A Colombian suspect was arrested at the Sweet Leaf marijuana shop in Patong Subdistrict on January 13, 2023.
PHUKET – On January 13, police officers from Patong Police Station in Phuket Province caught a foreign suspect of Colombian nationality for stealing property from a Russian visitor.
A 35-year-old Russian tourist stated that it happened just before midnight on January 12. As she returned from a convenience store in Soi Suk Charoen’s entrance to Phang Muang Sai Road to her accommodation, a man riding a motorbike approached her and snatched her bag.
Following an alert from a Russian tourist, police investigated and apprehended a Colombian suspect at the Sweet Leaf marijuana shop in Patong Subdistrict, Kathu District, after checking his room at Sky House Hotel, Patak Road, Karon Subdistrict.
Police discovered evidence belonging to the Russian woman, including a TOD’S shoulder bag, AirPods, a Russian driver’s licence, three 1,000 Thai baht banknotes, a silver necklace, and a silver ring. They also located a black Honda Click motorcycle, which the accused used in the incident.
They charged a Colombian man with “stealing property by using a vehicle to facilitate the commission of an offence, taking that property, or escaping arrest” and took him to Patong police station.
Denmark's King Frederik X and Denmark's Queen Mary wave from the balcony of Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark, Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Denmark’s prime minister proclaimed Frederik X as king on Sunday after his mother Queen Margrethe II formally signed her abdication, with massive crowds turning out to rejoice in the throne passing from a beloved monarch to her popular son.
Margrethe, 83, is the first Danish monarch to voluntarily relinquish the throne in nearly 900 years. Many thousands of people gathered outside the palace where the royal succession took place, the mood jubilant as the Nordic nation experienced its first royal succession in more than a half-century, and one not caused by the death of a monarch.
Denmark’s Queen Margrethe II, centre, signs a declaration of abdication in the meeting of the Council of State at Christiansborg Castle in Copenhagen, Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024. (Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)
Wearing a magenta outfit, Margrethe signed her abdication during a meeting with the Danish Cabinet at the Christiansborg Palace, a vast complex in Copenhagen that has been the seat of Danish power for centuries. It now houses the Royal Reception Rooms and Royal Stables as well as the Danish Parliament, the prime minister’s office and the Supreme Court.
Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen next proclaimed Frederik king from the balcony of the palace before many thousands of subjects of a kingdom where the trappings of royalty are mostly symbolic in today’s modern era of constitutional democracy.
Denmark’s King Frederik X waves from the balcony of Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark, Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner)Denmark’s King Frederik X and Queen Mary, together with their children from left, Princess Josephine, Crown Prince Christian, Princess Isabella and Prince Vincent wave after the proclamation, at Christiansborg Palace, in Copenhagen, Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024.(AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
Frederiksen read the proclamation three times, which is the tradition, as Frederik stood beside her wearing a ceremonial military uniform adorned with medals. He was then joined on the balcony by the new, Australian-born Queen Mary and the couple’s four children, and the crowd spontaneously sang the national anthem.
“My hope is to become a unifying king of tomorrow,” Frederik said. “It is a task I have approached all my life.”
It is the custom for each new sovereign to adopt a royal motto as a guiding principle for their reign, and Frederik’s is: “United, committed, for the kingdom of Denmark.”
“I want to return the trust I meet,” the new king said. “I need trust from my beloved wife, you and that which is greater than us.”
Frederik then kissed Mary, who wore a white dress, and another great cheer rose from the crowd.
Denmark’s King Frederik X kisses his wife Denmark’s Queen Mary on the balcony of Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark, Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024. AP Photo/Martin Meissner)
They then left Christianborg Palace in a horse-drawn coach as church bells rang out, and headed to their Amalienborg residence, where they once again appeared before a huge crowd of people cheering and waving the nation’s flag of a white cross on a red background.
Frederik, who was visibly moved, placed both hands on his heart in a gesture of thanks.
The abdication document was earlier presented to Margrethe as she sat at a massive table covered in red cloth around which royals and members of the Danish government were seated. Frederik sat beside her.
After signing it, Margrethe rose and gestured to Frederik to take her place. “God save the king,” she said as she left the room.
The abdication leaves Denmark with two queens: Margrethe keeps her title, while Frederik’s wife becomes Queen Mary. Frederik and Mary’s eldest son Christian, 18, has become crown prince and heir to the throne.
Denmark’s King Frederik X and his wife Queen Mary ride in a coach back to Amalienborg Palace in Copenhagen, Denmark, Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024. (Ida Marie Odgaard/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)
Citing health issues, Margrethe announced on New Year’s Eve that she would step down, stunning a nation that had expected her to live out her days on the throne, as is the tradition in the Danish monarchy. Margrethe underwent major back surgery last February and didn’t return to work until April.
Even the prime minister was unaware of the queen’s intentions until right before the announcement. Margrethe had informed Frederik and his younger brother Joachim just three days earlier, the Berlingske newspaper wrote, citing the royal palace.
People from across Denmark gathered outside parliament, with many swarming streets decorated with red-and-white Danish flags. Several shops hung photos of Margrethe and Frederik, while city buses were adorned with smaller Danish flags as is customary during royal events. Many others across the kingdom of nearly 6 million people followed a live television broadcast of the historic event.
The royal guards’ music band made their daily parade through downtown Copenhagen, but wore red jackets, instead of their usual black, to mark major events.
Copenhagen resident Rene Jensen, wearing a replica of a royal robe and a bejeweled purple crown on his head, said that he expected Frederik to be “a king for the nation, representing us everywhere.”
A view of the the crowd gathered in during the proclamation at Christiansborg Palace Square, in Copenhagen, Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024. (Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scanpix via AP)
The last time a Danish monarch voluntarily resigned was in 1146, when King Erik III Lam stepped down to enter a monastery. Margrethe abdicated on the same day of January that she ascended the throne following the death of her father, King Frederik IX, on Jan. 14, 1972.
Denmark’s monarchy traces its origins to 10th-century Viking king Gorm the Old, making it the oldest in Europe and one of the oldest in the world.
Australians also turned out on the streets of Copenhagen to celebrate one of their own becoming queen.
“I think it’s good that she’s not from royalty and has a normal Australian background. We can relate more to that, because she’s from a middle-class background, and we are too,” said Judy Langtree, who made the long journey from Brisbane with her daughter to witness the royal event.
A survey — commissioned by Denmark’s public broadcaster DR — published Friday showed that 79% of the 1,037 people polled by the Epinion polling institute said that they believed Frederik was prepared to take the reigns and 83% said they thought his wife Mary was ready to become queen. The survey margin of error was 3 percentage points, DR said.
BANGKOK – Pimol Sriwikorn, advisor to the Prime Minister, is pushing ahead with his work on Muay Thai soft power. He convened the first meeting of the sub-committee to promote the sports industry, which concluded that a special visa will be proposed to extend the length of stay for tourists who want to learn Muay Thai from 60 to 90 days. Muay Thai instructors who want to train on board will also be supported
The subcommittee also approved the format and procedure to facilitate the issuance of Non-Ed Visas (Non-Immigrant Visa ED) for foreign tourists who wish to learn Muay Thai at gyms certified by the Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT). Foreign tourists who wish to learn Muay Thai at gyms certified by the SAT will be issued a Non-Ed Visa by Thai embassies abroad. Once foreign tourists arrive in Thailand, they can stay at the gym for up to 90 days and learn Muay Thai there.
The subcommittee also approved the format and process for establishing a center to test and certify Muay Thai competency at the international level. Muay Thai instructors who wish to work abroad as Muay Thai instructors will receive a certificate of recognition from the SAT, the Ministry of Tourism and Sports and the Department of Skill Development, the Ministry of Labor. Once the teachers work abroad, they are protected by international rights from the Department of Employment, Ministry of Labor.
In addition, the subcommittee approved support for the Now Muaythai platform for booking Muay Thai classes for Thai and foreign tourists. The sub-committee also approved the calendar of Muay Thai soft power activities for 2024.
PM Srettha Thavisin and his wife give alms to a monk on the occasion of New Year's Day at the Government House in Bangkok on Jan. 2, 2024.
There are many things I wish to see changed in Thailand in 2024, a sort of forlorn wish, but worth noting three here since it is the beginning of the year.
1. The Toxic Political Fandom Culture
In Thai politics, soon after you open your mouth to opine, others will almost readily pigeonhole you as either a redshirt pro-government person, an orange shirt fan club of the opposition Move Forward Party man (or woman) or a good-old yellow shirt royalist (or ultra-royalist) conservative coup supporter.
You cannot be a bit of this and that hue. The simplistic and dichotomic yearning of many Thai political addicts is just for people to resist such complexity – and accordingly you will be branded as either one of them or the other. It is so toxic over the past few years that many redshirt Pheu Thai government supporters will praise PM Srettha Thavisin and the Shinawatra family ad infinitum and that they basically can do no wrong.
Or even if some wrongs were committed, it is okay. Similarly, the orange shirt MFP supporters are so enamored by people like Pita Limcharoenrat to the point where one wonders if they are paid propagandists. By the way, most are not paid. They are just willing fans. Somehow, what is lost along the way was the notion of citizens who will take to account all politicians and other public figures rather than subjecting and diminishing themselves into a mere member of a political fandom.
Perhaps I am expecting too much, it is more emotionally and intellectually convenient to just be a member of these color-coded political groups than insisting as a citizen, one should be independent and judiciously exercise one’s thought when it comes to appraising and relating oneself to these politicians and public figures.
2. Paying More Attention To Safety Culture
Thailand is ‘a leader’ when it comes to road related accidents and deaths. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) as of mid-December last year (2023), 18,218 people were killed on the roads in Thailand. That was about 50 or so people killed daily. It is not just driving under the influence of alcohol that is the problem, it is also reckless driving, passengers not wearing seatbelts, people not using pedestrian overpasses where possible and available, drivers not driving while being sleepy and more.
Why is the new government not declaring the issue a man-made national calamity to be seriously and comprehensively tackled is beyond my understanding as by the end of today, another 50 or so people would needlessly die on the streets. If that figure is halved, it would be markedly beneficial for Thailand as for every single person killed, or seriously injured, it is not just a tragedy to the person and his or her immediate family members but the society as a collective too.
How about making obtaining a driver license much more rigorous, particularly for public transport drivers? In the final analysis, people just do not think such road accidents, particularly fatal ones, will happen to them.
3. Be More Rational and Less Irrational
Supernatural beliefs abound and are still a big thing in Thailand for a substantial percentage of its population. These people believe some monks, or even strange or physically impaired animals including frogs and toads or trees can reveal the lucky lottery number and make them rich pronto.
Buddhist amulets of all sorts, supposedly will protect you, make you lucky, rich or super attractive to the opposite sex. It seems many of us pinned our hope for a better life on someone else, if not something else, to the detriment of their own spirit of self-reliance. The quicker this changes, the better for them and for Thailand in general.
A truck hit and killed an American man who rode a motorcycle.
PHUKET – A 32-year-old trucker who hit and killed an American citizen, Mr. Gregory Ludwig, 60, has been apprehended and charged in Phuket Province, just one day after fleeing.
Mr. Gregory, who was a director of recreation at a hotel in the Mai Khao subdistrict, was discovered dead at the corner of an alley near a gold-coloured Suzuki motorcycle on Thursday night.
On January 13, Pol. Lt. Col. Sonthip Chukaew, police inspector of Tha Chatchai Police Station, Phuket Province, revealed that investigators arrested Mr. Ritthikrai Chumthong, 32, of Surat Thani Province, a driver of a 10-wheel ISUZU truck with a licence plate in Surat Thani Province, on January 12.
An American man was found dead at the corner of an alley near a gold-coloured Suzuki motorcycle on Thursday night, January 11, 2024.
They charged him with careless driving, causing death and damage to another person’s vehicle, and he left without help.
On the day of the event, January 11, around 7:40 p.m., a truck and an American man’s motorcycle were travelling parallel on Thep Kasattri Road (inbound). When the truck arrived at the entrance to Soi Luan In, Village No. 1, Mai Khao Subdistrict, Thalang District, it changed lanes and turned left. It collided with a motorcycle, causing an American man to slip and slide beneath the truck and be crushed to death. The truck then drove off.
Taiwanese Vice President Lai Ching-te, also known as William Lai, left, celebrates his victory with running mate Bi-khim Hsiao in Taipei, Taiwan, Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024. Ruling-party candidate Lai Ching-te has emerged victorious in Taiwan’s presidential election and his opponents have conceded. (AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying)
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Ruling-party candidate Lai Ching-te emerged victorious in Taiwan’s presidential election on Saturday and his opponents conceded, a result that will determine the trajectory of the self-ruled democracy’s relations with China over the next four years.
China had called the poll a choice between war and peace. Beijing strongly opposes Lai, the current vice president who abandoned his medical career to pursue politics from the grassroots to the presidency.
At stake is peace, social stability and prosperity on the island, 160 kilometers (100 miles) off the coast of China, which Beijing claims as its own and to be retaken by force if necessary.
Taiwanese Vice President Lai Ching-te, also known as William Lai, celebrates his victory with running mate Bi-khim Hsiao and supporters, in Taipei, Taiwan, Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying)
While domestic issues such as the sluggish economy and expensive housing also featured prominently in the campaign, Lai’s Democratic Progressive Party’s appeal to self-determination, social justice and rejection of China’s threats ultimately won out. It is the first time a single party has led Taiwan for three consecutive four-year presidential terms since the first open presidential elections in 1996.
At a post-election news conference, Lai thanked the Taiwanese electorate for “writing a new chapter in our democracy. We have shown the world how much we cherish our democracy. This is our unwavering commitment.”
He added: “Taiwan will continue to walk side by side with democracies from around the world … through our actions, the Taiwanese people have successfully resisted efforts from external forces to influence this election.”
Taiwanese Vice President Lai Ching-te, also known as William Lai, left, celebrates his victory with running mate Bi-khim Hsiao in Taipei, Taiwan, Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Louise Delmotte)
Lai and incumbent President Tsai Ing-wen reject China’s sovereignty claims over Taiwan, a former Japanese colony that split from the Chinese mainland amid civil war in 1949. They have, however, offered to speak with Beijing, which has repeatedly refused to hold talks and called them separatists.
Beijing was believed to favor the candidate from the more China-friendly Nationalist party, also known as Kuomintang, or KMT. Its candidate, Hou Yu-ih, also promised to restart talks with China while bolstering national defense. He promised not to move toward unifying the two sides of the Taiwan Strait if elected.
In his concession speech, Hou apologized for “not working hard enough” to regain power for the KMT, which ran Taiwan under martial law for nearly four decades before democratic reforms in the 1980s.
“I let everyone down. I am here to express my sincerest apologies, I’m sorry,” Hou said in front of an audience whose numbers fell well short of expectations.
Kuomintang (KMT) presidential candidate Hou Yu-ih, center left, waves on his arrival at a polling station in New Taipei City, Taiwan, Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Louise Delmotte)
A third candidate in the race, Ko Wen-je of the smaller Taiwan People’s Party, or TPP, had drawn the support particularly of young people wanting an alternative to the KMT and DPP, Taiwan’s traditional opposing parties, which have largely taken turns governing since the 1990s. Ko also stated he wanted to speak with Beijing, and that his bottom line would be that Taiwan needs to remain democratic and free.
The United States, which is bound by its laws to provide Taiwan with the weapons needed to defend itself, pledged support for whichever government emerges, reinforced by the Biden administration’s plans to send an unofficial delegation made up of former senior officials to the island shortly after the election.
Beside the China tensions, domestic issues such as the dearth of affordable housing and stagnating wages have dominated the campaign.
For Tony Chen, a 74-year-old retiree who voted in Taipei in the hour before the polls closed, the election boiled down to a choice between communism and democracy.
“I hope democracy wins,” he said. He added that more Taiwanese were open to China’s model of governance decades ago, when the Chinese economy was growing by double digits annually, but are repulsed by the crackdown on civil liberties that has occurred under current Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The crowd cheers at a Democratic Progressive Party rally in Taipei, Taiwan, Saturday, Jan. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Louise Delmotte)
Stacy Chen, 43, said she has always voted for DPP because “Taiwan is an independent country.” She said she wanted her son to grow up in a country that is separate from China.
Taiwan’s election is seen as having “real and lasting influence on the geopolitical landscape,” said Gabrielle Reid, associate director with the global intelligence consultancy S-RM.
“The outcome of the vote will ultimately determine the nature of ties with China relative to the West and will have strong bearing on the state of play in the South China Sea,” she said.
Close ties with key ally the U.S. will likely draw even closer under Lai’s administration.
“A continuation of the DPP into a third term will mean that the warming-up of U.S.-Taiwan ties that we saw in the last eight years will likely continue at pace under the next Lai Ching-te administration,” said Wen-Ti Sung, a fellow with the Washington, D.C.-based Atlantic Council.
Beijing is likely to deploy a “maximum pressure campaign” to influence the new administration along military, economic and political lines, Sung told The Associated Press.
Police officers pose with a seized Volvo car during a raid on Jan. 11, 2024.
BANGKOK — Authorities on Friday said they have seized more than 1.2 billion baht worth of assets from a major cybercrime gang.
The operation, which involved the police, the Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO), and the Digital Economy and Society Ministry (DES), targeted assets believed to be linked to a cybercrime syndicate led by Thararat Singhatongsuwan, 30, who was arrested in 2021 and prosecuted in multiple fraud cases.
The assets, which include 77 cars, 84 land title deeds, Thai and foreign currencies, and various luxury items, were confiscated during raids on 13 locations in Bangkok, Nonthaburi, and Chiang Mai provinces, cybercrime police commander Worawat Watnakhonbancha said.
The assets, which include 77 cars, 84 land title deeds, Thai and foreign currencies, and various luxury items, were confiscated.
AMLO sec-gen Theppasu Bavornchotidara said the gang used several means to dupe the victims, such as phone calls pretending to be authorities and deceiving the victims into transferring money and online posts inviting victims to invest in a foreign exchange Ponzi scheme, after which the money were laundered into real estates and online gambling accounts. In the latter case, he said 54 victims came forward and filed a complaint.
More than 3 billion baht worth of assets were believed to have been laundered by Thararat’s gang, Theppasu said. He advised victims to file a complaint to reclaim their assets within 90 days.
Thararat and her accomplices were arrested in 2021 and prosecuted in multiple fraud cases in Bangkok, Khon Kaen, and Ubon Ratchathani province.
a shell sample of a female Helicostoa liuae (above, R, photo taken on Sept. 16, 2022) and a shell sample of a male Helicostoa liuae (below, R, photo taken on Oct. 10, 2022). (Xinhua)
A group of international scientists has rediscovered a sessile freshwater snail endemic to China after it had disappeared for more than 100 years.
The discovery was made jointly by researchers from institutions including the Museum für Naturkunde in Berlin, Germany, and China’s Peking University, according to the latest edition of the biological research journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.
The snail, known as the Helicostoa, was found on river limestones in south China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. According to Zhang Lejia, a researcher from the Museum für Naturkunde, the Helicostoa is a unique freshwater gastropod species with sessile habits and it can stick to rock surfaces like oysters. First spotted by French scientists more than 100 years ago, it was never collected again.
This photo taken on March 17, 2022 shows the specimen of Helicostoa species. (Xinhua)
After comparing the newly discovered Helicostoa species with the previous specimens based on molecular systematic, morphological and anatomical studies, researchers named the new species Helicostoa liuae to distinguish it from the former Helicostoa sinensis.
The researchers found that only the adult female is sessile, resulting in an opening on the body whorl that performs the roles of the original aperture, such as eating, excretion and mating. In comparison, the male is vagile, with a normal aperture.
Zhang, who led the research team, told Xinhua that they believe the sessility of female Helicostoa was a result of the adaptive evolution of the gastropod to the environment in the rapids, and the secondary aperture and sexual dimorphism are the evolutionary innovations to conquer the challenges of survival and reproduction.
“Helicostoa is a good case for in-depth study of adaptive evolution and evolutionary innovation,” he said, noting that the habitats of the species are close to urban areas and hydropower stations, so protection will be needed for the Helicostoa.
Taiwan presidential election is on Saturday. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — Taiwan is holding its presidential election on Saturday, a race that China has called a choice between war and peace. China considers the self-ruled island about 160 kilometers (100 miles) off its east coast a breakaway province and has threatened to take control over it, by force if necessary.
Taiwan’s election is closely watched internationally due to the potential for rising military tensions across the Taiwan Strait. At home, voters are concerned with more practical issues such as the sluggish economy and expensive housing in addition to Beijing’s threat.
Here are the three candidates:
LAI CHING-TE
Lai Ching-te, who also goes by William, is currently Taiwan’s vice president from the Democratic Progressive Party, which rejects China’s sovereignty claims over the island.
Years ago, the 64-year-old described himself as a “pragmatic worker for Taiwan independence,” drawing criticism from Beijing.
Taiwan Vice President and Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate Lai Ching-te, who also goes by William, attends a rally in southern Taiwan’s Tainan city on Friday, Jan. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
China bristles at any claims of independence by Taiwanese politicians and opposes Taipei having formal ties with other countries. Beijing has repeatedly rejected offers to hold talks with Lai and Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen.
“As long as there is equality and dignity on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, Taiwan’s door will always be open,” he said in December.
A physician who studied public health at Harvard University, Lai has held public office for the past 25 years, including as a legislator and mayor of the southern city of Tainan.
If elected president, Lai has pledged to strengthen national defense and the economy and to continue in the policy direction set by Tsai.
His running mate is former U.S. envoy Bi-khim Hsiao.
HOU YU-IH
Hou Yu-ih is the candidate from Taiwan’s main opposition party Kuomintang, or KMT, whose government retreated to the island in 1949 after losing a civil war against the Chinese Communist Party.
Kuomintang (KMT) presidential candidate Hou Yu-ih and vice presidential candidate Jaw Shaw-Kong attend an election rally in New Taipei City, Taiwan on Friday, Jan. 12, 2024.(AP Photo/Louise Delmotte)
The KMT is generally friendlier to China than the DPP, though it strongly denies being pro-Beijing. Traditionally, the party has favored unification with China, though it has shifted its stance in recent years to reflect the vast majority of the population’s preference for maintaining the status quo.
Hou served as the head of the island’s police force before transitioning to politics in 2010. The 66-year-old is currently the mayor of New Taipei, a position from which he took leave to run for president.
Hou has described himself as an atypical KMT member and said he would not pursue unification with China if elected. He has said that Taiwan’s future needs to be decided by its people.
He describes himself as more likely to convince China to hold talks than Lai, whom he accuses of pushing Taiwan to war.
Hou’s running mate is former legislator and TV commentator Jaw Shau-kong.
KO WEN-JE
The third presidential candidate, Ko Wen-je, represents the smaller Taiwan People’s Party, which he founded in 2019.
Taiwan’s Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) presidential candidate Ko Wen-je, center, cheers with his running mate Cynthia Wu, left, and party supporters during an election campaign in Taipei, Taiwan, Friday, Jan. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Chiang Ying-ying)
An outspoken surgeon-turned-politician, Ko advocates for a middle road in relations with Beijing. He has said he would be open to holding talks with China, but his bottom line would be that Taiwan must be able to preserve its democracy and civil freedoms.
He describes himself as the only candidate who would be acceptable to both the U.S. and China.
The 64-year-old was mayor of Taipei between 2014 and 2022 and has cooperated in the past with both the DPP and KMT. An initiative to run on the same ticket as Hou in Saturday’s election failed after the two couldn’t agree on who should be the presidential candidate.
Mrs. Hla Hla Win, a Myanmar national, admitted to stealing the three tourists' cash and spent 140,000 baht on gold jewels.
PHUKET – Police at Patong Police Station in Phuket Province detained a 27-year-old hotel housekeeper on suspicion of snatching three foreign tourists’ cash to buy gold. The evidence consisted of two gold necklaces, two gold bracelets, and two gold rings.
The three foreigners were staying at a hotel in Patong Subdistrict, and on December 27, 2023. A third foreign tourist found that US$700 had gone missing from his or her room. Then, on January 6, two more foreign visitors, who were siblings, discovered that their money, worth 55,000 baht (1,575 U.S.dollars) each, had also been missing.
A Myanmar housekeeper admits to stealing the three tourists’ cash.
When police investigators arrived to examine this hotel on the evening of January 11, they spotted Mrs. Hla Hla Win, a Myanmar national, acting strangely. She rushed away behind the hotel. The police followed up and apprehended her.
She admitted to stealing the three tourists’ cash. She then spent 140,000 baht on gold jewels.
They arrested the suspect, who was charged with theft, and delivered evidence to investigators at Patong Police Station for prosecution.
