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.
-
Patong-Chalong road construction nears completion
The construction of a new road connecting Chalong to Patong in Phuket is expected to open to the public soon, according to the Phuket Provincial Administration Organisation (PPAO). The announcement came after the PPAO President and Deputy President conducted in-person inspections along the construction site yesterday and the day before. The PPAO Deputy President has closely monitored progress, frequenting the…
-
Families of Sri Lanka’s ISIS Easter bombing victims to finally receive compensation
Sri Lanka Easter attack, photo by UCA. Family members of victims of ISIS’s 2019 Easter bombing attack in Sri Lanka are finally set to receive financial compensation. The savage attack slaughtered at least 290 people and injured hundreds more. Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court ruled yesterday that former President Maithripala Sirisena and four other senior government officials were responsible for failing…
-
Bentley driver’s blood test reveals methamphetamine use
Police today revealed that the Bentley driver who caused a three-car crash was not only under the influence of alcohol but drugs were also found in his system. Police confirmed to the media that a drug test discovered methamphetamine and another unidentified narcotic in his blood system. More updates are expected to be announced this evening. The Bentley driver, Suthat…
-
Big-hearted garbage worker gives away reconditioned bicycles to needy kids on Children’s Day
A big-hearted garbage worker intends to celebrate Children’s Day by giving away reconditioned bicycles to underprivileged kids. The refuse collector, Saksan “Bird” Maksorntong, revealed he has rebuilt a number of broken and abandoned bicycles he found on his rounds and plans to give them to underprivileged kids as a gift on Children’s Day. Every second Saturday of January is Thailand’s…
-
Community craft centre exploiting indigenous Karen weavers
Members of the Bang Kloi Karen community employed as weavers in a community craft centre have accused the centre of exploiting indigenous workers. The Karen workers claim they suffer poor working conditions and are paid less than the minimum wage. Activist Anchalee Ismanyee said weavers are paid much less than the official minimum wage in Phetchaburi province of 335 baht…
-
Belgian-Moroccan tourist breaks his back in motorbike crash in northern Thailand
A Belgian-Moroccan tourist broke his back in a motorbike accident en route to a waterfall in the hippie backpacker town of Pai in Mae Hong Son province, northern Thailand, yesterday. Issam Messaoudi and his friend rented a motorbike and headed to Mor Paeng Waterfall when they lost control and came off the steep and slippery road. Messauodi’s friend came out…
-
Pattaya rescuer hospitalised after being startled by a Python
Photo by The Pattaya News. A python scared a Pattaya rescuer out of his truck early on Wednesday morning, resulting in a head injury for the poor rescuer. A team from the Pattaya Emergency Responder Unit had gone to the Pattaya Park Hotel hotel on Soi 12 to collect the 4 metre long snake from a tree. The team successfully…
-
DSI accused of soliciting 50 million baht bribe from gambling king
Help Crime Victim Club President Autchariya Ruengrattanapong accused the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) of soliciting bribes of 50 million baht from a gambling kingpin named Somchai Jutikitdaecha. Somchai, also known as Long Joo, is a well-known personality in the eastern provinces of Thailand, especially in Rayong. He is well-liked in the community and perceived as kind because he helps…
-
Twitch bans Thai-French streamer for ‘sexual content’ after showing feet
Livestreaming platform Twitch has banned half-Thai half-French streamer JustKeth for ‘sexual content’ after she held up her bare feet to the camera during a livestream. Keth can’t seem to catch a break, making headlines last week when an angry farang chased her around a pool at a hotel in Pattaya after she rejected his sexual advances. Keth captured the terrifying…
-
Nok Air to launch flights between Bangkok and Hyderabad
Budget airline Nok Air will launch direct flights between Bangkok in Thailand and Hyderabad in India on February 19, 2023. A state-of-the-art Boeing 737-800 aircraft with 189 Economy Class seats will service the nonstop route from Don Mueang International Airport to Rajiv Gandhi International Airport four times per week. Flight DD959 will take off from Hyderabad at 00.45am on Mondays,…
-
Half-naked corpse of woman found near railway in Isaan
A railway maintenance worker notified the police after finding a half-naked corpse of a woman near a railway in the Wattana Nakhon district in the Isaan province of Sa Kaeo yesterday. The officers from the Watthana Nakhon Police Station and a rescue team rushed to the scene after receiving the notification. They found the corpse of a woman aged about…
-
Lisa Marie Presley dies of suspected heart attack, aged 54
Lisa Marie Presley, the only daughter of rock and roll legend Elvis, died of a suspected heart attack in the early hours of this morning. She was 54 years old. Paramedics were sent to a Calabasas home at 10.37am (6.37am Thai time) after receiving a report of a woman in cardiac arrest, according to Craig Little, a spokesperson for the…
-
Foreign mafia who attacked 2 Thai women in Koh Samui found in Phuket
National Police Deputy Commissioner Surachate Hakparn, aka Big Joke, ordered police in Koh Samui to speed up the search for the foreign mafia gang that attacked two Thai women at a bar on New Year’s Eve. Officers from Bor Phut Police Station in Koh Samui reported that they know the identities of two of the group members and stated that…
-
Bangkok taxi fare increase effective today
Bangkok taxi fares will increase to a minimum fare of 40 baht today after staying at 35 baht for 30 years. The increased fare, which applies to Bangkok registered taxis with no more than seven seats, is effective today according to its announcement in the Royal Gazette yesterday. However, passengers may not notice a rise in fares straight away as…
-
Thai NGO reports highest number of missing children in 4 years
A Thai NGO reports that the country’s number of missing children last year was the highest it had been in four years. The Mirror Foundation, which works to help families find missing children, reports some disturbing numbers. Last year, 252 children went missing from home in Thailand. This was a 25% increase from 202 children in 2021, the foundation said. …
-
Russian man attacked in Pattaya bar after refusing to pay 60 baht bill
A Russian man was assaulted by a female bar owner in Pattaya after he refused to pay a 60-baht bill. The owner claimed she acted in self-defence as the man was drunk, refused to pay the bill, and slapped her in the face first. A rescue team was notified that a Russian man, later identified as Michael, was injured in…
-
Corruption investigation leaves some Thai immigration officials in hot water over helping Chinese businessmen
A corruption investigation has left some Thai immigration officials in hot water over their alleged involvement in helping Chinese businessmen. Senior Immigration Bureau investigators say they found clear evidence that some officers are helping foreign criminals by serving as owners of foundations that provided visas to Chinese nationals. According to Bangkok Post, one of the ‘foundations’ had its headquarters in…
-
Another black life taken in US police custody
Three things are certain in life in the United States: day follows night, innocent people become fatal victims of random gunman attacks, and black people die in police custody. Already this year, three black men have lost their lives while in the hands of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). The latest black life to be lost while in LAPD…
-
Cops swoop on 360 million baht gambling den in Pattaya
Cops swooped on a gambling den in Pattaya on Wednesday that had accounts with about 360 million baht in its circulation. Officers from the Police Cyber Taskforce raided a luxury condominium in Chon Buri’s Bang Lamung district and arrested four suspects, one man and three women. The police confiscated two laptops, four screens, three smartphones, and other appliances worth 100,000…
-
Thai police bust nine YouTube scammers that allegedly contributed to middle schooler’s suicide
Thai police busted nine YouTube scammers that allegedly contributed to a Nonthaburi middle schooler’s suicide. Police say they arrested two suspects yesterday, 38 year old Ratchanon Saijind, and 34 year old Chaiyawat Virasorn, after they were suspected of purchasing cryptocurrency using a now deceased middle schooler’s money. After police interrogated the two suspects, they said they learned the identities of…
-
2-metre tapeworm found in Thai man who eats raw meat
A Thai man posted a video on his social media TikTok account to warn people to avoid eating raw meat after a two-metre tapeworm was found in his body. Amarit Chuetamuen posted videos on his TikTok account, @tex2499, to share his deworming experience. In the first video, Amarit told his followers that his anus had become itchy and then felt…
-
Officials panic Thailand hits lowest birth rate in 7 decades
Officials are panicking after Thailand hit its lowest birth rate in seven decades last year. The Social Development and Human Security Ministry announced today that the kingdom hit a 71-year low. Last year, Thailand’s target birth rate was 700,000, however, only 502,000 babies were born. The birth rate was therefore about 30% below the target. The ministry’s permanent secretary Anukul…
-
Motorists seek compensation after electric transformer explosion damages 4 vehicles
Motorists are seeking compensation after an electric transformer exploded and destroyed three cars and a motorcycle in front of a garage in the Song Phi Nong district of Suphan Buri. The deputy superintendent of the Tungkok Police Station, Taksin Khanthongdee, told Khaosod that the police and firefighters were notified of the fire in front of the U Chai Service garage…
-
Thailand is the happiest of 7 regional APAC countries, survey says
The people of Thailand are the happiest out of seven regional Asia-Pacific (APAC) countries, according to a survey of 85,000 adult respondents via the polling app Votee. Stats were collected from respondents in Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Taiwan, and the Philippines between October 2021 and December 2022. Respondents were routinely asked to score their happiness level out of…
-
Russian woman almost drowns on Patong beach
It was a close call for one Russian woman who almost drowned on Patong Beach yesterday. The incident happened at the part of the beach near the Bangla Police Box. Tourists pulled the unconscious woman out of the water, and lifeguards, once aware of the situation, rushed to help. The lifeguards, and a tourist who was a doctor, worked to…
-
Central Fraud Registry, coming soon to clean up Thai banking
Thailand‘s forthcoming Central Fraud Registry will be a new investigative authority, working alongside the Computer Emergency Response Team, a group of financial institutions focused on cybercrime in the banking industry. The new fraud registry will concentrate on financial fraud in the industry. Thai Banking Association (TBA) chairman Payong Srivanich did not set a time frame for setting up the registry.…
-
International school teacher accused of molesting kindergarten pupil in Koh Samui
A teacher at an international school in Koh Samui in Surat Thani province, southern Thailand, has been accused of molesting a kindergarten pupil. Deputy Commissioner of the Royal Thai Police Pol. Maj. Gen. Surchate “Big Joke” Hakparn travelled to the island yesterday to attend a meeting about the progress of the case so far. The parents of a kindergarten student…
-
Twitter staff in Singapore fired, more job losses in Asia predicted
Staff at Twitter‘s Singapore office were fired yesterday. Employees were told via email that they had to evacuate the CapitaGreen building premises by 5pm. An anonymous staff member informed the press that Singapore-based employees at Twitter have been temporarily reassigned to work remotely within the company’s internal system. According to a tweet by Casey Newton, the operator of the technology-focused…
-
Assets over 10 million baht stolen from businessman at fitness centre
A businessman filed a complaint with police after assets of over 10 million baht were stolen from a fitness centre safety box at a shopping mall on Ngam Wongwarn Road in Nonthaburi. This isn’t the first time the fitness centre has been targeted by thieves. Their task is made a lot easier by the fact there are no security cameras…
-
Thailand Tourism Ministry strives for 80 million international tourists in 2027
Thailand‘s Ministry of Tourism and Sports set a sky-high target of 80 million international tourists in the kingdom by 2027. The target exceeds Thailand’s current total population of 69 million. To frame the ambitious figure, pre-pandemic Thailand welcomed an average of 40 million international tourists per year. In 2022, Thailand welcomed 11.5 million international arrivals, exceeding the Tourism Authority of…
Don't forget to check out some other things to do in Thailand - get help starting a business or finding a job in Thailand, buy Thailand property, rent a yacht or book a medical procedure worldwide.