Pattaya taxi riders to lose job after gang attack on Russian man

Mueang Pattaya Police Station officers plan to close a motorcycle taxi shelter outside Central Pattaya shopping mall after a gang attack on a Russian man on Saturday. Previous incidents involving attacks on foreigners have been reported, with Pattaya residents likening the behaviour of the motorcycle taxi drivers to that of a mafia gang.

A member of the Move Forward Party (MFP), Thanathan Pramunpong, shared a video on Facebook on Sunday, June 24, showing a group of motorcycle taxi riders attacking a foreign man, later identified as a Russian national. Thanathan revealed that the assault happened on Saturday night outside Central Pattaya mall on Pattaya Sai Song Road.

After the video went viral on Thai social media platforms, more locals submitted complaints to Thanathan that these taxi riders also abused their power with residents like a mafia gang. They did not allow anyone to park on public roads in the area, especially app-based drivers.

Locals added that some motorists parked there temporarily just to pick up their friends or family members but the taxi drivers would express their anger and chase those motorists away.

Thanathan raised a question with the Department of Land Transport as to why they allowed taxi riders to have control over a public road. His followers agreed with him and demanded the authorities take action on the matter.

Thanathan later updated his followers that he went to the motorcycle taxi shelter to discuss the matter with the riders. The taxi riders told Thanathan that the Russian man raised his middle finger at them, sparking the physical altercation.

They claimed that the Russian man parked his motorcycle near their premises, so they asked him to leave. The man then became angry and raised his middle finger at them, leading to the assault seen in the video.

Mueang Pattaya Police Station assured ThaiRath in an interview that they would not only fine the riders but would also issue a legal charge against them and bring them to court for further legal proceedings.

Police also planned to discuss with the district chief the closure of the motorcycle taxi rank to prevent similar issues in the future, as the riders had already been involved in gang attacks on three occasions.

A similar physical assault occurred in December last year when two taxi riders were caught on a viral video attacking a foreign man outside Central Pattaya mall. The attackers were believed to be from the same group as the recent case.