South Thailand News

Southern Thailand news, Phuket news, Koh Samui news, and Krabi updates—stay informed on business, tourism, and local events from Trang, Songkhla, Yala, and beyond. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Southern Thailand news source.

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  • Thailand’s 34 billion baht railway plan to boost trade and tourism

    Thailand’s 34 billion baht railway plan to boost trade and tourism

    The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) is pushing for an 80-million-baht budget to conduct a feasibility study for a new double-track railway linking Hat Yai in Songkhla to Sungai Kolok in Narathiwat. The massive 34.59 billion baht project aligns with Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra’s policy to enhance railway efficiency, improve connectivity between Thailand and neighbouring countries, and stimulate border trade,…

  • Russian man rescued after car crashes into tree, suspected drugs found

    Russian man rescued after car crashes into tree, suspected drugs found

    A Russian man crashed his sedan into a tree at the side of the road in the southern province of Phetchaburi, sustaining serious injuries. A packet of white powder, suspected to be a drug, was found in his possession. A video shared by Channel 8 shows rescuers, police officers, and residents in Phetchaburi attempting to retrieve the 38 year old…

  • Thai man shot near penis in jealousy over karaoke bar girl (video)

    Thai man shot near penis in jealousy over karaoke bar girl (video)

    A Thai man shot attempted to shoot another man’s penis at a karaoke bar in the southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat on Wednesday due to jealousy after his favourite bar girl paid too much attention to the victim. The shooting took place at about 11pm on Wednesday, January 29, frightening partygoers and workers at the karaoke bar. The gunman,…

  • Illegal work hub: 17 foreigners arrested in island raids

    Illegal work hub: 17 foreigners arrested in island raids

    Police in Surat Thani have swooped on illegal foreign workers across three of Thailand’s most popular tourist islands, arresting 17 foreign nationals and one Thai citizen in a sweeping immigration raid this week. Led by Surat Thani immigration officers, police, and local officials, the raids targeted Koh Samui, Koh Pha Ngan, and Ko Tao, following reports of foreigners running unregistered…

  • Illegal Russian, Estonian building workers arrested on Koh Pha Ngan

    Illegal Russian, Estonian building workers arrested on Koh Pha Ngan

    Thai Tourist Police officers arrested a Russian man and an Estonian man for illegally working at a construction site on Koh Pha Ngan, an island in the southern province of Surat Thani. The Commissioner of the Tourist Police Bureau, Saksira Phueak-aum, recently launched a crackdown on illegal foreign workers on Koh Pha Ngan, leading to a thorough and continuous investigation of…

  • New Thai team to tackle Deep South conflict amid growing violence

    New Thai team to tackle Deep South conflict amid growing violence

    A new government team dedicated to peace negotiations will be formed to address the ongoing conflict in the Deep South, as announced by Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai. Phumtham stated that the leader of the new team has yet to be decided. The choice could involve reappointing the previous team or opting for a new one, contingent on a comprehensive…

  • Thai couple arrested for swindling millionaire out of 21 million baht

    Thai couple arrested for swindling millionaire out of 21 million baht

    Crime Suppression Division officers arrested a Thai couple for deceiving and swindling over 21 million baht from a millionaire in the southern province of Yala. The couple, 36 year old Kanpathitcha and 46 year old Ammarin, were arrested at their home in the central province of Samut Prakan yesterday after operating their scam against the female victim in Yala for…

  • Thai hotel owner returns wedding ring lost 5 years ago to Norwegian guest

    Thai hotel owner returns wedding ring lost 5 years ago to Norwegian guest

    A Thai hotel owner kept her promise and returned a wedding ring to a Norwegian guest who had forgotten it at her hotel in the southern province of Krabi five years ago. The Thai Facebook account สมศักดิ์ เตบบุตร (Somsak Tebboot) shared the story of his family member, Warunee Khundee, owner of Bliss Resort on Koh Wang Beach in Krabi, on Sunday,…

  • Thai police arrest migrants en route to Malaysia in smuggling bust

    Thai police arrest migrants en route to Malaysia in smuggling bust

    In Songkhla, police in Chana district apprehended 10 illegal migrants from Myanmar and two Thai drivers as they attempted to travel to Malaysia in search of employment. The arrests were made yesterday evening, January 25, by a team comprising immigration and highway police, who intercepted a Honda sedan and a Mitsubishi Pajero on a local road in tambon Taling Chan.…

  • Thai woman arrested over online job scam in Pattani

    Thai woman arrested over online job scam in Pattani

    A 22 year old Thai woman was arrested in Pattani province for her involvement in an online job scam yesterday, January 24. She claimed she was forced to open bank accounts by a Chinese criminal gang and detained in a casino. Police Major General Witthaya Sribunsroek, acting provincial police chief, ordered Police Colonel Phongpanot Chuakaew and Police Captain Kiattisak Boonthong…

  • 7 rangers injured in Narathiwat monastery bomb blast

    7 rangers injured in Narathiwat monastery bomb blast

    In Narathiwat’s Ra-ngae district, seven military rangers sustained injuries following a bomb explosion at a Buddhist monastery pavilion yesterday, January 23. The rangers, from Ranger Company 4511, were patrolling to ensure the safety of local officials attending a subdistrict administrative organisation meeting. The improvised explosive device was concealed in the pavilion and detonated during the rangers’ rest stop, according to…

  • Russian man throws son overboard in Phang Nga, leaving boy dead

    Russian man throws son overboard in Phang Nga, leaving boy dead

    A Russian man allegedly threw his 13 year old half-Thai, half-Russian son out of a speedboat in the sea off the southern province of Phang Nga on Wednesday, January 22, resulting in the boy being struck by a propeller and subsequently losing his life. Workers on the speedboat alerted officers from Kuraburi Police Station to the pier in the Kuraburi…

  • 3 orangutans destined for Bangkok seized in smuggling bust

    3 orangutans destined for Bangkok seized in smuggling bust

    Three orangutans were seized in Chumphon’s Mueang district yesterday, January 22 while en route to Bangkok. These animals were discovered in a pickup truck driven by 63 year old Winai (surname withheld), with 45 year old Kalaya in the front passenger seat. The orangutans, classified as endangered species under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), were contained…

  • Inmate escapes Chumphon prison, manhunt underway

    Inmate escapes Chumphon prison, manhunt underway

    An inmate serving a prison term for a drug-related offence has escaped from Huai Klung temporary prison in Wang Tako subdistrict, Lang Suan district, Chumphon province, sparking a search operation. The escape occurred around 3pm, yesterday, January 20, and seven hours later, the fugitive remains at large. Prison officials, alongside police from the Lang Suan Police Station, have mobilised to…

  • Jealous Thai man attacks wife and mother-in-law with pestle

    Jealous Thai man attacks wife and mother-in-law with pestle

    A Thai man consumed by a jealous rage surrendered to the police after brutally attacking his wife and mother-in-law with a pestle. The source of his anger and jealously? His wife always dressed nicely for work. The 32 year old Sujittra escaped her abusive husband, Thanakrit, by travelling in her neighbour’s truck from the southern province of Chumphon to seek…

  • Thai cop blames exhaustion after crashing into 2 motorcycles, injuring 3

    Thai cop blames exhaustion after crashing into 2 motorcycles, injuring 3

    A Thai police officer in the southern province of Narathiwat blamed work-related exhaustion after crashing his sedan car into two motorcycles, resulting in three injuries. One of the victims is in critical condition. The accident was reported to officers at Chanae Police Station at about 5.12am on Saturday, January 18. The suspect, who was wearing a police T-shirt, identified himself…

  • Southern Thai temple seeks UNESCO World Heritage status

    Southern Thai temple seeks UNESCO World Heritage status

    Natural Resources and Environment Minister Chalermchai Sri-on is set to propose that Wat Phra Mahathat Woramahawihan in Nakhon Si Thammarat receive support to pursue UNESCO World Heritage status. The proposal is expected to be presented to the Cabinet next Tuesday, January 21. Apichat Sakdiset, the Minister’s adviser, revealed that the National Committee on the Convention Concerning the Protection of the…

  • Drug-addicted Thai man steals pickup to impress teen crush

    Drug-addicted Thai man steals pickup to impress teen crush

    A drug-addicted Thai man stole a welfare pickup from an officer of the Public Works and Town & Country Planning Department in the southern province of Chum Phon to impress a woman he had a crush on. The official, Prasart Kraiwilat, filed a complaint at Mueang Chumphon Police Station after losing the car, which belonged to his workplace, the Department…

  • ‘Stay away’ leaflets target PM’s visit in Yala slammed as fake news

    ‘Stay away’ leaflets target PM’s visit in Yala slammed as fake news

    Reports of ominous warning leaflets telling citizens to stay away from Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra during her visit to Thailand’s southern border provinces have been branded misinformation by local officials. The alleged leaflets were said to have been distributed at key locations in Yala City, including the Yala Central Mosque, Old Market’s Soi 5, and the Jaru Community near Dhamma…

  • PM perfects ‘Salaam’ greeting on helicopter to Muslim south

    PM perfects ‘Salaam’ greeting on helicopter to Muslim south

    Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra prepared for a visit to Thailand’s southern Muslim-majority provinces by practising the universal Islamic greeting, “as-salaam alaykum” (peace be upon you), aboard an air force helicopter. Assisted by Justice Minister Tawee Sodsong, the PM repeated the greeting several times to perfect her pronunciation. “I practised this earlier too, but I want to get it just right.”…

  • Thai man demands 24 million baht from BMW driver who kills his wife and 2 kids

    Thai man demands 24 million baht from BMW driver who kills his wife and 2 kids

    A Thai man is demanding 24 million baht in compensation from a BMW driver who was speeding when she crashed into his family’s motorcycle, killing his wife and two children on a road in the southern province of Chumphon in November last year. The 52 year old Thai mother, Yenjit, and her two children, Boonyanuch and Krittamate, lost their lives…

  • PM Paetongtarn to visit southern provinces amid recent bombings

    PM Paetongtarn to visit southern provinces amid recent bombings

    Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra will visit the southern provinces of Pattani, Yala, and Narathiwat tomorrow despite recent bombings in the region, as confirmed by Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai. Phumtham, who is also with the defence ministry, yesterday, January 14, addressed two bomb incidents: one in Ano Ru subdistrict, Mueang district, Pattani, which injured six paramilitary rangers on Monday morning,…

  • Father and son Border Patrol Police killed in Narathiwat attack

    Father and son Border Patrol Police killed in Narathiwat attack

    A tragic incident occurred in Narathiwat yesterday when two Border Patrol Police officers, a father and son, were killed in an attack involving an explosive device and subsequent gunfire. This violent event took place on the Sri Sakhon-Lubo Yuering Road near Ban Ai Kue Tae in Si Banphot subdistrict. Police Colonel Phakawat Wansanuk, head of Sri Sakhon Police Station, and…

  • Forks of fury: Woman seeks justice after nightspot stabbing drama

    Forks of fury: Woman seeks justice after nightspot stabbing drama

    A Thai woman is seeking justice after being accused by a group of nearly 10 women of pouring water over them before they attacked and stabbed her in the back with a fork at a nightclub in the southern province of Songkhla. The 24 year old victim, Tar, brought the matter to Channel 7 after the police failed to update…

  • Former Thai inmate jailed for rape arrested for repeated assault

    Former Thai inmate jailed for rape arrested for repeated assault

    Police arrested a 64 year old former Thai inmate for the rape of a 70 year old woman in the southern province of Trang on Monday, January 6. The victim, 70 year old lady called Iad, filed a complaint with the Bang Khlong Teng Police Station following the assault, which occurred at 2pm on January 6 while she was on…

  • Bomb blast near TK Park Pattani injures six officers

    Bomb blast near TK Park Pattani injures six officers

    A bomb explosion occurred in a side alley near TK Park, central Pattani, injuring six volunteer officers. The incident happened at 8am today, January 13, just 20 metres from the Mueang Pattani Police Station. The assailants had hidden the explosive device in a vehicle parked in front of a row of shophouses, causing damage to nearby buildings. Residents expressed alarm…

  • Foul play: Krabi cops rescue footballers from scam agent’s offside trap

    Foul play: Krabi cops rescue footballers from scam agent’s offside trap

    Krabi Provincial Tourist Police officers swooped to help an Egyptian and a Yemeni football player after they were deceived by a scam agent who lured them to Thailand and defrauded them of 45,000 baht. The victims, 26 year old Yemeni Majid and 25 year old Egyptian Ali, sought help from the Tourist Police after their mobile phone was stolen while…

  • Crash course: Official in hot water over personal joyride in govt car

    Crash course: Official in hot water over personal joyride in govt car

    A provincial administrative organisation officer in Chumphon province is under scrutiny for allegedly using a government vehicle for personal purposes, leading to a car accident. The SUV, a black Nissan Terra, was reportedly regularly used as a personal vehicle by the officer without any official insignia. The incident occurred following a politician’s birthday party in Mueang district, Chumphon around three…

  • Road rage: Trucker clash ignites over middle finger in Songkhla

    Road rage: Trucker clash ignites over middle finger in Songkhla

    A roadblock and a rude middle finger gesture led to an altercation between a Thai truck driver and another man on a road in the southern province of Songkhla. Facebook user Ting Chukamnued shared videos of the altercation on the road on January 7, with a caption that read, “Thanks to the owner of the videos. Let him know that this…

  • Fake policewoman wanted for swindling 400,000 baht from man

    Fake policewoman wanted for swindling 400,000 baht from man

    Officers at Mueang Narathiwat Police Station in southern Thailand are searching for a woman who impersonated a policewoman and swindled over 400,000 baht from a Thai man by falsely claiming she was pregnant. The victim revealed to officers at Mueang Narathiwat Police Station that he met the suspect, 21 year old Fatina Nanta-ariyakun, on a dating application at the end…