Taiwanese man arrested in Pattaya on overstay and money laundering charges
Pattaya police yesterday arrested a Taiwanese man on charges of money laundering. Additionally, they discovered that he had overstayed his visa validity by over 430 days, equivalent to approximately a year and five months.
Officers from the Sub-division 2 Tourist Police Division 1 and Chon Buri Provincial Immigration Office were alerted by the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Thailand about a 27 year old Taiwanese man, Hung Hua Wang, who escaped a money laundering charge in Taiwan and was hiding in Pattaya.
Officers conducted a further investigation and discovered that Hung entered Thailand on a tourist visa on May 22, 2021. His visa allowed him to stay until November 18, 2022, but there was no record of him leaving the country.
The investigation led officers to his accommodation, a hotel on Pattaya Sai Sam Road. Officers closely monitored the accommodation until Hung arrived at the location. Hung was arrested outside the hotel and taken to police headquarters.
For the overstay charge, Hung will face imprisonment for up to two years and a fine of up to 20,000 baht according to Section 81 of the Immigration Act: residing in the country with permission that has expired. Hung will be transferred to Taiwan for further prosecution for money laundering.
In related reports on the arrests of Taiwanese nationals in Thailand, officers from the animal quarantine centre arrested a Taiwanese man for smuggling live animals at Suvarnabhumi International Airport in Bangkok on December 5, last year. As the man walked through an X-ray machine, he was seen concealing animals in his clothing. Three animals were found, including a Parry dog and two small-clawed Asian otters.
Another Taiwanese man was arrested the same month for allegedly hiring gunmen to kill his son and wife. The victims managed to escape the murder as Thai police arrested the gunmen just in time. The son revealed that the motive behind the murder plan was a long legal battle over a business before his father attempted to end it with their deaths.
