Phuket News
Phuket news, politics, business, tourism, and nightlife—stay updated with breaking stories, events, and expat updates from Thailand’s top island destination. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Phuket news source.
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Man slain in Krabi, jealous lover suspected
PHUKET: Krabi Police suspect a 19-year-old man was slain because he had become embroiled in an affair involving a jealous lover. Chokechai Ruksamun, from Thung Yai District in Nakhon Sri Thammarat, was found dead in a roadside ditch in Krabi’s Khao Phanom District on Saturday morning. He had been shot once, in the forehead. “We found an abandoned Honda Wave…
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Body with head wound found floating near Phuket port
PHUKET: An investigation is underway after a man’s body was found floating at the Yod Duangporn fishing port in Rassada yesterday morning.The body bore a 10cm wound to the scalp, stretching from the middle of the forehead to the top if the head, said Lt Col Watcharapong Praiphun of the Phuket City police.“The man was wearing a medallion with Mon…
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Phuket taxi driver pleads guilty to abducting, sexually assaulting Chinese tourist
PHUKET: The illegal taxi driver charged with abducting and sexually assaulting a Chinese teen tourist on May 17 (story here) entered a plea of guilty to all charges at Phuket Provincial Court this morning. Paitoon Kruain, 32, initially told the court he was innocent of the crimes, but changed his plea to guilty after a robust challenge from the judge.…
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Race for adventure
PHUKET: Adventure racing is a sport that is rapidly capturing the imagination of sporting and adrenaline junkies in Thailand and around the world. These non-stop races, ranging in length from 4-8 hours, require teams to run, trek, mountain bike and paddle, while navigating a course through the wilderness. Likened to an expedition with a stopwatch, adventure racing requires teamwork, perseverance,…
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Phuket FC come to stalemate with Ayuthaya’s ‘Ancient Warriors’
PHUKET: More than 3,000 Phuket FC fans endured yet another disappointing draw last Saturday evening at Surakul Stadium, watching their side come from behind a two-goal deficit to Ayuthaya FC to seize a single point in league play. The match was both sides’ 26th of 34 scheduled matches in the Yamaha League One (YL1) 2013 season. Ranked 7th in the…
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Phuket party thieves arrested with B1mn of stolen goods
PHUKET: Two hedonistic thieves who robbed a liquor store and drove off with their loot in the back of the store’s truck have been apprehended with over a million baht of loot from an extended stealing spree around Phuket. Undercover officers first located Ekkachai “Ek” Sae Kang, 33, on a soi off Sakdidet Road, and he led them to his…
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Baby’s body found at Phuket garbage depot
PHUKET: The body of a dead baby girl was found yesterday at the Karon trash-separating facility.Capt Channarong Prakongkua of the Karon Police told the Phuket Gazette, “One of the trash collectors said he was separating trash at the garbage depot at around 5:30pm, when he opened a plastic bag and found the tiny corpse.“It was a baby girl with the…
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Phuket braces for more underpass traffic jams at Tesco junction
PHUKET: Motorists who have seen the road blocks placed on the median strip in front of Tesco-Lotus on the bypass road (map here) need not fear about long traffic jams at that intersection just yet, the Phuket Gazette has been told. Phuket Highways Office Director Samak Luedwonghad confirmed to the Gazette that there are no plans to block the road…
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Phuket cobra gunned down in village standoff
PHUKET: Rescue workers in Thalang, in the north of Phuket, last night were forced to shoot dead a meters-long cobra after frantic attempts to remove it from a tree within a workers camp failed. Kusoldham Foundation rescue workers were called to the camp, located in Baan Lipon, Srisoonthorn, at 10:30pm by Somneuk Jaturapushkul, the village headman’s assistant. “Villagers were afraid…
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Chinese tourist comatose after jet-ski, speedboat collision in Phuket
PHUKET: A Chinese tourist remains comatose after being seriously injured in a collision between the rented jet-ski he was riding and a paragliding speedboat at Patong Beach today. Rescue workers and police were called to the beach at about 11am. “We arrived to find Shen Baocheng, a 27-year-old Chinese tourist, already pulled from the water by lifeguards,” said Lt Thawatchai…
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Human Rights Commission Rohingya-shooting report due “this month’
PHUKET: The National Human Rights Commission of Thailand (NHRC) yesterday confirmed that the report on the case of the Royal Thai Navy opening fire on Rohingya refugees off the coast of Ranong in February, will be concluded this month. During the shooting, naval personnel allegedly killed at least two refugees fleeing arrest. The report will be handed over to Prime…
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Two Frenchmen and a Thai busted for stealing in Karon
PHUKET: Two Frenchmen and one Thai woman have been arrested after being caught stealing booze and snacks from a local chain of convenience stores in Karon.The arrests followed reports of three people working together to shoplift at three different outlets of the Bamboo store franchise all on one day – Thursday.Their modus operandi was to have one of them distract…
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New goal for Phuket FC – Survival
PHUKET: If there was any hope left for Phuket FC to still get promoted after their home-draw last Wednesday (August 21) to 2nd placed Air Force, then it was all but relinquished with an away-loss the following Sunday night (August 25) to 3rd placed Singhtarua FC. Played in front of an energetic “Klong Toei Army” crowd at the PAT Stadium…
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Rise in Phuket metered taxi fares to thwart cab cheats
PHUKET: Taxi fares are set to rise in Phuket in an attempt to thwart the illegal-taxi trade and to provide legitimate taxi drivers with a decent standard of living. “We will increase taxi fares as part of our campaign to solve the problem of taxi-driver cheats in Phuket,” said Phuket Vice Governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada. “If the standard fares rise, taxi…
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Krabi killer manhunt moves to Koh Lanta
PHUKET: Police are scouring the tourist island of Koh Lanta, across Phang Nga Bay from Phuket, in their efforts to arrest double-homicide fugitive Samran “Khui” Suetrong. Samran is wanted for shooting dead his stepson’s wife, Siripan Noorod, 24, and her 19-month-old son Autthakorn Noorod, at their home in Krabi’s Khao Phanom District on Monday night (story here). A warrant for…
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Ao Chalong Yacht Club Sailing School to host Open Day
PHUKET: On Sunday September 8 Phuket’s ACYC Sail School is holding an “open day” event, starting at 10am. Club members will be taking kids and adults sailing in the Open BIC dinghies and taking bookings for their “dinghy sailing program”. There will also be kayaks to use, mirror dinghy and tasar sailing and onshore games – including a bouncy castle!…
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Phuket Special Report: One fateful night at the Longhorn Saloon
SPECIAL REPORT POLICE promptly arrested three Thai musicians for the stabbing murder of American tourist Bobby Ray Carter Jr and the assault of his 27-year-old son in Krabi four weeks ago yesterday. Since then, however, the case has slowed to a crawl. A trial date has yet to be set, police have yet to press formal charges and all three…
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Burmese Rambo stabbed in Phuket slap flap
PHUKET: A man humiliated by a slap on the head in front of a group of people stabbed his assailant four times, sending him to the hospital. The event transpired after an evening of drinking at a Burmese workers’ camp behind Phuket Simon Cabaret in Patong (map here). After work yesterday evening, a 30-year-old man known as “Rambo” got together…
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Grimes brothers take on tough international field – Phuket Sports
PHUKET: The Grimes brothers have had a fairly busy summer with their racing schedules, having took part in the Rotax Invitational Thailand race, which was held in conjunction with the fourth round of the Thailand Rotax Max Challenge at Bira International Kart Circuit, just south of the Bangkok.The Rotax Invitation race was held for the first part of the weekend.…
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Phuket kratom arrests continue as nation ponders decriminalizing the leaf
PHUKET: Three Burmese men were arrested in Thalang yesterday for possession of kratom leaves. Their arrest follows the felling of a kratom orchard in Patong three days ago and precedes a meeting of the Narcotics Control Board, Food and Drug Administration, Public Health Ministry and National Police next week about whether to decriminalize the leaf (story here). The arrests yesterday…
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Phuket Court orders media blackout on Swedish murder trial
PHUKET: Officials at Phuket Provincial Court today ordered a media blackout on the ongoing trial of Swedish nationals Tommy Soderland and Sebastian Ljung amid concerns that the media was influencing witness testimonies. The two men are on trial for the alleged murder of Maksim Schantz in Phuket in 2011(story here). “We have seen at least one story in the media…
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Phuket expats corralled by new immigration rule for passports
PHUKET: Officers at Phuket Immigration are calling for all foreigners whose passports are set to expire within the coming year to ensure they are issued new passports and apply – and are issued – new long-term permits-to-stay* before their current permits expire. The call follows a new regulation issued by the Immigration Bureau on August 13 (click here), explained Lt…
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Phuket party thieves loot liquor store
PHUKET: Police are on the lookout for the suspects who stole 12 kegs of beer, two cartons of cigarettes and 10 bottles of whisky from a liquor store in Baan Lipon, in Phuket’s northern district of Thalang.They even stole the store’s pickup truck to make off with the party essentials, reported police.So far, officers are stumped for clues.“We have checked…
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Human bones found in Phuket could bolster sea gypsy land claims
PHUKET: Department of Special Investigation (DSI) officers have found human bones in the sea gypsy settlement in Rawai that may help bolster the gypsies’ claim to have lived on the land for generations. Establishing long duration of residency is a key element in the gypsies’ fight against private investors who have already won court orders to evict some villagers from…
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Patong bag-snatcher tracked by phone, caught in Chalong
PHUKET: Police arrested a construction worker in Chalong on Tuesday after tracking a phone stolen during a bag-snatch in Patong.The suspect confessed to conducting a series of bag-snatchings in Patong after losing his job due to his drug habit, police said.Lt Col Somsak Thongglieng led fellow Patong Police officers to arrest Worakiet Sriwong, 32, originally from Mae Hong Son in…
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Chief vows to boost patrols to protect Phuket divers
PHUKET: The chief of the Fishery Management Center in Krabi has vowed to bolster patrols at Phuket dive destination Shark Point after photos surfaced of a gill net being dropped over the protected marine area when divers were in the water.“To ensure diver safety, we will increase the frequency of our patrols in the area to prevent any type of…
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Aldhouse pleads guilty to Phuket murder charge
PHUKET: Lee Aldhouse, the British kickboxer extradited from the UK to face murder charges in Phuket, today entered a plea of guilty to murdering former US Marine Dashawn Longfellow in Rawai three years ago. The plea was entered after Judge Montri Saroj, speaking via a court translator, reminded Aldhouse that a guilty plea would likely “help” commute a possible death…
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Two thieves “tagged’ on Phuket City Police Facebook page
PHUKET: Phuket City Police have arrested suspects in two crimes after posting CCTV images of the men on their Facebook page. The first crime took place on August 5, when Tippayo Pho’s room on Phun Pol Soi 2 in Phuket Town was robbed of a 35,500-baht MacBook and a black Lenovo laptop valued at 33,300 baht. Police collected CCTV footage…
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Sporting Tips: Balance; lifting and pushing the limits
PHUKET: Thanyapura Sports & Leisure Club (TSLC) boasts some of the best sporting facilities in Asia, if not in the world and coaching staff to match. The Phuket Gazette caught up with TSLC’s Tennis Head Coach Roger Cochrane, Fitness Manager Brian Finniss and Aquatics Head Coach Randy Simon to provide tips to “push the limits”. Ensuring good balance – Roger…
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Phuket resort staff receive lifeguard training to stave off tourist drownings
PHUKET: Amid concerns over the high number of drownings in recent years, the Phuket Marine Police are providing lifeguard training to staff at hotels and resorts in Patong.The officers are also recruiting more volunteers from Patong’s hospitality industry to join a network of people trained to swiftly report crimes.The two-day training program at the Patong Resort Hotel ended yesterday. “A…
Phuket is a province in the south of Thailand. Phuket's beaches face the Andaman Sea allowing the west coast beaches fantastic sunsets right throughout the year. If you're looking for news in Phuket, go to thethaiger.com/phuket Or follow our instant news in our Facebook pages.
The good news is that Phuket is famous for its foodie scene with an enormously diverse range of local and international foods - Phuket and southern favorites, street food along with international choices catering for the 12 million visitors to the island each year. Thaiger follows Phuket news and information 24 hours a day with regular updates.
Phuket is only 'just' an island with a 300 metre bridge linking it to Thailand's mainland. We're always reporting in the news that the channel beneath is frequently dredged to maintain Phuket's status as an island. On the other side of Sarasin Bridge is the Province of Phang Nga.
Getting to Phuket is easy as the island has land, air and sea connections. Phuket is also used as a take-off point for local island trips as Thailand's largest island is surrounded by over 30 pristine islands. Koh Phi Phi and the famous Maya Bay are always in the news and would be the best known of the island's just off Phuket's shores.
Phuket is an island and a province. It's the largest island in Thailand – 48 km north to south, 21 km east to west.
It's about 20% smaller, in area, than Singapore but much less densely populated. Whilst the island nation of Singapore boasts a population of nearly 6 million, Phuket has a permanent population of around 400-450,000 (but varies a lot with the influx of tourists and a workforce that is always changing). Most of Phuket remains jungle and tropical rainforest despite an acceleration of development over the past 20 years.
Unlike some of Thailand's other popular islands (that are in the Gulf of Thailand), the news is that Phuket is located in the Andaman Sea.
Phuket is 878 km north of the equator.
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