News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. The Thaiger delivers the latest national news that matters.
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Second, lighter earthquake rattles Phuket
PHUKET: A second earthquake, measuring 3.2 in magnitude, shook Phuket just after noon today. The Thai Meteorological Department reported the quake as striking at 12:25pm, with its epicenter halfway between Phuket and Koh Yao Yai in Phang Nga Bay. It struck close to the epicenter of the 4.6 magnitude earthquake that occurred before dawn today (story here). The most recent…
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Boy, 5, killed in motorbike crash on Phuket bridge
PHUKET: A 5-year-old boy was killed after his 16-year-old relative crashed into the back of a car parked illegally on the Srisoonthorn Bridge, from Phuket to Phang Nga, yesterday afternoon. “The boy died instantly. However, his relative Cholnakorn Cheylangsad, 16, was still alive when we arrived,” Maj Santi Prakobpran of the Tah Chat Chai Police told the Phuket Gazette. Kusoldharm…
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Aussie lad gets head stuck on Phuket International Airport escalator
PHUKET: A 12-year-old Australian boy is safe after getting his head caught between an escalator handrail and a wall at Phuket International Airport yesterday evening. The boy, who the airport director declined to name, was travelling back to Melbourne after flying in to Phuket with nine of his family members to visit Khao Lak. “After checking in at Terminal 2,…
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UK election: Last chance for Cameron, Miliband to break deadlock
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community UK election: Last chance for Cameron, Miliband to break deadlock Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Campaigning in Britain’s most unpredictable election in a generation enters its final day on Wednesday with the two main parties level in most polls and neither on track to command a…
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Suspected human-trafficking victim’s body uncovered in Phang Nga
PHUKET: A suspected human-trafficking victim’s body was uncovered in a shallow grave north of Phuket in Phang Nga this morning. The discovery follows the news of police uncovering mass graves in the Thai-Malaysian border province of Songkhla last weekend (stories here and here). The badly decomposed body, believed to be that of a woman, was unearthed after officials launched a…
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Illegal pangolin traders killed in Krabi double-homicide
PHUKET: Police in Krabi are searching for at least three suspects in connection with a double-homicide of a couple who were engaged in illegally trading pangolins. The bodies of the married couple, Taweesak Janwiang, 41, and Jinda Janwiang, 43, were found with their hands bound and nylon ropes tied around their necks in a Tambon Huay Nam Khaw rubber plantation…
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Soldier nabbed for bag-snatch theft in Phuket
PHUKET: An army private and his friend were arrested in Thalang last night for bag-snatching. “We were able to identify the suspects from a description given to us by the victim,” Cherng Talay Police Superintendant Serm Kwannimit told the Phuket Gazette today. “The two suspects grabbed the victim’s bag and sped off together on a motorbike.” Private Chonlatea Krolek, 23,…
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Hotly contested Phuket land earmarked for public park
PHUKET: A plan by Patong Mayor Chalermluck Kebsup to transform an area of 69 rai of long-contested land near Tri Trang Beach into a public park received special attention last weekend. Maj Gen Intarat Yodbangtoey, adviser to Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister Petipong Pungbun Na Ayudhya, inspected the site on Saturday. Gen Intarat explained to the accompanying members of the press…
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Phuket officials probe return of jet-skis at Surin Beach
PHUKET: Marine officials are investigating reports that jet-ski operators have returned to Surin Beach, where the wave-riding machines are banned. The investigation, led by Phuket Marine Office Chief Phuriphat Theerakulpisut, follows recent reports and photographs of jet-ski touts bringing the machines onto Surin Beach, as well as allowing them to be driven dangerously close to swimmers. “I will have my…
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Cyclists injured in Phuket Town firework explosion
PHUKET: A firework injured four cyclists after it exploded in a crowd at the start line of a night ride in Phuket Town on Saturday. The four injured were taken to Bangkok Hospital Phuket for minor injuries and released within a few hours, confirmed one of the organizers of the Plukpanya Night Ride, who declined to be named. “We will…
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Phuket’s Chalong Marina given “final’ B172mn
PHUKET: The Transport Ministry has granted the Phuket Marine Office a total of 172 million baht in order to complete the seawall and marina in Chalong Bay. Transport Deputy Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith on Saturday revealed the news during his inspection of the facilities, which are currently under construction. “The Marine Department has approved 98mn baht to complete the final phase…
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46 condo units seized in UFUN raid
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community 46 condo units seized in UFUN raid The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Police seized 46 condominium units yesterday at a project on Sukhumvit Soi 66/1 in Bang Na in Bangkok that were bought by suspects in the alleged UFUN pyramid scheme. UFUN executives reportedly acquired…
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Three killed as car plows into cyclists
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Three killed as car plows into cyclists The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Three cyclists were killed and two others seriously injured when an alleged drunk driver crashed her car into their bicycle rally in Chiang Mai’s Doi Saket district yesterday morning. The tragedy happened on…
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Trafficking survivor says more than 500 killed in camps
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Trafficking survivor says more than 500 killed in camps The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Kuramia, a migrant, paid out 95,000 baht in ransom to save his nephew Kazim, who was being held at a border camp. But he never saw him alive. His nephew’s was…
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William and Kate eschew crowns for life with nappies
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community William and Kate eschew crowns for life with nappies Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: They are one of the most famous couples on the planet, one day destined to be Britain’s king and queen. But royal experts say what Prince William and wife Kate really want…
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Mayweather beats Pacquiao via unanimous decision
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Mayweather beats Pacquiao via unanimous decision Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Floyd Mayweather Jr. cemented his place among the pantheon of boxing greats by improving to 48-0 with a unanimous decision over Manny Pacquiao on Saturday in a fight that lived up to its immense hype…
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Mayweather vs Pacquiao “Fight of the Century’ to break records
** Fight of the century live, 10am Phuket time this Sunday ** PHUKET: Floyd Mayweather Jr and Manny Pacquiao weighed in for what has been labeled the ‘Fight of the Century’ on Friday, promising to deliver on the massive hype and give fans the excitement they deserve. What had been a subdued buildup to the most anticipated fight in decades…
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Six Baltimore officers charged in death of Freddie Gray
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Six Baltimore officers charged in death of Freddie Gray Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Baltimore’s chief prosecutor charged one police officer with murder on Friday and five others with lesser crimes in the death of a young black man who suffered a critical neck injury in…
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Rock-throwing teens surrender to police
PHUKET: Two teenagers surrendered to authorities yesterday after photos of them throwing rocks at a Swedish man’s car went viral earlier this week (story here). The teens – named by police only as “Yu”, age 15, and “Phong”, 16 – surrendered to Kamala Police Superintendent ML Pattanachak Jakkapan and Lt Col Sophon Borirak at about 4pm. “They said they were…
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Phi Phi tour boat oil dumpers charged
PHUKET: The captain and engineer of a tour boat anchored off Phi Phi Island have been charged with dumping oil into the sea after officials saw Facebook photos that had gone viral. Krabi Marine Police, the Krabi Marine Office and officers at the national park at Phi Phi yesterday called upon boat captain Karin Onkaew and engineer Kriangdet Polsakdet to…
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Autopsy results delay defer alleged baby rapist, killer trial
PHUKET: A delay in autopsy results has resulted in police having to defer bringing to trial the alleged rapist and killer of a 1-year-old baby boy who died in Phuket Town last month. Police launched a manhunt for Somsak Yakob after he called the child’s mother to tell her that her son had fallen to his death. He left the…
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Mass grave in Southern Thailand linked to human trafficking, say police
PHUKET: A mass grave near the Thai-Malaysian border in Songkhla was uncovered by Thai authorities today, reported Thai PBS. A total of 33 partially decomposed bodies, thought by police to be Rohingya migrants, have been identified. The area was previously used to hold about 200 to 300 Rohingya who were smuggled into the country, according to investigators, reported Thai PBS.…
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Rotary collects donations for Nepal, holds auction for local children
PHUKET: The Rotary Club of Patong Beach is collecting monetary donations for the victims of the recent earthquake in Nepal. “This relates back to how many people helped us during our time in need during the 2004 tsunami,” said Brad Kenny, president of the Rotary Club of Patong Beach. “The Rotary Club of Patong Beach had more than US$1 million…
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Foundation now accepting relief supplies for earthquake victims
PHUKET: The Thai-Nepalese Foundation is now accepting donations of relief supplies to aid the victims of the disastrous earthquake in Nepal, the foundation’s president confirmed today. Supplies being collected by the foundation include clothing, medicine, tents (family size), gloves and sanitary napkins. The death toll from last Saturday’s quake has risen to 6,204, The Nation reported today (story here). “If…
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Fire rips through shops on Phi Phi
PHUKET: Police believe that an electrical short circuit caused the fire that consumed 10 shops on Phi Phi Don today. The fire broke out in the tourist-dense area of Ton Sai, gutting restaurants, rental rooms, clothing stores and a tour company storefront. Nobody was injured in the blaze. “A house next to the group of connected buildings was burnt too.…
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Phuket aims to allow foreign-flagged superyacht charters
PHUKET: The Phuket Marine Office will table the idea of creating temporary chartering licenses for foreign-flagged superyachts, as Thailand pushes for the province to become a maritime hub for Southeast Asia. “There will be a public hearing, with an English-language translator, to discuss what legal measures need to be taken to ensure that Phuket becomes the destination in the region…
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Visionary dentist bridges gap in Phuket dental market
PHUKET: Medical tourism and the hordes of foreign customers it brings to Thailand and Phuket’s shores is on a steady rise, with the Tourism Authority of Thailand reporting more than 2.5 million international patients travelling to the Kingdom for treatments in 2012 and predicting an increase of 13% per annum. One dental clinic conglomerate, Dental Corporation Co Ltd, started filling…
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Finance: Exchange rate rigmarole
PHUKET: An issue most Phuket expats deal with in one form or another is exposure to some risk of fluctuations in currency exchange rates. Many earn money outside of the country and then need to convert that to baht for spending purposes. Offshore oil workers are a good example of this, and how best to deal with this situation can…
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PRBC seeks blood donations for monsoon season
PHUKET: The Phuket Regional Blood Center (PRBC) is calling for all qualified island residents to donate blood as the monsoon season – and the dangerous road conditions that come with it – rolls in. PRBC Chief Pornthip Rattajak said the month-long blood drive is being held to replenish blood supplies for the southwest monsoon season and in acknowledgment of World…
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Mysterious Brit burglar Charlie Machin still on the run
PHUKET: Karon Police are still trying to track down a British thief, known only by his alias ‘Charlie Machin’, who is wanted for robbing a Swedish man’s home of about 200,000 baht in valuables in March (story here). “We only have this name and a few pictures of him. All farang [Caucasians] look the same. It has been very hard…
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