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.
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‘One Night In Bangkok’. The song, 35 years later
PHOTO: Doi Kuro, Bangkok 1980 When ‘One Night In Bangkok’ was released in 1984 it was an unlikely hit- the opening song from a (at the time) little-known stage pop-opera called ‘Chess’. The song made Number 1 in South Africa, West Germany, Switzerland and Australia, and Number 3 in Canada and the United States. It has remained a staple of…
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Thai Immigration bristles about TM30 revolt as it copes with PR disaster
The TM30 form, as well as the associated TM28 form, have now become a huge public relations liability for the Thai Immigration Department. The more questions asked, and the more explanations by well-intentioned Immigration officials, the more confusing the whole matter becomes. If the policy is intended to make Thailand safer and make foreigners feel more secure, the opposite is…
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Australian bailed bikie boss refused entry into Thailand
SCREENGRAB: 9news.com.au The leader of an Australian outlaw motorcycle gang, Mick Murray, was turned around at the border in Thailand, despite his bail conditions allowing him to leave Australia for travel. The Comanchero bikie gang president, facing more than 100 fraud charges, had his bail conditions varied by the Melbourne Magistrates Court last Wednesday so he could travel to Thailand…
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Nine Chinese criminals rounded up for extradition back to China
FILE PHOTO: Thai Immigration Chief Pol Lt-General Sompong Chingduang Nine Chinese nationals have been taken into custody after seeking refuge in Thailand, wanted by Chinese authorities for alleged crimes in China. Thai Immigration officials report that the nine have caused damages valued around 5 billion baht to the Chinese government. Immigration police chief Pol Lt-General Sompong Chingduang said the Thai…
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You’ve read the social media, now watch the TM30 debate in Bangkok – VIDEO
A panel of Thai and foreign experts and commentators came together yesterday to discuss the enforcement of immigration rules, government policies and concerns, and recent shifts in official procedures and attitudes. They attempted to clarify the TM30 reporting process, analyse its impact and discuss the future of this unpopular law. The speakers were… • Pol. Maj. Gen. Patipat Suban Na…
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Police look at cash rewards for information about illegal motorcycle racing
A representative of the Royal Thai Police Office says they’re considering offering cash rewards for anyone providing information leading to the arrest of people involved in the promotion or participation in motorcycle racing on public roads and highways. Matichon Online reported the offer yesterday. Royal Thai Police are discussing the legal ramifications about the offer of cash rewards for information about…
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Tollway company says ‘no’ to Bangkok motorway discounts
PHOTO: Thai PBS Expressway and motorway operators say there will be no further discounting of the country’s toll fees. Bangkok Expressways & Metro Public Company says the proposal by the new Transport Minister for expressway tolls to be cut by an average of 5-10 baht is not going to happen. The company claims they have already helped the government over…
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Couple cry foul after ‘turbo switch’ found in Bangkok taxi – VIDEO
PHOTOS & VIDEO: Facebook/Kaew Nutnaree A Bangkok couple has complained to police about a taxi driver ‘turbo charging’ their fare with the flick of a switch. Their story was told on the Facebook page “Kaew Nutnaree”. The couple arrived at Don Muang International Airport on Tuesday and caught a cab to take them to On Nut (Sukhumvit Soi 77). They…
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Bangkok woman hospitalised after she falls over and a cucumber ended up inside her
A 51 year old Thai woman was recently sent to hospital complaining of vaginal pain because she had a cucumber stuck in her ‘lady parts’. She told hospital staff that she ‘fell’ on the cucumber. She says she fell down in her house and a cucumber just happened to be on the spot she fell and it “simply slipped inside…
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12 year old ringleader admits to throwing huge rocks at cars
PHOTOS: Facebook/ฅนข่าว ต้นปราการ (Ton Kaow Ton Prakarn) A 12 year old ‘gang leader’ and his band of four other rock-throwers have been rounded up in Samut Prakan, just south of Bangkok. Facebook Page “Ton Kaow Ton Prakarn” reported the story. The Bang Phli Noi Police visited a home located in Bang Bo District at 2pm yesterday. They brought 5 youngsters aged…
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Father, mother and child found dead in back of car in Pathum Thani
PHOTO: Siam Rath The bodies of a husband, wife and young daughter were found in a car that had been parked in Pathum Thani’s Lam Lukka district overnight on Monday in what is believed to be a mass suicide. Pathum Thani is just to the north of Bangkok. Lam Lukka police station were alerted yesterday at 4pm that a car had…
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August 2 bombing suspects moved back to Bangkok as investigation continues
Two men suspected of involvement in the August 2 multiple Bangkok bombings have now been moved back to the capital after they were detained by police in the South. Police flew the pair back to Bangkok yesterday, where they remain in custody at Pathum Wan police station in central Bangkok. The two are suspects in the series of small blasts…
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Thailand aims to reduce road accidents by 50% in 2020
A laudable aim but probably unachievable. Thai transport authorities and police are aiming to reduce the rate of road accidents by half in 2020. They are aiming to meet the goal set by an international benchmark, participants of a national road safety convention held at Bangkok International Trade & Exhibition Centre. The aim has been set in previous years as…
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Survey says: Thai taxi users disagree with fare hike
“35% agree with the fare hike, reasoning that it could reduce the problem of taxi drivers refusing customers.” A Nida Poll reports that 81% of respondents are unhappy with the new taxi fares that will raise the immobile rate (sitting in the traffic) from 2 baht per minute to 3 baht per minute. The poll reveals the results of a…
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Police had a laugh but urged students to wear helmets next time
PHOTO: Facebook/Thanit BunBong The photo has been a favourite floating around social media. Police called these three students to the side of the road on Thursday after the young driver decided to wear a cooking pot as a helmet on his head. The incident was shared online by a Thanit BunBong saying that the police were initially confused by the…
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Chewathai launches seven new property projects in Bangkok despite slowdown
Listed property firm Chewathai says they are revising down their revenue target for this year from 2.8 billion to 1.6 billion baht after demand for residential projects has shown a slowing down in the first half of 2019. The company’s managing director Boon Choon Kiet made the announcement yesterday. Boon says Chewathai’s total revenue of 618.65 million baht in the…
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Thai weather man issues rain warnings for south and east
The Thai Meteorological Department has issued a warning to residents of eastern and southern provinces to brace themselves for heavy rains until Sunday. In its warning, issued at 5am today, the department said the rains would be unleashed by influences of the southwest monsoon across the Andaman Sea and the Gulf of Thailand, which is intensifying, and by a low-pressure…
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Lottery winner gets arrested for handing out free meth pills
PHOTOS: Workpoint News Congratulations. You’ve just won two grand prize Thai lottery tickets – a total of 12 million baht. So what do you do with the winnings? You distribute methamphetamine pills to your friends for free, of course. The Ban Paew police arrested the vegetable seller-turned local millionaire after winning the lottery ticket last year and turning his kind generosity…
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Bangkok bus passenger blows a fuse and stabs another passenger
PHOTO: khaosod.co.th A passenger has blown their fuse at a 25 year old busboy travelling near Khlong Toei in the capital. The passenger threw his ticket money away and started yelling at the busboy. Another passenger, witnessing the outburst, went to the aid of the busboy and was stabbed by the angry passenger before he fled the scene. The Tungmahamek…
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Flood warnings for six southern provinces, and provinces east of Bangkok
Forecasts for Phuket and Bangkok below… People living in six southern provinces, and some provinces east of Bangkok, are being warned to brace for possible flooding and flash floods due to heavy rain forecast until Sunday. The warning is due to the strengthening of the southwestern monsoon, which is looming over the Andaman Sea, the Gulf and the southern region,…
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Shortcuts on the way for motorists to bypass Lam Salee intersection in Bangkok
PHOTO: The Nation The BMA (Bangkok Metropolitan Administration) is looking for help from the Metropolitan Police Division 4 to find suitable shortcuts so motorists could avoid the notorious Lam Salee intersection. The Nation reports that BMA deputy governor Sakoltee Phattiyakul says the intersection has long been notorious for traffic snarls and the situation has just become worse with delays caused…
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Nine Bangkok bombing suspects in custody – Thai PM
PHOTO: Police cordoned off the area around two small explosions at the Chong Nonsi BTS and Mahanakorn Building The PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has announced that police now have nine suspects in custody in connection with the bombings around Bangkok last Friday. Speaking after the weekly Cabinet meeting, Prayut, also the Defence Minister, said there had been significant progress in the…
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Friday’s homegrown terror attacks in Bangkok – what we know
Police continue their investigations to unravel the people behind last Friday morning’s bomb blasts around Bangkok and the likely related case of two unexploded devices found outside Royal Thai Police HQ the night before. At this stage police acknowledge that the attacks were most likely more about gaining attention rather than hurting citizens or tourists although four people were slightly…
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Police seeking arrest warrants for more suspects in Friday’s Bangkok explosions
PHOTO: New Straits Times Police will seek warrants for the arrest of two additional suspects believed to be involved in the planting and detonating of four explosive devices at the government complex and in front of the Thai Armed Forces headquarters in Chaeng Wattana on Friday. Investigating police say they’ve now gathered all available footage from CCTV systems in the…
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800 media professionals laid off or contracts unfairly terminated
The National Union of Journalists Thailand says the media situation in Thailand is looking increasingly grim with around 800 media industry staff either being laid off or having had their contracts unlawfully terminated. A portion of the media professionals also say they were not sufficiently compensated, in violation of Thailand’s labour laws. Also, many said they had not been paid…
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Wat, who and why? Thai PM wants to bring monk Dhammajayo to justice.
Government opposition MPs are questioning the motives of the Thai PM to take over the reigns of the Department of Special Investigations. Some say it’s retribution for failing to being to justice the fugitive monk, and spiritual leader of the Wat (Temple) Phra Dhammakaya, Luang Por Dhammajayo. At least one advocate of the fugitive monk Dhammakaya is a government MP,…
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Minister books meeting to discuss 120 kph speed limits on Thai motorways
PHOTO: Thai Residents The new Thai Transport Minister Saksiam Chidchob will be chairing a meeting in the middle of August to discuss the proposal to raise the speed limit of private cars on Thailand’s four-lane highways to 120 kilometres per hour. Part of the proposal says that cars travelling in the far-right lane of a four-lane highway must also keep…
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New Parliament House opens for sittings of MPs next week
PHOTO: Artists impression of a completed Parliament House not he banks f the Chao Phraya. Only the parliamentary meeting halls are complete for use at this stage The Thai Parliament speaker Chuan Leekpai is ordering tight security at the new Parliament House in Bangkok’s Kiak Kai area for an inaugural meeting today. He declined to answer when asked by reporters…
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Bangkok authorities roll out voice-guides for vision-impaired at zebra crossings
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) says they will install voice-guide equipment at 54 more zebra crossings on major roads next year to assist people with eyesight disabilities to cross roads and add additional safety at the crossings. The BMA’s Traffic and Transport Department says the department is pursuing a plan to install voice guides at all 522 zebra crossings in…
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Immigration police spruik more successes with their biometrics systems
Immigration police have arrested three more unwanted foreigners for crimes committed in Thailand. The arrests follow people stopped at Immigration queues trying to enter the country last week. In reporting on the success of the biometric systems, police say the new systems helped identify the people and crimes they been allegedly involved in, even though the process of taking all…
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