5 foreigners, 2 Thais arrested at illegal nurseries and Muay Thai gym
Police arrested five foreigners and two Thai citizens at illegal nurseries and a Muay Thai training gym in Phuket on Friday, February 7.
Phuket Provincial Police officers raided three suspicious businesses in the province on Friday, including two nurseries in the Thalang district and a Muay Thai training gym in the Mueang district.
At the first nursery, police encountered 10 foreign children, aged between two and four years old, receiving services there. A Russian woman, identified only as Alina, admitted to being a shareholder of the nursery.
Officers also arrested a Thai shareholder, Boonthawee, who was present at the scene. The other shareholders were not present at the scene, and the Thai suspects involved were also absent.
The penalties issued against both individuals were not specified in the report. Following their action, they may be charged under Section 82 of the Child Protection Act for operating a nursery without a permit. The penalty includes imprisonment of up to one month, a fine of up to 10,000 baht, or both.
At the second nursery, Thailiving Kids, police found four foreigners taking care of 25 to 30 foreign children. The foreigners were identified as 43 year old Russian man Dmitrii Shumilov, 43 year old Russian woman Svetlana Ogai, 40 year old Belarusian man Koipish Alena, and 34 year old Kazakh woman Sergey Konon.
Illegal fight club
Dmitrii, who was the owner of the nursery, was charged under Section 82 of the Child Protection Act. He was also charged under Section 9 of the Foreigners’ Working Management Act for hiring foreign workers without a permit. This offence carries a fine of between 10,000 and 100,000 baht per illegal employee.
The other three foreigners were charged under Section 8 of the Foreigners’ Working Management Act for working without a permit. The penalty ranges from a fine of 5,000 to 50,000 baht, deportation, and a two-year ban from applying for a work permit in Thailand.
Another raid occurred at a Muay Thai training gym called Phuket Fight Club. The gym was found to be offering boxing training to both Thai and foreign nationals without a permit. Officers encountered 30 to 40 customers receiving boxing training at the gym during the raid.
A Thai woman named Paephethai was arrested as the managing director of the gym and charged under Section 120 of the Private School Act for operating an informal school without a permit. The penalty is imprisonment of up to one year, a fine of up to 20,000 baht, or both.
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