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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Chalong bomber investigation downgraded
CHALONG: The investigation into bombings that injured two Burmese workers and severely damaged three houses in Chalong on November 28 last year has been downgraded, Chalong Police Superintendent Col Chalit Kaewyarat has said.The announcement came during the Security Committee Provincial Monthly Meeting on Friday, when Col Chalit said that nearly eight months after the bombing there was still no strong…
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Mixed messages from tsunami tests
PHUKET CITY: Mock tsunami evacuations at Baan Laem Tukkae and Saphan Hin were staged on Friday and Saturday, but with voice announcements that could not be understood and firetruck sirens instead of the tsunami warning towers alarms.However, government officials have insisted that the “quiet” testing was intentional to avoid panic.The tests, on Friday in Baan Laem Tukkae and Saturday at…
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Phuket to have biggest aquarium in Southeast Asia
BANGKOK (The Nation): Ripley Entertainment, operator of Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum, plans to build and open a 2.1-billion-baht aquarium in Phuket within three years.The firm will enter into a joint venture with Thailand-based conglomerate Minor International Plc, the franchisee of the Ripley museum in Pattaya.The aquarium project will be Ripley’s second property in Thailand and its first aquarium…
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Beached dolphins have “slim’ chances of recovery
PHUKET: Two gravely ill dolphins are being treated at the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) after washing ashore in separate incidents – the first at Karon Beach yesterday and the second in Phang Nga’s Tai Muang District this morning.PMBC biologist Kongkiat Kittiwattawong told the Gazette that the first, a 40-kilogram female spinner dolphin (S. longirostris), washed ashore at Karon Beach about…
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“Farang’ robs Karon bank
KARON: Despite an intensive manhunt, police have yet to apprehend the Caucasian man who held up the Siam Commercial Bank branch on Patak Rd in Karon late yesterday afternoon, getting away with 420,000 baht in cash.At the monthly Phuket Provincial Security Committee meeting held at the ST Hotel in Phuket City this morning, Phuket Provincial Police Commander Maj Gen Decha…
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Krabi Airline to debut November 1
BANGKOK (The Nation): Soon to be Thailand’s newest carrier, Krabi Airlines is now being set up and plans to begin flight service to international destinations starting on November 1, just in time for the start of the 2007-2008 high season.Civil Aviation Department Director General Chaisak Angkasuwan said the airline, with four investors, including former Thai Airways International employee Kosol Vongsrisart,…
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Five major hotels to be re-branded
PHUKET: Three Phuket hotels will be renamed under the Central Group’s re-branding of its hotel and resort business, while another two will be taken over by the Marriott chain of hotels.Central Karon Village, Central Karon Beach Resort and Central Kata Resort will be renamed Centara Villas, Centara Karon Resort and Centara Kata Resort, respectively.Centara, the Central Group’s new hotel brand,…
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Night Station ordered closed
PATONG: Night Station discotheque, in Soi Sukhumvit on Rat-U-Thit 200 Pi Rd, has been ordered closed for 60 days for late trading and allowing minors entry to the club.Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit signed the order Thursday, and the closure went into effect last night. The club is ordered to remain closed until August 27.Kathu District Chief Khantee Silapa told the…
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Tsunami evacuation drills in Rassada, Phuket City
PHUKET CITY: The Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM-Phuket) will hold two planned tsunami evacuation drills over the next two days. The first will be at Laem Tokkae tomorrow morning and the second at Saphan Hin and parts of Rassada on Saturday morning.DDPM-Phuket Chief Aroon Kerdsom said the tests will be followed on July 25 by a regional testing…
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Phuket art gallery gutted by fire
PHUKET CITY: Firefighters were called to Phang Nga Rd this morning after flames engulfed the 111 Phuket Art Gallery building, destroying up to 50 paintings on sale at prices ranging from 10,000 to 50,000 baht each.A local resident alerted police and fire officers around 11:30 am after seeing smoke rising from the building, located behind the Sinthavee Hotel. Five fire…
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Rotting corpse found in Thalang
THALANG: Police made a grim discovery on Monday morning, when they found the badly decomposed body of an unidentified man lying in a ditch.A local fisherman alerted police of a sickening odor at Tambon Srisoontorn Village 1, where the body was discovered by Pol Lt Col Kritthana Putluecha and his team around 8:30 am.The victim, who suffered a fractured skull…
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Huge kratom bust in Thalang
THALANG: Police seized about 2,000 kilograms of kratom leaves and cut down kratom trees up to 15 meters tall at a house in Thalang last Thursday.In what is believed to be the biggest kratom bust in the district, officers raided the house in Tambon Sri Soontorn after obtaining a search warrant, applied for after an investigation led to a tip-off.Lt…
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Woman dies in Kata hit-and-run
KATA: Lamphun Kotpanna, 27, from Sakhon Nakhon, died last night after her motorbike was hit by a pickup truck on the steep hill near the Marina Phuket Resort.Sayan Thammapan, of the Phuket Ruamjai Rescue Foundation, told the Gazette, “She was riding her blue Honda Sonic motorbike on the hill in front of Marina Cottage Hotel in Kata, which has a…
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Police bust gang of motorbike thieves
PHUKET CITY: Police have busted a gang of motorbike thieves, including their leader, who have allegedly stolen about 50 motorbikes over the past four months.Col Nos Svettalekha, superintendent of Phuket City Police Station, told the Gazette, “The leader of the gang is Krittanai ‘Max’ Buapeng, 36, from Krabi. We have followed him for about nearly four months.” Krittanai was arrested…
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Chinese tourist drowns
PATONG: Strong waves claimed the life Chinese tourist Wing Wong, 40, who drowned at Patong Beach about 1:30 pm yesterday.Sub Lt Naruwat Puthawiro, duty investigator of Kathu Police Station, today told the Gazette, “He and his friends were swimming at Patong Beach. Although I have yet to question his friends, at that time there were strong waves. I suspect that…
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Beauty applied
PATONG: Twenty-four beauties from Southern Thailand on Sunday signed up at Jungceylon to enter the Miss Thailand World 2007 beauty pageant organized by Thai TV Channel 3 and BEC Tero Entertainment.The applicants, from 17 to 24 years old, came from as far as Trang, Surat Thani and Songkhla hoping to be named to be the most beautiful woman in the…
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Danish “Queen of Jazz’ to perform in Phuket
PHUKET: In a concert titled “A Touch of Jazz Romance”, the soulful voice of Katrine Madsen will waft over the audience at the Beach Club of the Kata Thani resort this Sunday evening, July 1. She will be backed by the popular Jesper Bodilsen Trio. The Phuket event is a sequel to the star’s concert at Bangkok’s Thailand Cultural Center on Saturday,…
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Toddler killed in botched burglary
RASSADA: A two-year-old girl and her nanny have died after their throats were slit in a botched burglary by two local youths yesterday eveningPhuket Deputy Police Commander Chalit Tinthanee last night announced that the attackers, a 15-year-old student at Phuket Technical College (PTC) and his 17-year-old friend, entered the house of PTC teacher Narisorn Phueng-rang in Baan Kabout about 5 pm.Once inside they were…
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Charoen told to vacate SorPorKor plots
BANGKOK (The Nation): The Supreme Court on Thursday upheld an Appeals Court verdict and ordered Phuket businessman Charearn Thavornwongwongse to vacate four plots of SorPorKor land for landless farmers covering roughly 16 rai in Kamala and Kathu Districts.According to the court, K. Charearn could no longer be considered a farmer because he owned various businesses.He is the Managing Director of…
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Dutchman arrested for office hold-up
PHUKET CITY: A down-on-his-luck Dutchman was arrested yesterday for the June 15 robbery of the management office at the Phuket Villa California residential development.The man, identified as Jeroen De Valk, 35, allegedly made away with 74,000 baht – but not before CCTV cameras recorded his motorcycle license plate number.On June 15, a man dressed in black walked into the offices of the…
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High and dry
PATONG: Six days after it washed up on the south end of Patong Beach, the 38-foot sailboat Sultan remains high and dry after several unsuccessful efforts to dislodge and re-float her.The Sultan washed up on the south end of Patong Beach during a strong storm about 1 am on Tuesday.Skipper Michael Wilson of the UK, who was asleep on the…
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Dutch ambassador to visit Phuket
PHUKET CITY: Dutch ambassador Pieter Marres will hold a reception for Dutch nationals only at the Royal Phuket City Hotel from 6 pm to 7:30 pm on June 29. Netherlanders will have the opportunity to meet Amb Marres and his wife, Josee. Also, from 2 pm to 4 pm, staff from the Netherlands Embassy Consular Section will be available for…
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Looking for beautiful Thai women
PHUKET: Girl watchers might want to pay a special visit to Jungceylon on June 24, when starry-eyed beauties from all over the southern region will converge on the second floor to apply for the chance to compete in the Miss Thailand World 2007 beauty pageant. The pageant, organized by Thai TV Channel 3 content provider BEC Tero-Entertainment, will determine which…
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Thieves cash in on dark and stormy night
PHUKET CITY: While storm winds whipped through Phuket City on Tuesday night, thieves made off with about 90,000 baht in cash after breaking into a Christian foundation at Phun Pol Night Plaza.Lt Col Ampolwat Saengrueng, duty inspector of Phuket Police Station, told the Gazette, “Burglars broke into the New Life Foundation at 74/123 Phun Pol Night Plaza. They scaled a…
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Beachcomber’s nightmare in Nai Thon
NAI THON: Police are hoping to establish the identity of a headless and badly decomposed human corpse discovered washed up on Nai Thon Beach late Tuesday morning. Sub Lt Thianchai Duangsuwan of the Tha Chat Chai Police Station told the Gazette the gruesome discovery was made at about 10:30 am on the stretch of beach in front of the Naithonburi…
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Beached Brit needs to float his boat
PATONG: Strenuous efforts by about 50 volunteers at high tide this morning failed to push the stranded 38-foot sailboat Sultan off Patong Beach. The boat’s cash-strapped British owner will now seek financial assistance from his embassy in an effort to re-float the vessel, which has drawn considerable attention from tourists visiting the beach.Sultan washed up on the south end of…
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Phuket shrines to make Chinese-style Jatukham amulets
PHUKET CITY: Three Chinese shrines on the island are joining forces to make Chinese-style versions of the popular Jatukham Ramathep amulet in order to raise money to build a 60-million-baht VIP wing at Vachira Phuket Hospital. A press conference was held at Pud Jor Shrine on June 18 to describe the amulet-making process and inform the public how to reserve…
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Brownnose bloodsucker
NAKHON RATCHASIMA: A man was admitted to Bua Yai Hospital on June 7 with complaints of abdominal pains, which he said were caused by a leech that crawled up inside his anus while he was trying to catch fish for his wife’s dinner. Nong Chingpho, 43, told doctors that he had intermittent stomach pains for about a month, ever since…
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Talisman tales
CHIANG MAI: With the craze for Jatukam Ramathep amulets still going strong, stories of miraculous survivals from shootings, stabbings, car crashes and other seemingly-dangerous events are a fixture in the Thai press at the moment. On June 1, one lucky 14-year-old in Rayong appeared in the pages of Thai Rath newspaper after he was left with only a small bruise…
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Thirsty thieves
KANCHANABURI: A man noted for his integrity, Acting Royal Thai Police Commissioner General Seripisut Temiyavej has spent the best part of his life fighting the twin scourges of crime and corruption. In an ironic twist of fate, however, Thailand’s top cop recently found himself the victim of a horrific crime when thieves broke into his riverside holiday home in Kanchanaburi…
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