Thailand News Today – Friday, June 19

5 cases – all imported Thais returning from Saudi Arabia on the same flight as another 11 people that have already been detected.

224 arrested in another Mae Sot gambling raid

Police raided a large and sophisticated online gambling operation, arresting more than 200 people at a hotel in the Mae Sot district in Northern Thailand, close to the Burmese border.

Chinese nationals either rented or purchased homes and hotels in the area to set up sophisticated and elaborate online gambling operations.

224 people were arrested in Wednesday evening’s raid on gambling-related charges. Police confiscated at least 100 computers, mobile phones and 240 bank account passbooks.

Bangkok bar raided, nearly 100 revellers charged with breaching emergency decree

Nearly 100 partygoers have been arrested and charged with violating the emergency decree after police raided a bar in Bangkok in the early hours of this morning.

50 police raided the illegal party, involving drugs and alcohol, which was being held at the Fake Illusion bar in the Beung Kum district, north east of the Bangkok city centre.

96 revellers – 64 male and 32 female – consuming alcohol and dancing to loud music. 4 of them were underage. Tests carried out at the scene revealed the presence of drugs in the urine of 11 male and 12 female partygoers. The authorities also confiscated over 20 bags of what is alleged to be methamphetamine pills. Everyone present has been charged with violating the emergency decree and may have to face further drug possession charges.

Woman runs drug syndicate from Bangkok prison

It’s always good to see prisoners spending their time behind bars learning some new skills. Police yesterday arrested a woman who was running a drug network and using a nearby gold shop to launder more than 3 billion baht.

Police cracked down on a drug network allegedly and discovered that it was being run by a female inmate in the Bangkok Remand Prison, using a gold shop to launder more than 3 billion baht in illegal drug money.

The woman, as well as 9 other inmates in various jails and prisons across Thailand, are facing money laundering charges. Police with the Crime Suppression Division raided locations they believe were associated with the drug network in Bangkok, Trang, Phang Nga and Ranong, catching another 10 alleged members of the network.

Defence chief favours lifting Thailand’s Emergency Decree

The chief of Thailand’s defence forces raised no objection yesterday to calls for the national state of emergency to be lifted, saying security operations will not be affected if the Emergency Decree, set to expire at the end of June, is not extended.

He says police have other legal tools, including the public assembly law, to maintain peace and order if political activities resume without the emergency decree in place.

“The PM has made it clear that the country will have to move forward and the economy must grow.”

Clean up Bangkok waterways: Report on littering, get paid

Need some extra cash? Catch someone dumping garbage into Bangkok canals and half the money in fines will go to you.

The effort is to clean up the so-called “Venice of East” which has so much trash, city officials say it’s scary. The maximum fine is 10,000 baht, so potentially you could get up to 5,000 baht for one report.

Authorities warn that massive amounts of litter can cause flooding.

To report any littering littering of Bangkok’s klongs, call the 24 hour hotline 1555.

Thailand eases up on social distancing requirements for domestic travel

The requirement for Thailand’s airlines to leave every second seat empty, as part of the conditions under which domestic services could resume, is being done away with.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand says carriers can now sell every seat on a flight in a hope it will encourage them to add more flights.

But passengers and flight crew will all still have to wear face masks for the entire flight.

And from July 31, members of the same family may sit together on Bangkok’s electric train network, for journeys that take less than 50 minutes.