Northern Thailand News
Stay updated with the latest Northern Thailand news at The Thaiger, your ultimate source for regional information. Keep informed on local events, business developments, and lifestyle stories in popular locations like Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, and Pai.
Our in-depth coverage includes famous monuments such as the White Temple and Doi Suthep. Whether you’re a resident or a visitor, The Thaiger’s Northern Thailand news page is your essential guide to exploring this culturally rich region. Delve into the vibrant community and diverse culture with our expertly curated content, designed to keep you connected and well-informed.
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Chiang Rai businessman gives away cash with a mini treasure hunt
A man in the northern province of Chiang Rai has been giving away money to locals in a make-shift mini treasure hunt. He’s posted videos on TikTok to show people where he has hidden the money, allowing locals to figure out the clues and find the money. He told Thai media that he wanted to help people and encourage tourists…
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In Chiang Rai, monk novices receive condoms as an offering
Teen novice monks in northern Thailand’s Chiang Rai province received some rather unholy offerings in their alms bowls, according to another monk at their temple. The monk posted on Facebook last week saying that the novices found condoms in their alms bowls. The monk, Phra Chingchai, believes someone might have snuck the condoms in the bowls because there are many…
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UPDATE: Authorities find Isaan cult also selling food and snacks online
Following the report on the raid of the hidden cult compound in the Isaan province Chaiyaphum last week, authorities visited the make-shift for a second time and found they were also operating a semi-commercial food business to make a living. The ‘cult’ distributes food products like chilli paste, fermented fish and snacks but without registration with the Food and Drug Administration,…
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Police expand investigation into 11 bodies found at Isaan temple cult
Police are widening their investigation into a cult at a temple in north-eastern Thailand, where 11 bodies were kept. According to a Bangkok Post report, the bodies were discovered during a raid on the temple in the Khon San district of Chaiyaphum province. A 75-year-old man, named as Tawee Nanra, and allegedly the cult leader, has been arrested. Bail was…
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Thai school introduces points system for “bad students”
A school in Surin, northeastern Thailand has introduced strict, conservative guidelines that will deduct points off students for not following the school rules. A photo of the student’s handbook was shared on the “Bad Student” or “Nak Lien Leaw” Facebook page. The school’s principal told students on orientation day if they don’t like the rules, they are free to leave,…
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Thai cult raided, 11 corpses found, followers urged to consume leader’s waste
Police and residents in the Isaan province of Chaiyaphum, together with Thai media, have raid the ‘secret’ make-shift compound of a cult hidden in the middle of a rice paddy field after one victim complained that the cult leader “imprisoned followers” and urged them to “consume human waste”. Thai media reported that 11 unidentified corpses were found inside the compound,…
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Store owner in northern Thailand donates school uniforms to needy families
As Thailand plans to reopen schools on May 17, a store owner in Northern Thailand’s province of Nakhon Sawan is donating old school uniforms to families who don’t have the money to buy their own. The store owner said that this is the second year the donation handout has been organised. He said that last year, there was a similar…
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Man in northern Thailand found dead under palm tree
A man in the northern Thai province of Phitsanulok was found lying dead under a palm tree this morning. The man’s relatives told police he had left his home early in the morning to tap palm milk, as he did every day. They got worried when he didn’t come back at 9am, so they went to search for him, and…
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Woman in northern Thailand allegedly planned to have husband killed
A woman in Thailand’s lower northern province of Nakhon Sawan allegedly planned to have her husband run over by a car, so that she and her friend could share his 10 million baht insurance payout. The woman, 48 year old Pratheep, and her friend, 60 year old Jaemchan, allegedly hired Jaemchan’s nephew to do the deed for them, running Pratheep’s…
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Officials warn of upcoming storms in several regions of Thailand
Officials are warning of thunderstorms, gusty winds, and even hail in Thailand’s north, northeastern, central, and eastern regions. This includes the Bangkok area. Last night parts of the city were presented with an impressive thunder and light show to welcome in the start of the annual wet season. The Thai Meteorological Department says that from May 1-2, a moderate high-pressure…
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Boxing champion joins Thailand’s Palang Pracharath Party in Khon Kaen
A big name in Thailand’s boxing scene has now joined Thailand’s Palang Pracharath Party, and will represent the next election in Constituency 10 of the Khon Kaen province. The boxer, 49 year old Somrak Khamsing, won a gold medal in the US in 1996. After he retired from boxing, he became an actor. He then moved into politics. The Palang…
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Isaan province Khon Kaen maintains alcohol curfew at 9pm starting May 1
Last week the CCSA meeting agreed that Thailand provinces in the Blue and Yellow zones could serve alcohol until midnight (an hour later than the earlier curfew set at 11pm). However, the provincial governor of the Isaan province Khon Kaen believes it wouldn’t be safe for his residents and has decided to renew the alcohol curfew at 9pm starting on…
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GPS tracking collars for Thai elephants to follow their activities
Thailand’s wildlife authorities have successfully tracked and tagged a third of the wild elephant in the Phu Luang wildlife sanctuary in the north-eastern province of Loei (near the Laos border) attaching a GPS collar which will follow the elephant’s activities after many had left their normal grazing grounds for food. The GPS collars are being attached to 5 elephants and…
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Young Thai woman missing for 1 year makes contact with family
A Thai woman who was filed as a missing person over a year ago made contact with her elder sister on Friday. The 23 year old, from the northeast province of Buriram, reportedly said she broke off contact with her family because she didn’t want them to find out that a Phuket debt collector was chasing her for 100,000 baht.…
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UPDATE: Autopsy indicates political activist ‘likely’ to have committed suicide
Following a report on the mysterious death of a political activist and finance officer of the Move Forward Party, the autopsy indicates he died due to a lack of oxygen. His mother has conceded that her child could have committed suicide, but she still couldn’t think of any reasons why he would have done so. The body of 27 year…
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UPDATE: Daughter has contacted missing family, police suspect economic hardship
Following the report on the missing family in the central province of Sukhothai, Thai media has updated the story that the daughter has been able to contact her family today and everyone was safe. However, she didn’t share more details about where her family was or why they had been impossible to contact. Police speculate that it may have been…
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Political activist and Move Forward member found hanged in Isaan province
A male political activist and finance officer of the Move Forward Party has been found dead in the Isaan province of Nakhon Ratchasima. Initial reports suggest that he hanged himself at a bus stop near a police booth in front of the district office. But his mother believes her child was murdered as wounds and “mysterious evidence” have been identified.…
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Political activist and Move Forward member found hanged in north-east Thailand
A member of the Move Forward political party, who disappeared on Monday, has been found hanged in the north-eastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima. Thai PBS World reports that the body of 27 year old activist Anan Lokate, aka “Boy”, was found hanged by a police kiosk in the district of Chaloem Phra Kiat yesterday. The secretary-general of the Move Forward…
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Thai robber who stole gold valued around 4.5 million baht caught
A gold robber, 28 year old Kittipong Phaethaisong, has been caught in Pattaya today, April 15, in a hotel after stealing gold necklaces valued at about 4.5 million baht in Nakhon Ratchasima, northeastern Thailand earlier this week. He told police the motivation for the crime was that he was unemployed and short on cash. The police have already found several…
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Two Thai women escape sinking car after GPS leads them into a canal
Another GPS horror story occurred this morning when 2 women driving home for the Songkran holiday ended up trapped in their sinking car in a canal in Prachin Buri province, northeast Thailand. Their GPS navigation system led them off the edge of the road, causing their car to drop 10 metres and land in a drainage canal. The women managed…
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Chiang Mai elephant camp invites tourists to visit for free this Songkran
If you can’t splash each other this Songkran, splash an elephant instead — in Chiang Mai. Chiang Mai’s Maesa Elephant Camp invites tourists to splash in the water with elephants during the Songkran holidays, which will be celebrated this week from April 13 – 16. The camp is open from 9am – 3pm every day and admission is free. After…
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48 ‘restaurant’ goers test positive for drugs in Northeast Thailand
48 ‘restaurant’ goers tested positive for drugs in Khon Khaen province in Thailand’s Northeast in the early hours of this morning. Police found 62 customers in the restaurant. Apart from food, they found alcoholic drinks and packets of crystal methamphetamine on the tables. Empty packets were found in trash cans. Officers from Ban Pet police station had been tipped off …
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Man shoots and kills hospital patient in Thailand’s Northeast
A man shot and killed a hospital patient in Pak Khat district of Bueng Kan province in Thailand’s Northeast yesterday. Police arrested the 21 year old shooter, and he remains in custody during the investigation. A video posted on social media shows an armed man in a blue T-shirt, entering the hospital’s emergency room. The man is then seen shooting…
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Songkran, and traffic, are in the air as Bangkok dwellers head ‘upcountry’
The spirit of Songkran is in Thailand’s air, as is heavy traffic, as Bangkok residents make road trips ‘upcountry’ to the Northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima and beyond. Motorway 6, or M6, in Pak Chong district, is not yet open to public travel. It will be open to drivers for two periods: April 11 to 14, and after Songkran from…
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Doing it alone: Surin province to declare Covid-19 endemic from April 1
The authorities in the north-eastern province of Surin say they will declare Covid-19 endemic from April 1, adding that they will become the first province in Thailand to do so. With the central government seemingly taking its time over lifting restrictions and moving to a “living with Covid” approach, Surin is going it alone. According to a Nation Thailand report,…
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Thai university expels hazing students, father of dead victim rejects financial compensation
15 senior Thai university students, involved in the violent and fatal hazing (bullying) of a freshman on March 13, have been dismissed from the Rajamangala University of Technology Isaan, Thailand. The ritual involved a total of 30 2nd year students and 37 freshmen, and resulted in the death of 19 year old Padyos “Prem” Chonpakdi. 10 other students, involved directly…
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Punishment for ‘Joe Ferrari’ seven police will be decided June 8
Thailand’s Central Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases will decide punishment for the seven so-called ‘Joe Ferrari’ police on June 8. The seven former police officers allegedly suffocated a drug suspect to death with a plastic bag. They face four charges: malfeasance, abuse of authority, torture causing death, and coercion. The victim’s parents have demanded 1.55 million baht from…
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Human rights official claims DNA tests infringe on Lahu hilltribe, Chiang Mai
In 2021, soldiers and police found large amounts of illegal drugs on the border in Fang district of Chiang Mai, according to a member of the National Human Rights Commission. The soldiers and police investigated nearby areas, which happened to be where 51 Lahu hilltribe members lived. The authorities then collected DNA samples from the 51 residents, suspecting they might…
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Low-magnitude earthquakes detected in Northern Thailand’s Chiang Rai
Two low-magnitude earthquakes shook two districts in Northern Thailand’s Chiang Rai. The earthquakes were very mild and residents in the areas were not affected, and probably didn’t even feel it, according to Thai media. Earthquake Observation Division reported earthquakes at Chiang Rai’s Wiang Pa Pao and Mae Lao districts. The first 1.3 magnitude quake happened at Wiang Pa Pao district…
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Roles reversed as Thai bride pays 12.8 million baht dowry
A Thai bride presented a dowry worth a staggering 12.8 million baht to her groom at Khon Kaen Convention Centre on Sunday. Instead of paying a dowry himself, 33 year old groom Micky received 2 million in cash, 500,000 baht’s worth of jewellery, a 5 rai land title deed valued at over 500,000 baht, a 7 million baht house, and…
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