News
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150 queue to wish Gov Happy New Year
PHUKET TOWN: About 150 Thais and foreigners, including government officers, local politicians and business leaders, gathered at the Governor’s Mansion on Narisorn Rd this morning to take part in the traditional exchange of New Year blessings with Phuket Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi and his wife, Mantana. Phuket’s three Vice Governors were the first in a long queue of well-wishers to…
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Police puzzled by multiple monikers
PHUKET TOWN: Police have been trying to figure out whether a man they arrested on Monday is mad, or just crazy like a fox. Pol Lt Prasaan Tovorn of Phuket Town Police Station explained to the Gazette that he and other motorbike police officers were on patrol in Soi Imjit 1 in the early hours of Monday morning when the…
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Boat safety boost for Songkhran
PHUKET: The Phuket office of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) said yesterday it will be stepping up boat safety measures during this year’s Songkhran festival. Napasorn Kakai, Assistant Director of the local office of the TAT, said that arrangements have been made for officers from the Phuket Harbor Office, the Marine Police and the Tourist Police to be stationed…
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American diver dies in cave
KRABI: The Royal Thai Navy today returned to Phuket with the body of American tourist Jeffrey S. Gall, 48, who disappeared March 25 while diving in a cave off Koh Ha Yai. Pol Lt Col Prasopchai Bunluesil, Deputy Superintendent of Phuket Marine Police, told the Gazette today that Mr Gall was on vacation with his wife, staying on Phi Phi…
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Bike Week off to a roaring start
PHUKET: About 200 bikers rumbled around Phuket today as part of the 8th annual Phuket Bike Week. Hundreds of big bike enthusiasts from all over the country and from overseas have been arriving over the past few days for the six-day festival in Phuket. Yesterday evening, Rat-U-Thit 200 Phi Rd in Patong was jammed with big bikes for a welcome…
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Gov leads raid to “save gambling children’
PHUKET TOWN: Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi led a raid on a gambling den in Poonphol Night Plaza on Saturday night after receiving a letter from parents worried about children gambling. Arriving at the address at about 7:30 pm, officers found 20 men, one woman and two boys, aged 14 and 16, in a room watching a soccer match. In the…
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Health Chief in plea for safe Songkhran
PHUKET: Dr Wanchai Sattayawutthipong, Chief of the Phuket Provincial Health Office, has urged people to be particularly careful on Phuket’s roads during this year’s Songkhran festival. Citing statistics showing the rising numbers of dead and injured during the period in each successive year, Dr Wanchai urged everyone to take care when driving, to use safety belts or helmets, and not…
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“Women auction parties’ report denied
PHUKET: Col Apirak Hongtong, Superintendent of Phuket Immigration Police, yesterday emphatically denied a newspaper report alleging that regular parties are held in Phuket at which Thai women are auctioned off to foreigners. His comments followed the publishing of a front-page article on Thursday in a local Thai newspaper. The paper named Col Apirak as its source for the story. Col…
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Immigration plans big improvements
PHUKET: Phuket Immigration has announced plans to radically improve its service to tourists and foreigners living in Phuket. Pol Col Apirak Hongtong, the Superintendent of the Phuket Immigration Office, told the Gazette today that many foreigners who come to Phuket want to extend their stay in the country, but when their Immigration stamps expire, they do not know the correct…
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Bus service a big hit
PHUKET TOWN: After just four days of operation, Phuket’s first public bus service has received generally glowing reviews. Samroeng Chaisorn, Vice Chief Executive of the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor), told the Gazette today, “We are very pleased; it is going very well. The other day, myself and some of my team hopped on a bus and, to our surprise,…
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Seven Wonders get green light
PHUKET TOWN: A seven-week schedule of festivities was announced yesterday as part of a plan to attract more visitors to Phuket Town’s historic downtown area. The “Seven Wonders of Phuket” festival will start on April 21, and will run for the following six Sundays. JSL Co won the right to organize the festival with its concept of promoting a “Green…
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Don&’t bore your guests – Gov
PHUKET TOWN: Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi today urged organizers of events in Phuket to be aware of what their guests are likely to enjoy, and not to bore them with endless speeches and other formalities. His remarks came at an all-day seminar held at the Royal Phuket City, focusing on Tourism Destination Preservation and Being A Good Host. Gov Pongpayome…
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Policeman stabbed while making arrest
PHUKET TOWN: A police officer was knifed while making an arrest at about 3 am on Sunday at the Sri Sena fishing port. Pol L/Cpl Rakchart Suksrinuan went to question Ruengsak Cholasarn, 33, following a complaint by Pairoj Kongchartthai, 19, that Ruengsak had stabbed him during an argument. K. Pairoj was admitted to Wachira Hospital with minor stab wounds to…
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Man found shot dead in palm plantation
THALANG: The battered body of a man was found by villagers in a palm plantation in Thalang on Friday. Pol Maj Pornthep Phutluecha of Thalang Police Station said that the man, estimated to have been 30 to 40 years old, was wearing navy blue trousers and a T-shirt. His arms were raised over his head and handcuffed together. He had…
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Aliens top gambling in arrest figures
PHUKET: Illegal immigrants topped the arrests statistics last month, with 421 people caught in raids from March 1 to 24, according to the latest figures released by police. Gambling dropped from its customary number-one spot, with 273 arrested in 91 raids, up from 176 arrests made in 82 raids during for the same period in February. Arrests for drug-related offences…
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Prison still brimming with drug offenders
PHUKET TOWN: Statistics released by Provincial Prison officials last week show that narcotics offenders, or those awaiting trial on drugs-related charges, make up more than half of the prison population. Of the 1,247 inmates, 523 men and 119 women are in for narcotics offenses. Of the remaining prisoners, 217 are being held for theft, 136 for murder or attempted murder,…
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A glorious act of philanthropy
PATONG: Any person whose face matches a photocopy of one of the passports seized in Haad Yai last week can claim 10,000 baht and a handwritten chit to reclaim the passport in Bangkok from a man waiting on Thaweewong Rd. Clutching his belt pouch tight, the philanthropist, who identified himself only as “Mr May”, said he will give 10,000 baht…
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Eco-tour firms protest tuk tuk ‘bullies&’
PHUKET TOWN: About 70 staff from five eco-tour companies gathered in front of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) office on Phuket Rd last night to protest the “bullying” behavior of tuk tuk drivers in the Kata-Karon area. The protest blocked traffic for about an hour. Anupharb Thirarath, director of the TAT Phuket office, was handed a letter by the…
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Employers turn in 126 “unemployables’
PHUKET: In the latest development of the government’s crackdown on illegal aliens, 126 Burmese have been rounded up and will be shipped back to Burma within the next few days. Phuket Immigration made the arrests after tip-offs from Phuket employers. Three days ago, police publicly urged employers to tell police of any Burmese who are not fit to work as…
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Four arrested for credit card offenses
PHUKET TOWN: Police have nabbed one Malaysian and three Thais suspected of a major credit card fraud and forgery operation. Lee On Chin, a 49-year-old Chinese Malaysian, and Kiattikorn Rakkaew, 33, were arrested Tuesday in front of Daeng Plaza Hotel on Phuket Rd while using credit cards to draw money from an ATM machine. Prajak Nalita, 32, was arrested the…
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Rush to solve Laguna dispute
PHUKET TOWN: Thalang District Chief Kanthee Silapa yesterday set himself a deadline of three weeks from now to report his findings on the dispute over whether Thai Wah Development, Laguna Resorts and Hotels’ parent company, had encroached on government land. K. Kanthee announced his deadline – April 20 – at a meeting at Provincial Hall, which was attended by representatives…
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B2m damage in three-home blaze
PHUKET TOWN: A kitchen fire raged out of control and gutted three units of a two-story townhouse complex in Moo Baan Karn Kaeha yesterday afternoon. Total damage is estimated at more than 2 million baht. Five firefighters took nearly one hour to put out the blaze. No injuries were reported. The fire started in the kitchen of one of the…
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Koreans can be interpreters, not guides – Gov
PHUKET TOWN: In response to a long-standing dispute between Thai guides and Korean tour operators, Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi yesterday announced that 99 Korean nationals will be allowed to register as tour-guide interpreters. The announcement was made at a meeting, attended by local government officials and Korean tour operators, which was arranged to resolve months of conflict. The conflict arose…
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Police officer robbed during Phuket stay
PHUKET TOWN: An Immigration Police officer from Surat Thani, working in Phuket on assignment, had his jewelry and his gun stolen from his hotel room at the S.T. Hotel on Sakdidet Rd on Saturday night. Pol Lt Parichat Jaturonphan, of Phuket Town Police Station, said that Pol Capt Sudjarit Vongsakate was staying at the hotel with his family. Lt Parichat…
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Burglars rob MP’s company of B1m
PHUKET TOWN: Burglars on Saturday night broke into exporting company Jianvanich Office, of which Phuket Democrat MP Anchalee Vanich-Thepabutr is Managing Director, and stole cash and jewelry worth about 1 million baht. Pol Lt Parichat Jaturonphant, of Phuket Town Police Station, told the Gazette that at 11:30 yesterday morning, Apirak Vanich, 37, the company’s manager and K. Anchalee’s younger brother,…
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Lucky Complex operator out of luck
PHUKET TOWN: The Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) has taken back management of the abandoned Lucky Complex in Saphan Hin after the company in charge of running it failed to pay rent on the building for more than two years. OrBorJor officials, including the president, Dr Prasit Koeysiripong, went to inspect the Lucky Complex on Saturday, shortly after the OrBorJor…
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Patong to get power boost
PATONG: To reduce the number of unscheduled blackouts in Patong, the Phuket Provincial Electricity Authority (PPEA) has installed a new substation opposite the Holiday Inn on Rat-U-Thit 200 Pi Rd. The substation – which has yet to be hooked up to the town’s power supply – has the capacity to boost power supply in the area from 33 kilovolts to…
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Governor CEO experiment “a success’
PHUKET TOWN: After five months, the experiment of having a governor CEO run Phuket has proved to be a success, says Deputy Permanent Secretary of the Interior, Yongyuth Wichaidith. Speaking at the opening of the new Patong Municipality Office yesterday, K. Yongyuth said the appointment of Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi has led to issues being dealt with faster than under…
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Long-tail owners win klong dispute
BANG TAO: Following a protest by local long-tail boat owners, the Cherng Talay Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor) has ordered a halt to a land modification project by a local landowner. The protest, by Bang Tao boetmen, came after the landowner started filling in the klong, apparently intending to shift the course of the canal so that he could expand his…
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Immigration Dept: corruption exposed
PHUKET: A major investigation has been launched into the activities of Immigration officers in Patong after the seizure of some 40 passports in Haad Yai in recent days. The passports were on their way back from Malaysia after being sent for “visa run” renewals and are now in the possession of the Immigration Department in Bangkok. Among those whose passports…
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