Northern Thailand News
Northern Thailand news, Chiang Mai news, business, tourism, and culture—stay updated with breaking stories, local events, and travel insights from Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Pai, and beyond. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Northern Thailand news source.
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Police deny detaining or threatening woman who told PM to “retire quickly”
Police in the north-eastern province have denied an allegation that they detained a woman who told the Thai PM to, “retire quickly”. Following the incident, which occurred in the Udon Thani district of Ban Dung while the PM was visiting the forest temple of Wat Kham Cha Not, reports emerged that the woman had been taken to a police station…
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Penis park in Khon Kaen is urging visitors to hug a member
The Isan city of Khon Kaen is welcoming visitors to a unique tourist attraction: a park of giant penises. Traitep Dream Forest contains an area of the park called Thung Karjiew which translates roughly to Penis Paddock. The phallic park has been getting a lot of attention on social media and in Thai media, and some fear it may elicit…
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Tiger in Kamphaeng Phet on the loose for a fifth day
Of all the lost things someone could possibly be searching for, a tiger may be amongst the most unnerving. But today officials report that the search for Vichit, a 4 year old Bengal tiger continues for the fifth day. The cat wandered out of its habitat in the Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuary five days ago. The chief of the…
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Alcohol restrictions ease in some Nakhon Ratchasima districts, tourism scheme launches
Seven districts in the Isaan province Nakhon Ratchasima will be easing alcohol restrictions as a pilot tourism scheme launches. Restaurants that pass SHA stands will be allowed to serve alcoholic drinks until 10pm. Pubs, clubs, karaoke, entertainment venues, and massage parlors remain closed. According to the deputy governor Chusak Chunkoh, seven districts in Nakhon Ratchasima province, formerly knowns as Korat,…
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Six alleged drug traffickers killed in gunfight with Chiang Rai police
Six suspected drug traffickers shot and killed in a clash with army border patrol officers in Chiang Rai’s Mae Fa Luang district. Officers say the alleged smugglers were “fully armed” and were carrying more than 1.8 million methamphetamine pills. At around 4am yesterday, officers monitoring the border crossing by Myanmar’s Tachileik encountered 10 to 15 men. According to the deputy…
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Gold store robber in Khon Kaen wanted, 50,000 baht reward
A daring armed robbery of a gold store in Khon Kaen has resulted in a manhunt with authorities now offering a 50,000 baht reward for any information that leads to the capture of the thief. The robbery took place at a gold shop within a department store yesterday evening and was captured by a security camera. The footage shows a…
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Schools closed in north-east as shared transport blamed for Covid-19 outbreak
A Covid-19 outbreak has closed 2 schools in the north-eastern province of Ubon Ratchathani, with students and teachers quarantined. According to a Thai PBS World report, provincial health officials are blaming shared school vans for the spread of the virus. 24 students have tested positive and 295 other students and their teachers have been quarantined for observation. It’s understood a…
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Alleged Constitutional Court website hacker tracked down
A 33 year old man in Ubon Ratchathani was arrested today by the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau for allegedly hacking the Constitutional Court website on Wednesday. The man was arrested at his home in Warin Chamrab district of the Northeastern province after an investigation by the CCIB. The CCIB started an investigation immediately after the hack was reported by the…
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National park visits rising as tourists brave the cold weather
As Thailand reopens and tourism, both international and domestic, begins to grow, many tourists are turning away from chasing warm sunny beaches. An influx of tourists has been seen heading to some of Thailand’s chilliest national park destinations and attractions. In the northern province of Loei, the Phu Ruea National Park viewpoint, renowned for its beautiful sunrises, has seen many…
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Thailand now generating electricity at world’s biggest hydro-solar farm
As part of Thailand’s push to become a carbon-neutral country by 2050, the world’s largest hydro-solar hybrid energy farm has officially gone online and is now generating electricity. The solar farm floats atop the Sirindhorn Dam in Ubon Ratchathani and is as big as 70 football fields. The massive installation floats on Sirindhorn Reservoir along Lam Dom Noi River, about…
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UPDATED: 40 Covid-19 infections prompt closure of Mukdahan school
UPDATE: After earlier reports of an outbreak of 40 Covid-19 infections at Khamsoipitthayasan School in Mukdahan, the Communicable Disease Committee in the province quarantined and tested all 1,202 students and 72 staff and teachers. They took RT-PCR tests at 7 am and all 1,274 tests came back negative, with no confirmed Covid-19 infections. The whole school had been quarantined at Wat Phu…
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Disgraced cop Thitisan and 6 other officers charged in death-in-custody case
Disgraced police chief Thitisan Utthanaphon and 6 other officers have been charged in an investigation into the death of a man in custody. The victim, 24 year old Chiraphong Thanapat, died while under interrogation at a police station in the northern province of Nakhon Sawan in August. Video footage that showed Thitisan placing several plastic bags over the drug suspect’s…
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Police arrest 3 vans in Korat with 1.82 tonnes of marijuana
In Korat, the northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima, police found 4 men in possession of more than 1.8 tonnes of dried marijuana and arrested them. The arrest took place this morning according to the Provincial Police Region 3 commissioner. Police had ramped up patrols of the Mitrapap highway after receiving a tip that a large shipment of compressed marijuana would…
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Van packed with 39 illegal burmese workers stopped in Phichit
A tip-off led to police uncovering a van packed full of 39 illegal Burmese immigrants in the lower Northern province of Phichit. The van was stuffed tightly with 17 Burmese men and 22 Burmese women with one admitting that they had crossed the border illegally and were heading to Nakon Sawan to work at construction sites. The police in Phichit…
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Covid-19 clusters prompt lockdown in 3 Korat villages
In Nakhon Ratchasima, aka Korat, 3 villages in the Non Sung and Bua Yai districts are experiencing Covid-19 outbreaks causing a lockdown until early November. Ban Don Faek Moo 8 and Ban Faek Pattana Moo 15 in tambon Phon Songkhram and Khuem Muang village Moo 13 in Bua Yai district were ordered into lockdown. The lockdown was put in place…
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Man arrested after allegedly raping young girl 18 years ago
A fugitive for 18 years, police just caught up with a man accused of raping a young student 18 years ago. The 42 year old man was arrested in Bangkok after evading police for nearly 2 decades since 2003 when it is alleged that he raped a young girl in Phayao in the north of Thailand. The crime suppression division…
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PM Prayut visits Ubon Ratchathani province to see floods, dam
Continuing his tour of the provinces of Thailand affected by heavy rains and flooding, PM Prayut Chan-o-cha is visiting the Northeastern province on Ubon Ratchathani today to survey the water and flood management situation. The prime minister is visiting along with several other ministers including Minister of Energy Supattanapong Punmeechaow, Minister of Interior Anupong Paochinda, and Minister of Digital Economy…
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Family attempts to sell eyes and kidneys to save home and farm
After signing as a guarantor for a lifelong friend’s tractor purchase who defaulted, a man and his family in Ubon Ratchathani are trying to sell their eyes and kidneys to save his home and farm. The man, along with his wife and 2 sons, is currently walking 100 kilometres in the rain from their home to the provincial capital where…
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Man blames 50 million baht of withdrawals on adopted daughter
A 77 year old businessman in Phitsanulok discovered that 50 million baht was missing from his bank account and has accused his adopted daughter of stealing it. The money is claimed to have disappeared from 6 bank accounts without the man’s knowledge and he has now asked the bank for detailed statements to identify when and how the money was…
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Tham Luang, site of dramatic 2018 rescue, re-opens to tourists on Friday
A Thai cave complex, which came to the world’s attention during a dramatic rescue in 2018, will re-open to visitors from Friday. The Tham Luang cave, in the northern province of Chiang Rai, hit the media spotlight when 12 young footballers and their coach became trapped by floodwaters 3 years ago. The Bangkok Post reports that the cave complex, in…
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“The Rescue” – What really happened inside Tham Luang caves?
We all followed the events of the cave rescue. We think we know what happened. But we don’t. “The Rescue”, by directors Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, has peered behind the heroic narrative that was cultivated at the time of the Chiang Rai Tham Luang cave rescue in July 2018. 13 young men – 12 teenagers and their 24…
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Police volunteer arrested for assault, abduction of estranged wife
Last night police in Muang district of Buri Ram arrested a police volunteer accused of assault and abduction of his estranged wife after threatening her, handcuffing her and dragging her away from her relatives. While the woman was later set free, she suffered serious bruising on her body. The police volunteer is nicknamed Elephant and police picked him up at…
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Police raid Korat restaurant after curfew with live music, booze
In the northern province of Nakhon Ratchasima, 39 people were arrested as police raided a restaurant breaking several Covid-19 rules and restrictions. The raid took place last night in Muang district at around 10:30 pm. Health and administrative officials accompanied the police to the Lamer Restaurant & Karaoke on Sirinakhon Road where they found 28 customers inside and 11 staff…
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Family of Thai murder victim alleges affair with Swiss man’s wife
The family of the Thai man who was beaten to death in Udon Thani, allegedly by a Swiss man, has spoken up, saying they believe the killing was over a romantic affair. In previous reports, the Swiss national allegedly told police that he acted in self-defence after the Thai man had entered his home wielding a gun and demanded money. …
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Son of rape victim rebukes police for cancelling American suspect’s crime reenactment
Following the cancellation of the traditional re-enactment of his crimes, the son of the Thai masseuse who was raped in Khon Kaen, allegedly by 37 year old American Robert Gordon victim criticised the double standard of how police treated Gordon as a foreigner. The son and other relatives of the 45 year old masseuse that Gordon allegedly brutally beat and…
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Police say American man confesses to rape and assaults, blames drug use
The 37 year old American man now identified by police as Robert Andrew Gordon has allegedly confessed to police to committing rape and sexual assault. Police say Gordon told officers that his use of the illegal drug speed was the cause of his behaviour. According to the Deputy Commander of the Royal Thai Police, the man said he took the…
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American man arrested over alleged rape of massuese, attack of young girl
A 37 year old man was taken into custody, accused of brutally beating and raping a masseuse as well as assaulting and attempting to rape a 12 year old girl in an attack shortly after. The man, who was originally suspected to be Australian, has now been identified only as an American named ‘Robert’. He was arrested today on Soi…
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Police search for foreigner for rape of Khon Kaen masseuse
A manhunt is on for a foreigner accused of the assault and rape of a masseuse in a massage parlour in the Muang District of Khon Kaen. The man was described as wearing trousers and a pink T-shirt and driving a red motocross bike without license plates. He is suspected to be the same person who was aggressive and profane…
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Pickup truck falls 6 stories from 8th floor parking garage
In a bizarre accident in Nakhon Ratchasima that amazingly resulted in only 2 injuries and no deaths, a pickup truck smashed through a wall and plummeted 6 floors. The truck crash took place last night in Muang district on the 8th floor of a hospital parking building. The crash took place at about 7 o’clock in the evening at the…
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More than 3,000 houses affected by severe flooding in Chaiyaphum
Over 3,000 houses across 23 villages in the northeastern Thai province of Chaiyaphum have been affected by what is considered the most severe flooding in a century. Kittipong Thamsoparat, the Tambon Ban Phet Municipality mayor, says a massive volume of water has surged into the Bamnet Narong district by way of the nearby Thep Sathit district in Chaiyaphum, as well…
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