Bangkok News

Bangkok news, politics, business, crime, and nightlife—stay updated with breaking stories, events, and expat updates from Thailand’s capital. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Bangkok news source.

  • Sponsored

    Top digital marketing and SEO agency: Why brands choose Convert Cake

    A strong digital presence is a must for any business chasing market share and growth in this day and age. But turning that ambition into tangible results? That takes the right partner. And if you’ve been looking for a top...

  • “Transfer to an inactive post’ – punishment or paradise? | Thaiger

    “Transfer to an inactive post’ – punishment or paradise?

    Bangkok’s recent spate of police “embarrassments” (cops caught committing crimes) has led to a spate of “transfer to an inactive post” (paid vacation) notices. If most of us commit a crime, we can expect the cops to show up and – very basically – throw us in jail. But rich people rarely go to jail, and cops, even less so.…

  • Bangkok’s Jodd Fairs market is relocating | Thaiger

    Bangkok’s Jodd Fairs market is relocating

    Famous night market Jodd Fairs in the Rama 9 area of Bangkok will be relocating to Ratchada at the end of the year. The new night market is expected to open in January 2024. In November 2021, the famous Talat Rot Fai Ratchada (Train Night Market Ratchada) which permanently closed during the Covid-19 pandemic made a comeback under the rebranded…

  • Bangkok’s New Chinatown comes back to life as Chinese tourists flock back | Thaiger

    Bangkok’s New Chinatown comes back to life as Chinese tourists flock back

    Bangkok‘s New Chinatown is once again buzzing with life as Chinese tourists flock back to the bustling neighbourhood after a two-year lull due to the pandemic. Stretching from Huai Khwang intersection to Pracha Uthit Road, New Chinatown (not to be confused with the original Chinatown in the Yaowarat area) is a hub of activity with eateries, shops, and street stalls…

  • Protestors have EM tags removed | Thaiger

    Protestors have EM tags removed

    A Bangkok court agreed to the request of five anti-establishment protesters Wednesday to have their electronic monitoring (EM) tags removed. The protesters are all currently out on bail pending trials on lèse majesté and sedition charges. The group sought the court’s permission to have the EM tags removed after the court decided that one could be removed from actor Savika…

  • Woman reveals unnerving parking lot drama with MP at Parliament | Thaiger

    Woman reveals unnerving parking lot drama with MP at Parliament

    Anna Songserm, a TikToker from Thailand, recently shared on social media an unnerving experience she had while visiting the Parliament building in Bangkok. After a frantic search for a parking spot, Anna was directed to park her car in a lot that was closed off by a traffic barrier. Upon her return, she found that her car’s tyres had been…

  • Taxi driver stabs passenger on road in Bangkok | Thaiger

    Taxi driver stabs passenger on road in Bangkok

    A passenger stabbed by a Bangkok taxi driver appealed to the Thai media to highlight his case after he accused the police of procrastinating over the case despite having enough evidence to arrest the accused. The victim succeeded in his quest and the taxi driver was arrested yesterday. The victim, Pratarn Seesook, contacted the crime news department of the MRG…

  • Commuters criticise ‘dangerous’ Bangkok Apiwat Station’s lack of lights | Thaiger

    Commuters criticise ‘dangerous’ Bangkok Apiwat Station’s lack of lights

    Commuters took to social media to criticise officials involved with the construction and opening of the “dangerous” Bangkok Apiwat Central Station. Two weeks after the official opening of the station, formerly known as Bang Sue Grand Station, roads around the station remain dark due to the absence of street lights. The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) promised that street lighting…

  • More trees in Bangkok could cut heatwave mortality by a third | Thaiger

    More trees in Bangkok could cut heatwave mortality by a third

    Planting more trees in Bangkok to lower summertime temperatures could decrease deaths directly linked to hot weather and heatwaves by a third. Increasing tree cover to 30% would shave off 0.4 degrees Celsius locally, on average, during hot summer months. Thai PBS World tells us that of the 6,700 premature deaths attributed to higher temperatures in 93 European cities during…

  • British couple in Bangkok raise money for son born with rare illness | Thaiger

    British couple in Bangkok raise money for son born with rare illness

    A British couple living in Bangkok is raising £70,000 (2.85 million baht) to support the care of their five-month-old baby boy Finley who was born with an extremely rare illness. Finley Phillips was born with a rare chromosomal disorder that affects just 10 people worldwide. In the womb, Finley developed a duplication of chromosome 14 which has resulted in craniosynostosis…

  • Extorted Taiwanese actress’ friend told to pay fine or go to jail | Thaiger

    Extorted Taiwanese actress’ friend told to pay fine or go to jail

    The Singaporean friend of the Taiwanese actress, who says she was extorted by police, says he was told to pay a fine or go to jail. The man was found to be in possession of illegal vaping devices that he had bought in Bangkok. The 29 year old man, who identifies himself as “Sky,” spoke to Bangkok Post at the…

  • Opportunist thief arrested for stealing Louis Vuitton bag at Bangkok mall | Thaiger

    Opportunist thief arrested for stealing Louis Vuitton bag at Bangkok mall

    An opportunist, light-fingered thief was arrested yesterday after she stole a Louis Vuitton handbag from a sexy model while she was trying on clothes at the Terminal 21 shopping mall in Bangkok. The clothes store owner, in Terminal 21 of the Asoke area of Bangkok, filed a complaint at Lumphini Police Station that a customer’s Louis Vuitton handbag was stolen…

  • Bangkok public bus condemned by Singaporean tourist | Thaiger

    Bangkok public bus condemned by Singaporean tourist

    A Singaporean tourist condemned Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA) public buses after the driver of a bus in the capital closed its door and drove off as she was about to climb onboard. A Singaporean woman posted a video on her TikTok account, njwah, complaining about the service of a public bus in Bangkok. She wrote captions in Thai and…

  • Transwoman complains after being banned by Bangkok bar | Thaiger

    Transwoman complains after being banned by Bangkok bar

    A Thai transwoman highlighted gender inequality on social media after she was banned from entering a Bangkok nightclub by a security guard for wearing a sexy costume. The transwoman posted a video of the moment she had a row with a security guard at a nightclub in the Rama 9 area of Bangkok on TikTok. In the video, she said……

  • Bail applications denied for detained protestors | Thaiger

    Bail applications denied for detained protestors

    Bail applications by ten detainees have been denied because most of them were charged with serious offences during protests last year, ranging from possession of explosives and arson to inciting unrest. Protesters gathered in front of the Criminal Court on Sunday morning, where a man who had been there for several days collapsed and died. According to Thai PBS World,…

  • Human bones found in rural area of Bangkok | Thaiger

    Human bones found in rural area of Bangkok

    Police are baffled by the mysterious discovery of human bones along Kanchanaphisek Ring Road in a rural area of Bangkok. The bones were just found in the agricultural Khan Na Yao district of the capital city, but it is suspected that they may have been resting there for nearly a year. The discovery of mystery bones was made by the Ruam…

  • Police escort officers face criminal probe | Thaiger

    Police escort officers face criminal probe

    After a social media post showing a Chinese woman getting a VIP police escort from Suvarnabhumi Airport caused an uproar, the officers involved are facing a criminal probe. Thai police have come under fire for alleged misconduct. A committee is being established to investigate and potentially take disciplinary or criminal action against four officers who are accused of providing illegal…

  • British Bentley plugs into Thailand’s luxury car market with record sales | Thaiger

    British Bentley plugs into Thailand’s luxury car market with record sales

    British elite motor vehicle maker Bentley plugged into Thailand’s luxury car market last year and recorded record sales. Most orders (81) placed in the Land of Smiles were for hybrid vehicles. The Flying Spur Hybrid was the most sought-after model, making up 49% of orders in Thailand with 40 cars sold. The Bentayga Hybrid followed closely behind with 35 orders and…

  • Gang of deaf suspects arrested in robberies | Thaiger

    Gang of deaf suspects arrested in robberies

    Authorities made an unusual arrest in Bangkok after a recent wave of robberies when they took four deaf suspects into custody. Police in Bangkok’s Sutthisan district arrested a gang of four deaf individuals for their involvement in a string of burglaries. According to Siam Rath, the police received a report of trespassing from a caretaker of a property in the…

  • Bangkok pub raid can’t find anything illegal to bust | Thaiger

    Bangkok pub raid can’t find anything illegal to bust

    Drug raids have become common around Thailand, but some are definitely less fruitful than others. Sometimes a club is open only during legal operating hours, following all the rules, and packed with law-abiding citizens. Despite receiving complaints from residents in the surrounding neighbourhood, police and army officers found nothing illegal in a recent raid in Bangkok. The raid on a…

  • Father Joe, Bangkok priest, celebrates 50 years of service | Thaiger

    Father Joe, Bangkok priest, celebrates 50 years of service

    Catholic priest Joseph H Maier – Father Joe – from the United States has been a Bangkok priest since the 1970s. This year is his 50th of celebrating mass in Bangkok’s slums. During his sojourn in the kingdom’s capital, he nursed HIV patients, saved children from the streets and provided an education to the very poorest. The slum celebrity has…

  • Bangkok taxi driver brawls with passenger in the street (video) | Thaiger

    Bangkok taxi driver brawls with passenger in the street (video)

    A fight broke out between a Bangkok taxi driver and a passenger in the middle of the street last night. The passenger allegedly tried to steal from the driver. In a clip circulating on social media, the cameraman shouts ‘Muay Thai!’ as a taxi driver, wearing a face mask throughout the whole fight, swings at the passenger and pushes him…

  • Drain collapses beneath Chinese tourist’s feet in Thailand | Thaiger

    Drain collapses beneath Chinese tourist’s feet in Thailand

    A Chinese tourist was walking on a pavement near the Ancient City in Samut Prakan near Bangkok yesterday when a drain cover collapsed beneath his feet. Luckily, the tourist only sustained minor injuries. The Facebook page ‘Samut Prakan News v2’ posted a photo of the distressed tourist sitting on the side of Sukhumvit Road next to a broken sewage drain…

  • Royal arsonist goes on hunger strike | Thaiger

    Royal arsonist goes on hunger strike

    The royal arsonist convicted of setting fire to a portrait of King Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida has gone on a hunger strike while awaiting an appeal. Food delivery rider Sitthichok Sethasavet was found guilty of defaming the royal family, arson, destruction of property, and violation of the Emergency Decree. He was sentenced to two years and four months in prison.…

  • Thai police seize 1.1 tonnes of crystal meth in just one week | Thaiger

    Thai police seize 1.1 tonnes of crystal meth in just one week

    Southeast Asia‘s synthetic drugs trade is booming with Thai police seizing over one tonne of crystal meth (“Ice”) in just one week. Police displayed the fruits of their hard work – 1.145 tonnes of seized methamphetamine disguised as Chinese tea – at the Narcotics Suppression Bureau in Bangkok yesterday. The crystal meth was produced in neighbouring countries and smuggled into…

  • Thieves steal 27 public defibrillators in Bangkok, Thailand | Thaiger

    Thieves steal 27 public defibrillators in Bangkok, Thailand

    Thai news outlet Drama-addict reported that 27 public Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) dotted around the streets of Bangkok, Thailand, have been stolen. In total, 262 AEDs are stationed all around the city to be used to help people experiencing sudden cardiac arrest. AEDs are life-saving, yet easy-to-use medical devices that can analyse the heart’s rhythm and, if necessary, deliver an…

  • Bangkok delivery driver nabbed robbing cars on the side | Thaiger

    Bangkok delivery driver nabbed robbing cars on the side

    A motorbike delivery driver in Bangkok was busted after police tracked him down and revealed him as a serial thief. The investigation started after a woman reported her car had been burgled earlier in the month. On January 13, a saleswoman named Saowalak reported a break-in of her car. It had been parked outside of the temple of Wat Traimit…

  • SRT plans to buy new train engines after viral video reveals new station swirling in smoke | Thaiger

    SRT plans to buy new train engines after viral video reveals new station swirling in smoke

    The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) announced plans to buy new engines for its trains after a viral video showed Bangkok’s new central train station swirling with smoke and air pollution. Banpong Station’s YouTube channel released a video on Thursday, January 19 of the new Bangkok Aphiwat Central Station full of smoke. The video caption said… “The first express train…

  • Pink Line monorail 95% complete, opening soon | Thaiger

    Pink Line monorail 95% complete, opening soon

    The Pink Line monorail project in Bangkok is expected to be completed this year, with construction currently 95% finished. Construction began in 2016 on the 53.5 billion baht public transit project. When it is finally opened, it will connect Khae Rai in Nontha Buri to Min Buri in east Bangkok. The Pink Line monorail Is hoped to bring some breathing…

  • You can’t ‘buy anything from the Thai police’ – PM’s Office | Thaiger

    You can’t ‘buy anything from the Thai police’ – PM’s Office

    The Thai government has denied any involvement in setting up an outrageous TikTok video that informed Chinese tourists that “money can buy anything from the Thai police.” PM’s Office Minister Thanakorn Wangboonkongchana insisted on Sunday he had not told police to provide any VIP services to any TikTok influencer. The pretty young tourist, named only as “Adele,” was given a…

  • Pakistani man caught smuggling 80,000 pills into Thailand | Thaiger

    Pakistani man caught smuggling 80,000 pills into Thailand

    A Pakistani man was arrested at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport on Friday after he attempted to smuggle a suitcase brimming with drugs from Pakistan into the Kingdom of Thailand. Airport security flagged down a suspicious suitcase from Karachi, Pakistan, found to contain a plethora of Type 2 and Type 4 psychotropic substances. In total, police at the airport seized 79,200 pills…