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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French man stabs himself with scissors at Hat Yai market
A French man stabbed himself with scissors at a market in Hat Yai district, Songkhla province, yesterday, September 4. His motive remains unknown. Officers from Hat Yai Police Station were called to investigate a shocking self-stabbing outside a chicken rice restaurant in Kim Yong Market at around 3.30pm. Rescuers from the Tong Sia Siang Teung Foundation also attended the scene.…
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15 year old Thai girl stabbed for viewing rival’s TikTok profile
A 15 year old Thai girl sustained an arm injury after being stabbed in a public park in the southern province of Phatthalung, allegedly over viewing a TikTok profile of her rival. Officers from Mueang Phatthalung Police Station were called to the park on Thun Bamrung Road in the Khuha Sawan sub-district at around 5.30pm yesterday, September 3. They found…
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Thai man shoots motorcyclist in Trang, mistaking victim for thief
A Thai man shot a motorcyclist, who was travelling behind him on a road in Trang province on Tuesday, September 2, claiming he mistook the victim for a thief. Monks at Rai Pru Temple in Mueang Trang district sought assistance from the Nam Phud Sub-district Office Rescue Foundation at around 7.30pm on Tuesday after the injured victim, 22 year old…
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Durian wholesaler shot dead in Yala’s Betong district
A mystery gunman fatally shot a well-known durian wholesaler at his business premises in Betong, Yala province. The incident occurred around 8.45pm yesterday, September 3, when Police Lieutenant Chatchai Channam, head of the special task force 444, was notified of the shooting. The victim, 68 year old Prasert Khananurak, known as Ko San, was found dead at the buying station yesterday,…
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Bangkok Airways plans 400-million-baht upgrade for Trat Airport
Bangkok Airways has unveiled plans to enhance Trat Airport, aiming to establish it as the East’s aviation hub and stimulate economic and tourism growth in the province. Bangkok Airways CEO Puttipong Prasarttong-Osoth shared details of the project during a press briefing at Trat Airport yesterday, September 1. The airport, situated on 1,600 rai of land in Tha Som subdistrict, Khao…
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Hat Yai Airport gets flashy facelift for 37th anniversary
From humble beginnings to high-flying growth, Hat Yai Airport is celebrating 37 years of connecting Thailand’s Deep South to the rest of the world, and it’s not stopping there. Airport director Kritsada Puksap, joined by deputy directors Nopphon Phayapphrai and Wing Commander Chaiyong Lamphrom, revealed impressive figures at a recent press conference. Between October last year and July this year,…
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Multiple bombings and tyre fires hit southern provinces overnight
A series of disturbances erupted across multiple locations in Narathiwat last night, August 31, as perpetrators detonated bombs near ATMs and set tyres on fire. Police responded and conducted investigations into these incidents. Reports indicated the unrest began around 7.40pm yesterday, August 31. The police at Su-ngai Padi station received information from a commander of the Ranger Company 4811 about…
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Malaysian man caught smuggling weapons into Thailand for 70,000 baht
A 45 year old Malaysian man was apprehended in Songkhla for smuggling military-grade weapons and over 400 rounds of ammunition into Thailand. He confessed to being hired by a Malaysian national for 70,000 baht to transport the arms. Police Colonel Surachit Phetchajom, together with administrative and military officials, announced Yeb Sun Ee’s arrest. Yeb was found in possession of two…
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Southern Thailand’s Phi Phi boardwalk faces repair delays
Frustrated locals and business owners on Phi Phi Don in Krabi say officials are dragging their feet over repairs to the island’s main boardwalk, more than a year after storms tore it apart. The boardwalk, a vital route linking Ton Sai Bay pier with the island, was wrecked by fierce winds and waves in July last year. Since then, tourists…
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Speeding pickup kills biker in deadly Phang Nga U-turn crash
A speeding pickup truck ploughed into a motorcyclist at a U-turn in Khao Lak, Phang Nga province, on Thursday, killing the rider instantly in a horrific crash. The fatal collision occurred at around 5.15pm on August 28 near the Kukkak Subdistrict Health Centre on Phetkasem Road, heading towards Thai Mueang district. Police at Khao Lak Station were alerted to the…
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Body of missing Thai man found buried in Nakhon Si Thammarat mountain
The family of a missing Thai man eventually discovered his body buried on a mountain in the southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat. Five drug suspects confessed to killing him over a dispute within their illegal business dealings. The family of 35 year old Patipon “Film” Pithak filed a missing person report at Chang Klang Police Station on July 17…
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Thailand’s rights body urges halt to mega land bridge plan
Thailand’s ambitious Ranong–Chumphon land bridge project has hit a major roadblock after the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) called for it to be suspended over fears of human rights abuses, flawed economics, and a lack of genuine public input. At its meeting on Tuesday, August 26, the NHRC advised the government to put the project on hold until comprehensive public…
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School lunch scam: Supreme Court jails ex-director for 25 years
Thailand’s top court has slammed the door on a crooked school director who cheated children out of lunches, locking him away for 25 years. The Supreme Court has dismissed an appeal from Somchao Sitthichen, former director of Ban Tha Mai School in Surat Thani, in one of the country’s most notorious school lunch corruption scandals. The case first grabbed headlines…
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Car bomb rips through Narathiwat checkpoint, 1 injured
Terror returned to Thailand’s Deep South last night when a car bomb exploded at a security checkpoint in Narathiwat’s Tak Bai district, injuring a defence volunteer and triggering a brief gun battle. The attack unfolded at around 8.15pm yesterday, August 20, in Sala Mai subdistrict, where local volunteers were manning a regular security post. According to police reports, the explosion…
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Police accused of embezzlement during gambling raid in Nakhon Si Thammarat
Gamblers in the southern province of Nakhon Si Thammarat accused police officers of taking 50,000 baht in cash, which should have been presented as evidence in a criminal case. A member of the Thung Song District Office, Chanin Jaidee, shared details of the alleged corruption with Channel 8 in the hope of seeking justice for gamblers arrested on August 13.…
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Thai man surrenders after fatally shooting alleged lover of friend’s girlfriend
A Thai man fatally shot an alleged lover of his friend’s girlfriend on the roadside in the southern province of Trang on Sunday, August 17, claiming he was taking revenge on behalf of his friend. The fatal attack occured as the victim was with her boyfriend, 24 year old Jiramate was along the Trang–Phatthalung Road in Mueang Trang district. She immediately called…
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Thai uncle with history of drug use beats niece to death in Trang
Police yesterday, August 17, arrested a Thai man for beating his niece to death at a house in the southern province of Trang on Saturday, August 16. The Siam Ruamjai Pu-in Rescue Foundation was alerted to the incident at 10.36am on Saturday and rushed to the scene, a house in the Huay Yod district of Trang, to transport the victim,…
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Thailand’s major drug bust seizes 900 kg of crystal meth
A major drug bust in Thailand resulted in the seizure of 900 kilogrammes of crystal methamphetamine, valued at 135 million baht, being transported from central Thailand to Narathiwat. Additionally, police confiscated related assets worth 20 million baht. Yesterday, August 16, at the Front Operations Centre of the Royal Thai Police in Yala, Phumtham Wechayachai, the deputy prime minister and acting…
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Pattani spiritual medium accused of sexually assaulting nearly 30 boys
Teenage boys filed a complaint against a male spiritual medium in the southern province of Pattani for sexually assaulting them. The number of victims is believed to have reached 30 people. The non-profit organisation, Be One, accompanied 13 teenage boys and their families to the Mueang Pattani Police Station to file a complaint against the medium, 25 year old Chondanai. Chondanai…
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Narathiwat police seize 40kg of kratom brew in drug bust
Yesterday, August 13, police and provincial administrative officials apprehended two significant drug dealers in Narathiwat, seizing over 40 kilogrammes of kratom brew intended for local youths. The operation took place at 2.30pm under the leadership of Tra-Koon Thotham, the provincial governor of Narathiwat, along with Police Major General Krisada Kaewjandi and Police Colonel Niyom Suwankhong. Police investigators from Narathiwat province…
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Phang Nga worker’s leg mangled in shrimp pond horror (video)
A shrimp farm turned into a horror scene yesterday after a worker’s leg was mangled by a water aerator in Phang Nga’s Takua Thung district. Emergency responders from the Kusoldharm Rescue Foundation (Loma Khok Kloy) and a medical team from Takua Thung Hospital rushed to the scene at 11.57am yesterday, August 6, following a report of a man trapped in…
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Loan shark conflict suspected after man found dead in Phatthalung plantation
A Thai man died in a fatal shooting in a palm plantation in the southern province of Phatthalung, with police suspecting a conflict within a loan shark gang as the motive for the murder. A letter addressed to his mother, discovered in his bag, is believed to provide a crucial clue. The body was discovered at around 4pm yesterday, August…
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Thai woman’s ‘fat belly’ was 8kg cyst shock
What looked like a bulging belly from too much food turned out to be an 8-kilogramme tumour—and the woman had no idea. A 31 year old Thai woman named Ratchanaporn from Satun province lived for years with a massive ovarian cyst growing inside her abdomen, completely unaware of its presence. Her family assumed she was overweight due to her eating…
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Illegal cigarette trade in Songkhla cripples local businesses
The Thai Tobacco Trade Association has raised alarms over the rampant distribution of illicit cigarettes in Songkhla province, which has impacted over 4,000 legal tobacco retailers and forced the closure of about 200 small shops. Thanyasaran Sangthong, the association’s executive director, revealed that Songkhla ranks second in the country for illegal cigarette infiltration, severely affecting local tax revenue. The president…
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Gunman pursued after fatal M16 shooting in Narathiwat
In Narathiwat province, police are pursuing a gunman who fatally shot a 50 year old man with an M16 rifle on August 4. The incident, occurring at 3.35pm, also resulted in another person sustaining injuries. Thirty-two shell casings were found at the scene. Police Colonel Prayong Khotrasa, Deputy Commander of Narathiwat Provincial Police, alongside Police Colonel Suppachart Na Phatthalung, Chief…
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Thai man allegedly assaults delivery worker and steals 500 baht from victim
A Thai parcel delivery worker accused a male customer, an official at a sub-district administrative office in the southern province of Songkhla, of physically assaulting him and stealing 500 baht. The delivery worker, 42 year old Pongsiri, shared the details of the alleged assault with Hat Yai Focus news agency in a plea for justice. He reported the incident to…
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Dead sea turtle found on Phang Nga beach sparks pollution fears
The Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) has launched an investigation after a decaying sea turtle carcass was discovered washed up on the sands in front of The Sands Khao Lak by Katathani Resort in Phang Nga’s Takua Pa district. The grim find was first reported to the Phang Nga Provincial Marine Office yesterday, July 30. Officials from the…
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Drunk French tourist dies on sofa outside Thai police station
A 55 year old French tourist was found dead on a sofa in front of Koh Phi Phi Police Station this morning after a night of heavy drinking and being left to recover outside. The man, whose identity is being withheld pending notification of next of kin, had been on holiday on Phi Phi Island. He was last seen the…
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Koh Pha Ngan drone thieves nabbed for targeting tourist homes
Tourist Police on Koh Pha Ngan arrested four Myanmar nationals accused of using drones to scope out rented homes of unsuspecting tourists before breaking in and stealing valuables. The men, aged between 25 and 30, were caught at around 5.30pm yesterday, July 22, at an unregistered rental property in Village 3, where they were reportedly laying low. The arrests came…
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Police officer fatally shot near home in Narathiwat
A shooting occurred last night resulting in the death of 32 year old Police Lieutenant Ruzdee Jedorlor from the Su-ngai Padi Police Station. The incident yesterday, July 22, took place near his residence in Paluru subdistrict, Su-ngai Padi district, Narathiwat province. The officer was preparing to attend a funeral when he was fatally shot. Investigations revealed that as Police Lieutenant…
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