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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Man charged with trafficking Rohingya refugees may face rape charges
PHUKET: One of five Rohingya who escaped the Phang Nga Shelter for Children and Family is waiting for doctors to confirm her claims of being raped, for three consecutive nights, by the human trafficker that had promised to get her and her two daughters safely to Malaysia.The alleged rapist, Koreemura Ramahatu, 26, is only facing human trafficking charges so far,…
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Young sailors get own Raceweek
PHUKET: Talented young sailors are getting anxious to show their seniors how sailing is done, with an inaugural Junior Phuket Raceweek to be held on the day before the 10th anniversary of the island’s premier Phuket Raceweek regatta concludes. Organized by Media Business Services (MBS) and co-hosted by Regent Phuket Cape Panwa and Panwa Beach Resort Phuket, the one-day youth…
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Wrestling action at Saphan Hin
PHUKET: The 2013 Asian Junior Wrestling Championship was held at Saphan Hin’s 4,000-seat Indoor Sports Complex last weekend. Nearly 400 wrestlers from 20 countries competed at Free Style, Greco Roman and Female wrestling. The event was open to 17 to 18-year-old wrestlers, but participants under the age of 17 could compete if organizers received written permission from their parents. Thailand…
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Wimbledon: Prestige and drama
PHUKET: RAFAEL Nadal’s blistering return to tennis from injury means that the top four male tennis players in the world will compete at Wimbledon this year – Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Roger Federer.Rafael Nadal enters Wimbledon playing some of the best tennis of his career. The Mallorcan spent seven months out with a knee injury and watched…
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Body of tortured, executed man dumped near Phuket school
PHUKET: Police are trying to establish the motive behind the torturing and execution of a man whose body was found in Koh Kaew, north of Phuket Town, yesterday morning.Col Sien Kaewthong of the Phuket City Police named the victim as Niwat Si-urai, 37.Police believe Mr Niwat was killed eight hours before his body was found by 52-year-old local resident Chalerm…
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VIDEO REPORT: Officials confirm high-flying monk not on Buddhist business
PHUKET: If renowned monk Luang Pu Nenkham is in Phuket, it is not on temple business, the Phuket Gazette confirmed yesterday.Luang Pu Nenkham is wanted for questioning after being filmed on board a private jet while sporting brand-name sunglasses and a Louis Vuitton bag. Chatpawit Jinapong, Director of the Phuket branch of the National Office of Buddhism, told the Gazette…
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Phuket Airport security staffer arrested for stealing $900 from Aussie tourist
PHUKET: Police arrested a baggage security worker at Phuket International Airport on Thursday after the officer was found to have stolen AUS$900 from an Australian tourist’s carry-on bag while it was passing through the x-ray machine.Tah Chat Chai Police arrested Uraiwan Yhobkhaan, 34, from Ranong, at her rented accommodation in Sakoo at about 9:30am.“Australian tourist Andreas Paolo Clappis reported the…
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Can Phuket host an F1 race?
PHUKET: The proposed Bangkok Formula 1 Grand Prix has been scuppered by a new law prohibiting racing in the city’s historic quarter. Strange? Well, Phuket looks like the leading contender to host a Thailand GP, if it goes ahead, and rumours have for years abounded of a track in the north of the island. Other Thai destinations have been mooted,…
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Phuket Police defend action over Russian gun threat YouTube video
PHUKET: Phuket’s top-ranking police officer Maj Gen Choti Chavalviwat called a press conference yesterday to announce that he has ordered an investigation into the posting of a YouTube video which he says damages the image of Phuket and Thailand The 2.16 minute video (click here) shows a Thai man using a gun to threaten a Russian man, kick him once…
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Russian, Belgian tourists drown at Phuket beaches
PHUKET: Two tourists drowned within half an hour of each other yesterday on the west coast of Phuket. In both cases, red warning flags had been posted on the beaches. Belgian Laurent Jacques Leopold Wanter, 43, was pulled from the surf at Laem Sing Beach, north of Patong at 3:30pm. Despite efforts by lifeguards to resuscitate him, Mr Wanter was…
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Phuket Town loan shop employee shot in holdup
PHUKET: Police are hunting for a man who robbed a motorcycle refinance shop in Phuket Town yesterday morning and shot one of the employees in the leg. “Before the robbery, three of us were checking a customer list,” said Somruedee Sriwichai, 26, who works at the money lenders on Kra Road (map here). “We saw a man park his bike…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Brazil mass protests; Israel accused of child torture; Pope cleared of Falklands role; Greek politics in ruins
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Brazil hit by largest protests yet Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Brazil’s biggest protests in two decades intensified on Thursday despite government concessions meant to quell the demonstrations as 300,000 people took to the streets of Rio de Janeiro and hundreds of thousands more flooded other cities.Undeterred by…
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PLTO chief demands Phuket Airport Bus service start rolling July 1
PHUKET: The Phuket Land Transport Office (PLTO) chief insisted today that the Phuket Airport Bus “hop on, hop off” service needs to be in gear and serving tourists by July 1. “The first airport bus route, which will go to Patong, must be launched by July 1,” PLTO Chief Terayout Prasertphol told the Phuket Gazette today. “The bus owner told…
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Police suspect heroin overdose in Phuket gas station death
PHUKET: An unidentified man died shortly after taking a hit of heroin in a Phuket gas station today. Witnesses saw the man park his motorbike near the men’s toilet and then rush into one of the four stalls. After a short period of time he toppled out of the stall dead, said Sakol Krainara of the Phuket City Police. Police…
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Phuket local set to skipper Sansiri in world’s oldest yacht race
PHUKET: In a world first for Thailand, Sansiri PLC today announced they are supporting Phuket local and member of Ao Chalong Yacht Club Mr Patinyakorn Buranrom to become the first-ever Thai sailor to skipper a yacht in a major international ocean yacht race, the TRANSPAC 2013. Mr Patinyakorn, an accomplished sailor, will compete in the longest of the two oldest…
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Alleged international fraudster caught at Phuket airport
PHUKET: Bangkok Immigration Officers at Phuket International Airport on Tuesday detained a 55-year-old Chinese national who is believed to be behind a multi-million-baht international fraud.Liu Benyue was taken into custody at the airport by Bangkok Immigration and Chinese authorities.“We found Mr Liu in front of the main terminal waiting to pick up his son,” said Assawin Naksawat, Chief of the…
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Gone fishing: Man snags Siamese crocodile at Phuket pond
PHUKET: An elevator technician who went night fishing in central Phuket on Tuesday thought he had caught a monitor lizard.But when he got to his house, he discovered he had manhandled a meter-long Siamese crocodile and brought it home on his motorbike.Charee Pattangtanang, 31, went fishing with a friend, Wanchai Hansopa, at their usual spot – a lagoon behind The…
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Chinese killed by speedboat at popular Phuket day-trip destination
PHUKET: A Chinese tourist bled to death after being severely cut by a speedboat propeller at Phi Phi Island yesterday afternoon.Chen Peng, 37, jumped from the boat when the engine was still on and the propeller moving, the speedboat’s owner, Chairang Weerakij, told police.The propeller slashed Mr Chen’s legs and stomach. He was taken by speedboat from Pileh Bay to…
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Phuket Gazette World News: Syria pro-rebel alliance UK, US, to meet; Suu Kyi to battle Myanmar Constitution; Kosovo envoy exits Serbia after 48 hours
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– World news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Myanmar constitution likely to dash Suu Kyi’s presidential hopes Reuters / Phuket GazettePHUKET: Her adoring compatriots believe democracy champion Aung San Suu Kyi is destined to become Myanmar’s next president. But don’t bet on it.A year ago, the Nobel Peace Prize winner was feted at home and…
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Phuket Gazette Thailand News: FDA to torch B10bn of illicit drugs; DSI closes in on supercar duo; White elephant won’t be coming; Jet-setting monk missing
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community FDA ceremony to torch 3.4 tonnes of seized drugs The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will burn 3.4 tonnes of illicit drugs worth Bt10 billion as part of the country’s 42nd official illicit-drug incineration ceremony in Ayutthaya’s Bang Pa-in Industrial…
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Phuket birthday fight ends in stabbing death
PHUKET: Two men were stabbed in a fight at a live-music venue near Chalong Circle early this morning. One of the men died; the other is expected to recover from his wounds.Police have arrested one suspect and are searching for four more.Officers received the report of the stabbing at 3am. When they arrived at Saraphanpleng bar on Patak Road, about…
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Gaping hole in Patong street blocked off, partially filled
PHUKET: Despite what the Director of the Department of Rural Roads Phuket office told the Phuket Gazette yesterday (story here), officials jumped into action to barricade a giant hole in Phang Muang Sai Kor Road in Patong after two motorbike riders found themselves over their heads in water and their motorbikes marooned at the bottom of the pit. The hole…
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US Embassy consular outreach in Phuket
PHUKET: The Consular Section of the American Embassy in Bangkok will hold an Outreach Visit at Le Meridien Phuket Beach Resort in Karon tomorrow, June 20. Consular staff will be available from 8am to midday to provide services on: • Passport renewal applications (US$110 or 3,300 baht for adult passports, US$105 or 3,150 baht for a child’s passport). • Notarial…
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Thailand News: Songkhla ranked fourth for human trafficking; Car tax scam; Jet-setting monks
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH– Thailand news compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Songkhla ranked fourth highest in human trafficking The Nation / Phuket GazettePHUKET: The Royal Thai Police revealed that Songkhla ranked fourth in terms of areas most at risk for human trafficking crimes at 642, after Bangkok’s 1,108, Chumphon’s 997 and Prachuap Khiri Khan’s 848 locations.This report prompted…
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Aussie envoy thrusts weapons in Phuket into the spotlight
PHUKET: The Deputy Head of Mission at the Australian Embassy in Bangkok, Jonathan Kenna, yesterday placed the carrying of weapons on the streets of Phuket into the spotlight at a meeting with the Phuket Governor. “I told the governor that the safety of the tourist is the most important issue,” Mr Kenna, speaking in Thai, told the press following a…
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Chinese tourist drowns off Phuket
PHUKET: A Chinese tourist on holiday with friends in Phuket drowned this afternoon while on a day trip to Koh Racha Yai, about 25 kilometers south of Phuket. Capt Wuttiwat Liang-boonjinda of the Chalong Police named the victim as Li Ran, 28. Ms Li was travelling with five friends who joined about 40 other tourists for the trip to Racha…
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Video Report: Man in pink raincoat robs Phuket Family Mart
PHUKET: A man wielding a knife and wearing a pink raincoat jumped over the counter of a convenience store in Thalang early this morning and made off with the contents of a cash register.Police responding to a call at 3:45am found the two female employees unharmed at the Family Mart at the entrance to Baan Lipon School in Srisoonthorn.One of…
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Phuket still on the map at TTM+ 2013
PHUKET: The island is still a top tourist hub in Southeast Asia, with a wide variety of hotels, resorts and hospitality-related businesses representing Phuket at 13th annual Thailand Travel Mart Plus 2013 (TTM+ 2013), held at the IMPACT Exhibition Hall in Bangkok recently. More than 800 delegates arrived from around the region to network with the 420 hospitality related organizations…
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Phuket storm topples marquee at festival, man crushed by speakers
PHUKET: A Phuket Town motorbike taxi driver died after strong wind toppled a marquee covering the stage at Saphan Hin last night, sending speakers crashing down on him. Police and rescue workers arrived at the 10th Annual Southern Prison Products Fair (story here) at about 7:45pm to find Muhammad Poksakul, a 62-year-old motorbike driver at the nearby Phun Pol Night…
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Phuket’s DJ Doris out of ICU
PHUKET: Paul Norris, Phuket’s renowned “DJ Doris” on Phuket Island Radio 91.5FM, is out of intensive care and recovering at Bangkok Hospital Phuket. Mr Norris suffered a head injury in what is believed to have been a motorbike accident in Patong early Saturday morning. He was rushed to Patong Hospital by rescue workers. However, he remained unconscious and was transferred…
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