A 37 year old American has been arrested on charges of fraud in the capital. Police reports indicate that he tricked customers into buying investments that saw them, here, lose millions of baht. He nearly got away with it, as his crimes are alleged to have taken place 8 years ago, and with the statute of limitation laws here, had he not been nabbed, he would have escaped justice by next month, when those limitations, in his case, would have expired. He was involved, and a shareholder in, a company that operated in numerous countries by the name of SEANDER and most if not all of his marks here were expats. With the law here demanding that anyone who sells or recommends or introduces people to investments for pension plans be licensed, and such licenses NOT available to non Thais, he faces up to 4 years jail or a huge fine. Seander INC was also registered in Europe and the Slovak Republic which, for potential investors, would have given a glimmer of hope that they were offering legitimate investments here. Reality is that most boiler rooms too are registered with swank addresses in foreign countries, but they turn out to be simply mailing addresses. The Green Bay Washington resident, now in Thai custody, is expected to appear in court.
Nonthaburi courts have now revised arrest warrants for three of the 5 remaining passengers from a boat trip that saw an actress fall into the Chao Phraya river and down during a private party. In addition to charges associated with her death, they are charged with making false statements, lying to police about the nature of the party, denying that any alcohol was consumed during the trip and throwing evidence of their party over the side before police came aboard.
100 Million baht has been seized by police from a man thought to have scammed the dying abbot of a major group of temples in the capital. Following the passing of the aged abbott, others discovered monies missing from funds and it is believed that the arrestee contrived to get the old man to sign blank withdrawal slip AND reassigned the accounts to his own mobile phone, allowing him to do online banking and receive codes. Thai media reports that the actual amount stolen could be as much as 190 million.
With jellyfish season approaching from most coastal regions, experts from Chiang Mai have been educating resort operators in the southern islands on treatment for those who are stung. Thai coastlines are home to some 9 types of jellyfish and the specialists reminded all NOT to rub stings or attempt to remove needles from patients but to douse the stung areas with vinegar for at least half a minute AND ensure that all are forwarded to clinics or hospitals with experience. Patients too should be monitored for breathing difficulties until handed over to medical experts.
And, it seems it works, at least for one Phuket man. Thousands of Thais use their car registration number when buying lottery tickets, seeing them as lucky and the weekend saw one lucky couple win the big, multi million baht prize, thanks to their Chevrolet. Paid out quickly, the couple plan to save it all for their future.
Cold weather has hit much of Thailand including our own area over the weekend and this morning, seeing temperatures drop by up to 8 degrees. Here in Pattaya, early Sunday morning before dawn, it had the real feel of being in the teens. This irregular, cold spell is expected to continue for a few days at least. Strong gales too spread across much of the north, east and central areas causing power outages in some cases and even damaging buildings. However, daytime temperatures ARE set to rise through the week to around 32 most days.
Thailand & Pattaya News, from Fabulous 103fm (1 April 2022) Arrivals in Thailand are no longer required to have completed PCR testing prior to their departure from foreign countries to come here. Now confirmed in the royal gazette, the only testing will be ON ARRIVAL as part of the Thai pass system. Passengers are advised, however, that some airlines may still require PCR testing as a part of THEIR Covid […]