderly woman 760,000 baht

    A call centre scam targeting the elderly has been reported by a renowned prosecutor after her nearly 80 year old mother was swindled out of 760,000 baht. The scam involved a con artist posing as a reputable businessman online, exploiting loopholes in the banking system to delay investigations. Yesterday, May 12, at the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau, prosecutor Supaporn Nipavanich,…

  • China slump no drag-on for Phuket, says property tycoon

    China slump no drag-on for Phuket, says property tycoon

    Fears that China’s economic slowdown could batter Thailand’s tourist trade have been brushed aside by a luxury property boss, who insists Phuket is still booming thanks to big spenders from elsewhere. Phuket’s posh property scene is still sizzling despite fewer Chinese tourists hitting the island and one property mogul reckons it’s all just a blip. Allan Zeman, chairman of the…

  • Thai government expedites land for farmers in 17 provinces

    Thai government expedites land for farmers in 17 provinces

    Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport Suriya Juangroongruangkit yesterday tasked Sueknit Srijomkwan, Deputy Secretary-General to the Prime Minister for Political Affairs, to instruct Kulpat Phumjai-ud, Director of the Land Bank Management Institute, to expedite land allocation for farmers across 30 communities in 17 provinces. This initiative aims to provide farmers with their land to cultivate, promoting sustainability and stable…

  • Ko Samui waterfall horror lands British soldier in deep debt

    Ko Samui waterfall horror lands British soldier in deep debt

    A dream trip to Thailand turned into a living hell for a British soldier after he plunged from a waterfall, shattering his body and racking up a jaw-dropping £100,000 (4.4 million baht) medical bill, with no way home in sight. The 21 year old squaddie has been left broken and stranded after falling from a popular Thai waterfall while taking…

  • Motorcycle taxi rider arrested for murder and robbery of old woman

    Motorcycle taxi rider arrested for murder and robbery of old woman

    Police today arrested a motorcycle taxi rider for the murder and robbery of an elderly woman in the southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat. The suspect was apprehended while hiding on Koh Samui in Surat Thani province. The lifeless body of the missing woman, 89 year old Nin, was discovered inside a fertiliser sack in a grassland area along Terd Phrakiat…

  • Ayutthaya couple finds python in third-floor bedroom

    Ayutthaya couple finds python in third-floor bedroom

    A couple in Ayutthaya were alarmed when they discovered a large python in their third-floor bedroom. The snake, nearly 2 metres long, was spotted curled up beside their bed, prompting them to contact emergency services for assistance. At 3am today, May 13, the Ayutthaya Rescue Unit received a report of a python entering room 331 on the third floor of…

  • Thai man stabs wife on road after allegedly catching her with lover

    Thai man stabs wife on road after allegedly catching her with lover

    A jealous Thai man stabbed his wife on a road in the central province of Sing Buri yesterday, claiming he caught her with her lover multiple times. Residents managed to restrain the attacker, 62 year old Sak, yesterday, on May 12, on the Asian Highway and contacted officers from Mueang Sing Buri Police Station to arrest him. Sak’s wife, 50…

  • Sex, lies and seaside sweeps: Pattaya cops accused of cover up

    Sex, lies and seaside sweeps: Pattaya cops accused of cover up

    Pattaya cops are under fire after a recent crackdown on foreign sex workers along Pattaya Beach was branded a “PR stunt” by furious locals and expats, who say Thai officials are ignoring the city’s deeper problems while putting on a show for the cameras. On December 26, a joint operation between Pattaya Tourist Police, Chon Buri Immigration, and the Social…

  • Drunk taxi driver tees off in Phuket road rage meltdown

    Drunk taxi driver tees off in Phuket road rage meltdown

    A booze-fuelled drunk taxi driver sparked chaos on a busy Phuket road after allegedly smashing into a parked car, then battering the other driver with a golf club in a shocking midday meltdown. The unhinged attack, caught on video and now circulating widely online, took place around 12.19pm, yesterday, May 12, outside a 7-Eleven in the Baan Lipon area of…