News
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Sponsored Pullman Phuket Panwa Beach Resort puts sustainability at its heart
The term sustainability is often thrown around as a buzzword in the hospitality industry, but at Pullman Phuket Panwa Beach Resort, it’s genuinely part of their mission. Located in Makham Bay, just south of Phuket Town, the beautiful resort puts...
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Serial seafood robber arrested in Phuket Town
PHUKET: A serial seafood thief was arrested last night in Phuket Town, claiming that he had to steal to pay everyday expenses. The suspect’s latest seafood heist, from Baan Kalim, a seafood restaurant in Patong, yielded 15 lobsters, tiger prawns, fish, crabs, shellfish and numerous other items. “We have been following this case since February 27. The owner of the…
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No leads in hunt for missing Russian tourist
KOH TAO: Police are searching for a Russian tourist who has been missing from Koh Tao since February 16. Valentina Novozhenova, 23, disappeared from a Koh Tao hotel the day she was supposed to check out after a week-long stay. Amid concerns that she might have gotten into trouble while snorkeling off the island, police officers and divers yesterday went…
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Eight arrested in three Phuket raids
PHUKET: Six men and two women were arrested in three separate incidents for possession of drugs and weapons last night. “Saripha Poksa, 30, and Yamila Mayo, 29, were arrested with 177 pills of ya bah (methamphetamine) and 23,000 baht in cash. They were apprehended after undercover police officers pretended to buy drugs from them,” said Lt Col Worapong Prom-In of…
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Russian tourist’s Phuket ordeal comes to a close
PHUKET: A Russian tourist who was ‘caught’ feeding a fish on Phuket’s Racha Island last month flew back to her home country yesterday after being cleared by the Phuket Provincial Court on Monday. Olga Smirnova, 53, was arrested on the island on February 19 (story here), and jailed for two nights in Phuket while her bail money was being arranged…
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Unidentified Russian woman wanted for using fake US dollars
KRABI: Police are searching for an unidentified Russian woman who used fake currency to swindle a Krabi shop owner on Sunday night. Capt Sarawut Kittiruangrayab of Ao Nang Police received the report yesterday after the owner of the herbal shop, Sanchai Khaonoi, 25, tried to exchange a 100-dollar bill and was told it was fake. “Mr Sanchai described the suspect…
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More than a ton of trash cleaned up at Koh Racha Noi
PHUKET: The Department of Marine and Cosatal Resources (DMCR) conducted the second installment of its marine debris management campaign, collecting more than a ton of trash at Koh Racha Noi on Saturday. All coastal provinces in Thailand have been given a budget for marine debris management after Thailand was ranked as the sixth worst marine polluter in the world by…
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Family tragedy: Two killed, three injured in Phuket accident
PHUKET: Two members of a family were killed and three others injured after a car driver fell asleep at the wheel and crashed into an electric generator at the side of the road early yesterday morning. “The accident occurred on Thepkrasattri Road, at a construction site near Phuket International Airport. At the scene, we found a black Honda Civic stuck…
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Phuket Police search for relatives of crash victim
PHUKET: A unidentified big bike rider died after crashing into a tree and electric pole near Phuket International Airport early this morning. “The accident occurred at about 3am near the Airport junction in Sakoo sub-district. The victim was male, and appeared to be aged 18 to 20 years. There was blood all over his face and body,” said Lt Col…
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Another thieving airline employee arrested in Phuket
PHUKET: An AirAsia baggage handler was arrested on Friday afternoon for stealing jewelry worth 80,000 baht from a passenger’s luggage at Phuket International Airport the day before. Thasayu Boonsop, 26, confessed to theft following a complaint lodged at Sakoo Police Station by Amika Maha, a passenger on AirAsia flight FD3015 from Bangkok to Phuket on Thursday night. “Ms Amika checked…
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American tourist injured in Krabi climbing accident
PHUKET: An American tourist is in hospital in Phuket after she fell while attempting to scale a six-meter-high cliff in Krabi yesterday morning. Samara Landers, 38, broke her leg and sustained several bruises to her body. Saman Vajidee of Hat Noppharat Thara – Mu Koh Phi Phi National Park received a report of the incident at about 10:30am. “We found…
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Aussie tourist dead after visit to his Phuket hotel room
PHUKET: The body of an Australian tourist was found in a Phuket hotel room at about 4pm yesterday. The deceased was believed to have died of a sudden cardiac arrest. Peter John Bright, 55, was staying at the ‘Hello Yaya Residence’ hotel on Phra Baramee Road. He had been there since February 23 and was due to check out yesterday.…
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Finance: Securing your financial future
PHUKET: It really doesn’t matter if you make a little money or tonnes. If you can’t master this very important step you will never achieve financial freedom. It sounds all too simple in theory, yet in practice so many people have trouble staying disciplined. The step I am referring to is committing to setting aside a minimum of 10 per…
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Opinion: Protecting Phuket’s image as a tourist destination
PHUKET: The recent incarceration of a Russian tourist for the heinous crime of feeding breadcrumbs to a fish is just the latest in a long-running series of embarrassments for Thai law enforcement and our tourism industry. The story made international headlines, including such mass media heavyweights as TASS and the UK’s Daily Mail, re-reporting after it was first reported by…
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Malaysian tourist found dead in Phuket hotel room
PHUKET: Police are investigating the death of a Malaysian tourist whose body was found in a Patong hotel room yesterday afternoon. Officials believe over-consumption of alcohol may have been a contributing factor in his death. “Lee Tzu Yuen, 38, was staying at the ‘White Patong’ guesthouse in Soi San Sabai. We found him naked and lying face up on the…
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Deputy PM visits Phuket to talk tourism
PHUKET: Lifeguards and entertainment venues were some of the issues under discussion during the Deputy Prime Minister’s one-day visit to Phuket yesterday. Deputy PM Gen Thanasak Patimaprakorn and Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul were greeted by Phuket Governor Chokchai Dejamornthan; Monruedee Gettuphan, director of Phuket International Airport; Lt Gen Piyawat Nakwanich, commander of the Royal Thai Army’s Region 4;…
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Russian tourist ‘found’ in Phuket after 10 hours at sea
PHUKET: A Russian tourist, hell-bent on snorkeling despite warnings, was rescued and brought to shore this morning after being lost at sea for at least ten hours off Koh Racha Noi. “Four Russian tourists, named by police as Artem Tarasenko, 45; Sergey Larichev, 40; Valeruu Iakunin, 40; and Dmitrii Somov, 48, rented a speed boat with Thai captain Rittiron Saleeka,…
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Bomb scare grounds Phuket-bound flight from Sweden
STOCKHOLM: Swedish officials are investigating a bomb threat against a Phuket-bound Thai Airways flight at Stockholm Arlanda Airport last night. The flight was grounded and all 300 passengers safely evacuated, reports Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet. The threat was specifically directed toward flight TG963, which was due to take off at 8:45pm, said Sven-Erik Olsson of the Stockholm Police. A relative of…
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Phuket Gazette office closed tomorrow
PHUKET: The Phuket Gazette would like to inform our readers and advertisers that our office in Koh Kaew will be closed tomorrow as the result of yet another power outage, from 9am-4pm. Deadlines for our classified advertisements remain unaffected. We apologize to all for the inconvenience.
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Flights to be delayed during Suvarnabhumi runway repairs
BANGKOK: Officials at Suvarnabhumi International Airport have drawn up a contingency plan to cope with ‘possible’ flight delays ‘if’ the runway and taxiway are ‘closed’ during maintenance work over the next two months. The repair work is due to begin this Friday (March 3). Officials have asked airlines to reserve more fuel to cover delays while waiting to land. General…
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Asian black bear’s fall to death ‘explained’
THAILAND: A member of the team responsible for sending an Asian black bear back into nature said yesterday that the animal’s fatal plunge from a helicopter was an “unavoidable accident caused by sudden turbulent weather”. Thanatip Chaiyos, a volunteer photographer, was part of a mission to move the five-year-old bear back to the forest, which ended tragically last month, sparking…
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Road-raging Phuket teen biker to pay up
PHUKET: An ‘angry teen’ seen kicking, screaming and pointing at a Honda Jazz on a video earlier this week in Kamala was charged and ordered to compensate the car owner. Phuket Gazette reporters contacted Capt Prasert Thongprom of Kamala Police yesterday to follow up on the ugly incident that took place on Saturday (story here). The parents of the teen…
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Phuket Police hunt for love-struck stabber
PHUKET: Police are on the lookout for five men allegedly involved in stabbing and killing a Myanmar man at a Patong laundromat yesterday morning. The incident is believed to have been prompted by a ‘love triangle’. Lt Sirinat Cherdchutrakulthong of Patong Police received reports of the incident at about 3:45am. “Blood was splattered on the floor of ‘Dry Cleaning World’,…
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Phuket bus, six-wheeler in rainy head-on collision
PHUKET: The driver of a tour bus in Phuket was injured after the front of his vehicle was ripped off in a head-on collision with a six-wheeler this afternoon. Capt Ekkarat Chatpai of Wichit Police received the report at about 2:30pm and arrived at the rain-drenched Muang Thong junction with Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers. The bus was being driven by…
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Phuket receives B800k for marine debris management
PHUKET: Coastal provinces in Thailand have been given a budget for marine debris management after Thailand was ranked as the sixth worst marine polluter in the world by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP). The UNEP is an agency of the United Nations that coordinates its environmental activities and assists developing countries in implementing environmentally sound policies and practices. Region…
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British man dies on Phuket snorkeling trip
PHUKET: A British man died on a chartered yacht anchored near Koh Racha yesterday afternoon. Lt Chanat Hongsithchaiyakul of Chalong Police received a distress call from the yacht asking for rescue teams at about 1:30pm. “We found the victim, Graham Weds, unconscious on the floor. He had a wound on his head and was not breathing,” said Lt Chanat. Rescue…
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Video: Angry teens terrorize family after a ‘beep’
PHUKET: A video featuring teen bikers terrorizing a family of three in Kamala went viral yesterday afternoon. The Facebook clip shows two teen-aged kids on a motorbike driving dangerously close to a Honda Jazz, ordering its driver to stop. The one riding pillion was silent, while the other looked visibly angry, kept on pointing at the car and then kicked…
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Finance: Key areas investors must watch out for
PHUKET: Trump has been in office less than a month and already some of his most strident critics are acting as if it’s the end of the world. However, what investors need to remember is the fact that Trump faces an extremely hostile national/Washington DC press along with plenty of opposition from within his own government (such as Federal bureaucrats…
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Phuket 96-year-old found hanged at home
PHUKET: An elderly local was found hanging by a nylon rope in his house in Thalang last night. The victim, 96-year-old Pracha Kruepanich, had been discharged from Vachira Phuket Hospital six days ago and was believed to have been stressed by health issues. “We found Mr Pracha’s body hanging by a rope tied to a metal hook at the back…
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Opinion: Rethinking the power generation strategy
PHUKET: Recent protests against construction of the proposed coal burning electricity generating plant in Krabi is a classic case of the NIMBY (‘Not In My Back Yard’) phenomenon, and one which is also seriously testing the government’s resolve over the public’s right to protest. It is difficult to believe that the year is 2017 and we are still burning coal,…
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British expat burglar arrested in Phuket
PHUKET: An elusive British serial burglar, who has been on the run from police for at least two years, was arrested yesterday in connection with another series of burglaries in Phuket. Charlie Machin, 54, was apprehended at his rental house in Soi Na Koh, Cherng Talay, with 67 items stolen from at least three homes. He was previously wanted for…
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