A Surat Thani immigration police officer points at Josef Ruzicka, who was arrested Monday on Koh Tao.

KOH TAO: In what must surely be a record in recent years, a Czech man on overstay for 6 years has been arrested on Koh Tao island. As part of the ever more newsworthy big time “X Ray Outlaw Foreigner” immigration crackdown hosted by Immigration Bureau Chief Big Joke, this chap more than fits the bill. Apparently it took no more than a simple check of the records to reveal the guy was in the records as having come in, but not as having gone out. Koh Tao being a small island, didn’t make it hard to locate the guy. He’ll be deported and banned for 10 years.  Here’s the full story from Khasod English.

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SA KAEO: An ex-cop linked to an infamous Saudi gem heist that occurred over 20 years ago has been arrested on Friday for his role in allegedly murdering a gas station owner in Sa Kaeo.  The perpetrator was apprehended in a Rayong sub district as well as his wife on unspecified charges. The murder charges stem from an incident that occurred on September 30, wherein at least two armed men shot the petrol station owner to death and severely wounded his wife. More below from Bangkok Post.

Police said Pansak confessed during interrogation that he had been hired by a man identified only as Hia Thong for a six-digit sum to shoot Mr Pracha. The suspect claimed he did not open fire, but arranged for two gunmen to do the job, said Pol Col Jirabhop.

Officers said Pansak told them he had known Hia Thong since his days in the police force. Hia Thong had often lent him money and provided financial assistance when he was on the run from another criminal charge.

Pansak was earlier suspected of involvement in the 2013 murder of a businessman at the Rong Klua market in Aranyaprathet, whose body was burned beyond recognition in a forest in Prachin Buri.

But the former policeman is better known as one of the henchmen of former police commissioner Chalor Kerdthet in the 1990s. Chalor masterminded the 1994 kidnapping and murder of the wife and son of a jeweller who was believed to have had information on the whereabouts of stolen Saudi gems.

The 1989 theft of millions of dollars in jewellery from the home of a Saudi prince by a Thai servant became a bigger scandal when it was revealed that some of the jewels returned to the Saudis were fake. Some of the gems have never been found.

Chalor thought he could press jeweller Santi Srithanakhan to tell what he knew in exchange for the return of his wife and son.

Pansak was part of the kidnap team that held Santi’s wife Darawadee and eight-year-old son Seri for nearly a month in Sa Kaeo while Chalor continued to negotiate with the jeweller.

The talks went nowhere and Chalor finally demanded a ransom from Santi. The latter paid 2.5 million baht and then reported the kidnapping to the authorities.

Fearing exposure, Chalor told Pansak to “get rid of the evidence”. Pansak and two others beat Darawadee and Seri to death and left their bodies in a car.

Pansak was sentenced in 2002 to life in prison. The term was upheld on appeal in 2005 but he was released in 2012.

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BANGKOK:  Hanging out a bar and willing to discuss personal visa matters with a total stranger? Then watch out for guys like this who have for many many years successfully scammed foreigners desperate for visas and work permits out of hundreds of thousands if not millions of baht.  In this case the guy has been nabbed in the case of two separate foreigners who decided to file charges.  But the perpetrator has a long record which seems to indicate he’s just paying someone else off to get out of the deeper trouble when it comes.

BANGKOK — A Thai man was arrested for impersonating a lawyer to scam foreigners wanting permanent residency or work permits, police said Thursday.

Pairoj Kanchanarat, 50, was detained in Nonthaburi province and charged with fraud after two foreigners filed police complaints. They said they were tricked into paying him tens of thousands of baht as he claimed he could secure visas for them, according to immigration chief Maj. Gen. Surachet Hakpan.

Police said the American victim paid 25,000 baht for a permanent resident permit, while his Italian friend lost 49,000 baht for a work permit after Pairoj approached them in February in a Bangkok bar.

Pairoj’s arrest warrant was issued on Monday, Surachet said.

He said Pairoj used this method to scam foreigners for about 10 years and had been charged with fraud seven times in Bangkok, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Nakhon Ratchasima and Chiang Mai provinces.

Pairoj would approach victims in popular places among foreigners claiming to be a lawyer or government official who could get them the permits without undergoing the normal process, according to Surachet.

Source: http://www.khaosodenglish.com/news/crimecourtscalamity/crime-crime/2018/10/12/fake-lawyer-busted-over-foreigner-visa-scams/

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BANGKOK:  After the first suspect turned himself in yesterday, police now have 5 more individuals under arrest in relation to the violent gun battle that resulted in the death of an India tourist and the wounding of many others.  As an AK-47 among other weapons were used in the incident, the issue has been pressed from the highest levels of government for arrest and prosecution of the perpetrators.  11 warrants total have been issued though more may be required to determine the source of the military-grade weapons used.

More details from Khaosod English:

Five more people were arrested in connection to a deadly gunbattle that killed a foreign tourist earlier this week in Bangkok.

Police announced the arrests Wednesday after they raided 12 buildings to look for evidence related to the shootout, which they said involved two rival gangs. An Indian tourist was killed in the crossfire and four others were wounded.

Col. Nakarin Sukhonthawit said 11 arrest warrants have been issued. Five suspects remain on the run.

Police said the fight broke out Sunday night between two gangs at a parking lot of the Watergate Pavillion shopping mall in Ratchathewi district. The two gangs were reportedly playing snooker in a nearby bar before they got into a heated argument, which escalated into a gun battle.

Col. Nakarin said multiple firearms was used in the incident, including an assault rifle, at least two handguns and a hunting rifle.

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PATTAYA: A Thai tour guide and his Chinese tour guide peer were charged with fraud for cheating a tourist out of 2000THB in an incident where the victim had been cited for littering with a cigarette at a pier just before his tour boat launched. When the victim received the fine he grew suspicious and informed authorities. More details below.

From Chiang Rai Times:

A photo of the altered receipt was posted on “PattayaWatchdog’’ Facebook page, and the pair were heavily criticized.

The tourist, Yu Jianmin, filed a complaint with tourist police and immigration officers at Suvarnabhumi airport after returning from Pattaya on Oct 8. Mr Yu accused the two guides of cheating him over the size of the fine.

He admitted he had dropped a cigarette on the ground at Laem Bali Hai pier in Pattaya on Oct 5.

An official saw it, charged him with littering in a public place and said he would take him to the Pattaya city office to pay the fine.

The Chinese guide intervened, saying the tour boat was about to leave and he should give his passport to Mr Udom, who would handle payment of the fine.

When the boat returned to the pier later Mr Udom gave him back the passport and a receipt with the figures altered to show 3,000 baht.

Mr Yu said when he questioned the amount, Mr Udom said the fine was actually 5,000 baht but he had negotiated it down to 3,000 baht. The tourist was not convinced and wanted to file a complaint with Pattaya police. The two guides opposed doing this.

Pol Lt Col Piyapong Ensarn, Pattaya tourist inspector, said on Wednesday that investigators concluded the two guides had colluded in altering the figure on the receipt to cheat the tourist of 1,000 baht.

A photo of the altered receipt was posted on “PattayaWatchdog’’ Facebook page, and the pair were heavily criticized.

The tourist, Yu Jianmin, filed a complaint with tourist police and immigration officers at Suvarnabhumi airport after returning from Pattaya on Oct 8. Mr Yu accused the two guides of cheating him over the size of the fine.

He admitted he had dropped a cigarette on the ground at Laem Bali Hai pier in Pattaya on Oct 5.

An official saw it, charged him with littering in a public place and said he would take him to the Pattaya city office to pay the fine.

The Chinese guide intervened, saying the tour boat was about to leave and he should give his passport to Mr Udom, who would handle payment of the fine.

When the boat returned to the pier later Mr Udom gave him back the passport and a receipt with the figures altered to show 3,000 baht.

Mr Yu said when he questioned the amount, Mr Udom said the fine was actually 5,000 baht but he had negotiated it down to 3,000 baht. The tourist was not convinced and wanted to file a complaint with Pattaya police. The two guides opposed doing this.

Pol Lt Col Piyapong Ensarn, Pattaya tourist inspector, said on Wednesday that investigators concluded the two guides had colluded in altering the figure on the receipt to cheat the tourist of 1,000 baht.

Source: https://www.chiangraitimes.com/thai-and-undocumented-chinese-tour-guide-arrested-for-cheating-a-chinese-tourist.html

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A police forensic team examined the scene of the Saturday night shootout that left one Indian dead and four other people wounded. (AP photo)

BANGKOK: One of the suspects in Sunday’s Pratunam gang shooting which killed an Indian tourist has turned himself in to police. Policce are now preparing to make five more arrests. The event was significant not in that a tourist was killed, but that high-powered AK-47 rifles were used. Opinion / Talking Points: This hints that the arms trade within Thailand is strong which has many other implications given the incendiary nature of past political conflicts. If gang members have this equipment, who else does?

Here’s more detail from Bangkok Post:

The hunt for the gunmen is being pursued with all available resources after the shootout between two gangs saw groups of tourists caught in the crossfire.

The shooting of the Indian, and injuries to a compatriot, a Lao national and two Thais, near the Watergate Pavilion shopping mall on the night of Oct 7, have led to police holding daily briefings.

Acting deputy city police chief Khatcha Thatsat, who chaired the latest briefing, announced the progress so far.

“We’ve detained one suspect named Preecha Sakudomphaisan,” Pol Maj Gen Khatcha told reporters, adding that there are “many” suspects on their wanted list.

Police will ask the court to issue warrants for the arrest of five more people, he said.

The officers are checking footage from four security cameras at the crime scene to gather more information about what happened.

Mr Preecha surrendered to Phaya Thai police the day after the deadly shooting and “confessed”, Pol Maj Gen Khatcha said.

However, the acting deputy city police chief did not say Tuesday whether the 28-year-old had fired the AK-47 assault rifle used in the gunfight The police are investigating how the firearm was obtained by the gang.

Reportedly, Mr Preecha will be charged with premeditated murder as he was central to what transpired.

The man reportedly oversaw a snooker hall in the area and his quarrel with a rival gang led to the gunfight.

The investigators did not believe the shooting was linked to local influential figures. The motive for the gunfight is likely to have resulted from a personal conflict, Pol Maj Gen Khatcha said.

Mr Preecha had allegedly been threatened by the aides of Bamphen Phumphuang, 23, who did not believe Mr Preecha was looking after the snooker hall.

“That is believed to have led to the brawl and deadly gunfight,” Pol Maj Gen Katcha said.

Their quarrel erupted in a car park near the shopping mall where foreign tourists were waiting to board a coach.

As they fired at each other, some bullets hit the five victims.

According to investigators who found shells from different weapons at the crime scene, an AK-47 was believed to have been used by at least one gunman.

The find prompted deputy Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwon to order a new crackdown on illegal firearms.

Gen Prawit said Tuesday he did not believe the incident was the work of mafia gangs.

“The mafia has gone as we’ve eradicated a number of gangs,” he said.

Meanwhile, permanent secretary for tourism and sports Pongpanu Svetarundra said the government will pay 1 million baht in compensation to the dead man’s family and will pay for any expenses not covered by his insurance.

India is ranked sixth in terms of the number of visitors to Thailand each year.

Last year 1.4 million Indian tourists generated more than 62 billion baht in revenue, according to statistics from the Tourism and Sports Ministry.

Link to Bangkok Post article:  https://www.bangkokpost.com/news/general/1554950/arrest-made-after-deadly-mall-shootout

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