German tourist fined 1,000 baht for parking SUV on Phuket Beach

A German tourist found himself in hot water after his Bangkok-registered Ford Everest SUV was caught sand-handed on Ley Phang Beach, Phuket.

The vehicle, owned by a man known only as Simoen, was seized by authorities following reports circulated on social media and he was fined 1,000 baht.

When Cherng Talay Police arrived at the scene, they found the SUV stranded further up the beach, far from the waves. Tyre tracks left a sandy trail, suggesting the car had ventured onto the shore. Despite the glaring violation, the police statement left the mystery unsolved as to why the vehicle chose this sandy parking spot. Looks like someone took the “beach drive” concept a bit too literally

Also discovered at the scene was an older Toyota Corolla GXI, its front wheels deeply embedded in the sand. The police statement did not detail any action taken regarding this vehicle, apart from its subsequent removal from the beach area.

According to an eyewitness account from a construction worker based at a nearby camp, both vehicles had been driven onto the beach on the previous night by a Thai man. The Ford Everest had been brought in later in an attempt to assist in extricating the Corolla from its sandy predicament.

The discovery of a recently extinguished campfire among the nearby trees suggests that a gathering may have taken place in the area. However, no further details regarding the circumstances leading to this peculiar event have been made available, reported Phuket news.

In related news, Phuket residents and Thai netizens earlier this month condemned a foreigner for ignoring warnings from lifeguards and vendors and driving a sedan on Kamala Beach.

A Thai man shared the video of a black sedan, a Toyota Camry Hybrid, on Kamala Beach on Facebook on April 1.