This is a blog only
Today my friends at Phuketwan are reporting that all jet-skis in Patong Beach are now insured. This is now perhaps the time to put the lid on an incident in June this year involving a row over a damaged jet ski, British Royal Marines, and a payment of 35,000 Thai baht. etc…. and reveal the truth.
The series producer of ‘Big Trouble in Thailand’ Gavin Hill was not present for the edit in London and as such he appears to have been unable to stop some sharp editing during the jet ski scene in which some audio was pulled in from elsewhere to apparently make the scene look more dramatic.
The film, showing on the minority Bravo channel in the UK with just some 100,000 plus viewers, has apparently caused quite some controversy including threats to arrest the Thai fixers and a meeting between the London producers and the Thai Ambassador in London.
Actually personally I found it quite a true reflection on life in certain tourist areas in Thailand though of course it cannot speak from a very high moral plain because of some careless edits, and all the bells, whistles, repetitions, clanging prison doors etc. Lets face it its a film for chavs but it has entertained many of us especially as the chav narrator kept going on about Foo-ket and Patt-aye-ya.
As no foreigner is going to apologise for the jet ski stuff I now take it upon myself to apportion blame where of course it is truly deserved and apologise on everyone’s behalf.
“Dear Sir,
As a journalist based in Thailand I feel it is my duty to apologise for the wrong assumptions and unfair media treatment Thailand received this year over an incident involving a ‘damaged’ jet-ski, the Royal Marines and a very respectable businessmen called JJ.
Just a toy. That's so bloody obvious
Contrary to reports overseas, the jet ski hirer Marine Jack Tebbott, 21, was in fact so mortified about damaging the jet ski in question that he walked three miles to the jet-ski owners private premises to apologise and was not, as some reports suggest, taken there against his own will.
In addition he called his friends in the Royal Marines to help him with the apology as he thought a group apology would be better and carry far more weight.
He admitted many times that he was guilty even though he rather thought, that as the damage was to the side of the boat, his left leg might have noticed.
He even called in his boss in the Marine Police, Sergeant Tim Wright to apologise too.
The man known as JJ had described on camera how he dealt with foreigners who did not pay up. But this gesture of slapping his fist into his hand could not in any way be interpreted as an indication of physical violence. In any case knowing how journalists operate it was probably taken from his cookery programme in which he demonstrates how to grind spices for tom yam kung.
Playful banter. Tim and JJ sharing a joke as Marine Jack Tebbott chuckles in the background
Indeed it is quite clear from the documentary ‘Big Trouble in Thailand’, that footage which showed Marines and JJ laughing and joking and making small talk was in fact substituted with audio suggesting that they were alarmed when JJ produced what was obviously a toy gun. What pussycats! Further what was not explained in the programme is that JJ said that his bosses do not like him using guns as they are the guys who actually do.
Clearly the sound track which was not translated for the British audience, and which appeared to show JJ saying to himself : “These motherfuckers not (going to) mess with me’ must have come from a totally different incident , also his reference to the Marines as ‘mun’ (jerks in this context).
There clearly is a cut in the film during the gun scene which makes things suspicious. I am sure it cannot be because of the feeble excuse that JJ told the crew not to film either of the other two guns in his armoury.
There is of course a sequence which shows some swearing between the Marine Police Sergeant and JJ. This friendly banter has of course been wildly distorted.
There was a sequence in the film which also shows JJ saying that if the stain on the fibre glass is brown – then the damage is old.
Sergeant Wright pointed out that the stain in this case was also brown. But it was decided by mutual agreement that in this case the brown meant that it was new damage.
Marine Jack was more than happy to pay out 35,000 Thai baht in damages and Tim and JJ were so happy that they settled in a spirit of warm conviviality and can clearly be seen shaking hands.
In fact one Marine was so deliriously happy that he had to be held back by his comrades from giving JJ a Glasgow kiss.
Why were JJ's men not allowed to wear their suits?
Marine Sergeant Wright is not as JJ says, his father, pa, or dad, and JJ is indeed a normal person and a businessman. I am also appalled at the cutaways to JJ’s colleagues covered all over with tattoos and being made to look menacing. So why did the filmmakers not give them the opportunity to look as smart as Sergeant Wright?
But no! These film companies, who are obviously out to trash Thailand, do not show these sort of things do they! Good news is not news is it!
Jet ski operators Phuket happily agree to massive discounts or something else at Phuketwan
Two policemen arrived at the same time as Sergeant Tim Wright and of course had anything untoward happened they would have done something.
In fact when JJ is negotiating he says his uncle is the local police chief, showing that he is indeed an upstanding citizen, I believe they even joined in a chorus together with Marine Jack in: “We are men. We are men. We are not ladyboys. We are not katoeys. We don’t run.”
To be quite frank, as Sergeant Wright has pointed out, Royal Marines were involved in five other jet ski incidents in June in two days in Patong Beach, Phuket, and had to pay damages on each occasion.
This quite clearly shows that these guys know nothing at all about boats and watercraft. They should not be allowed out to sea at all!
Sergeant Wright is mistaken when he refers accidentally to the jet ski operator as a ‘two bit low-life’. Either that or this was taken from another section when he was talking about the cameraman.
Thailand has lots of lovely beaches - and jet skis
In fact jet-skis are really quite sophisticated machines which should not really put in the hands of foreigners.
Due to their lack of sklls under Thai law foreigners are not allowed to operate any vessel, powered or sail, based in Thailand without an authorised Thai Captain looking over their shoulder.
Proof is in the fact that between December and April this year in Chaweng Beach, Koh Samui, over 150 foreigners, operating without Thai Captains, had to pay up for damages.
In conclusion the Thai Film Board, Tourism Authority etc, Channel 3 and the Bangkok Post are all quite right in their assumptions. Anybody Thai who had a hand in the making of ‘Big Trouble in Thailand’ and did not collude in showing a favourable image to the country should be brought to trial.
And JJ, who had no history of firearms offences ( well apart from an incident three day before the Marines arrived ) should therefore receive an apology from the producers forthwith.
PS: The 500 baht taxi fare from Kalim to Patong is a very good deal by the way. Why are all these foreigners complaining. They’re all rich are they not?
Disrespecting Thai culture. Foreigners in lock up after Full Moon party on Koh Phangnan
May I take this opportunity to also apologise for the outrageous slur made against the police in Koh Phangan who it was alleged ( well it was not, but the Police Chief in Koh Phagnan says it was) profiteered monthly from the drugs arrests at the Full Moon Parties. These people are disrespecting Thai culture by bringing their drugs culture to this small island. It is up to the Thai police to use the full powers of the law to eradicate this problem. Nevertheless people have been treated with leniency and mercy. I would like to point out the girl in question got bail ( as they always do) and went to court (as everybody does) and received due justice and mercy in Thailand. This had nothing to do with the cameras being present. It would be outrageous to suggest that all the other people paid themselves off with figures up to and over 60,000 baht on pain of going to jail, and this was the only druggie the filmmaker could find, who had to go through the process as she could not scrape the bribe together.
Ruining Thai culture. Restaurant menu on Haad Rin beach Koh Phangnan
Acknowledgement: With thanks to the painstaking research by Talen and Thailandlandofsmiles.com
However it appears that neither Marine Sergeant Tim Page nor Gavin Hill agree with my researcher Talen, who has been digging deep from his huts in Nakon Phanom and Mukdahan and I suppose in the interests of fairness I have to reprint these letters to him.
Marine Police Sergeant Tim Wright
Police did ’sweet fanny Adam’
From Marine Police Sergeant Tim Wright, 40 Commando, Taunton, Somerset
Talen
I have just found this site (www.thailandlandofsmiles.com) and as you seem to have taken an aversion to my methods let me put you in the picture about the incident, which I see Gavin Hill has already commented on.
I was called to the scene, one of numerous similar incidents I had been called to that week, and had been informed that a gun had been pulled on a group of Royal Marines by a local ‘business man’! It was not my intent on arrival at a scene to allow that weapon or any other to be drawn again. As for not calling the local police, they were there, I didn’t have to, my Thai colleagues had called them and they sat around doing nothing, just waiting for the money to be handed over and for us to leave. If the lad had not already made a deal with JJ, I would have removed them from the scene and told him to take him to court. He would not have done because he knew it was a scam.
This onging corruption and criminality spoils a beautiful country and a very generous and loving people. I saw many tourists being scammed by the jet ski hire people, it is something I would warn anybody visiting Thailand against doing, along with motorbike hire, drugs and ladyboys.
The whole visit to Phuket was marred for many of the young me and women I was policing by such scams, and it would be far more productive for you to try and remove that blight from your golden beaches than to insult law abiding tourists who bring much needed foreign currency to your country.
I am an honourable man and I would like an apology for your comments about me. To insult me as you have and caste doubts as to my character and professionalism deeply saddens me I can only hope you never fall foul of a similar con.
your aye
Tim
And this from Gavin Hill, formerly of Bravo Productions
Hi Talen –
So, you cracked the case hey? Solved the mystery?
With quite a bit of help along the way from the trustyswordoftruth it would appear
Mike’s correct in saying neither Tim nor I needed to respond to you, and I think you have been unnecessarily adversarial and impolite, given our contribution to your blog.
I think you have been confused as to who the ‘enemy’ is at times.
You do owe Tim an apology. He was acting in the very best interests of his men and very bravely. Some of your comments do suggest naivete as to the way things work on the ground in situations like this – in Thailand and many other places too for that matter.
I know you’ll get very defensive about this, but it would be magnanimous of you if you did.
Vera Productions are threatening to sue – they don’t like the release of any footage which shows how they doctored sound which contributed to a man’s arrest and imprisonment.
Now, whoever uploaded that video to You Tube did so in the public interest – because I would imagine they believe in professionalism, balance and fairness, that factual entertainment shouldn’t be at the expense of factual accuracy.
I would imagine they also believe that their credibility and that of the series is compromised by factual inaccuracy, attempts at fabrication, misleading information (288 Brits “killed” last year in Thailand) and the unnecessary dramatisation of very real events, such as JJ and the Marines. Mispronunciation of place names is just pathetic.
But I expect they felt powerless to do anything about it in the face of rampant sensationalism, disregard for old fashioned journalistic values and threatened legal might.
The fact remains, however it was (mis)represented by Vera Productions/Virgin Media, that JJ introduced a gun into a very tense situation (the audio over the gun shots came from a scuffle between JJ and one of the Marines that wasn’t cut into the broadcast programme, but should have been). The gun was threatening, although I don’t believe the line of v/o should have said that.
As the creator, producer, director and cameraman of ‘Big Trouble In Thailand’ but with little or no input into the editing process my misgivings, or should I say fury, began when Virgin Media at the last minute changed the working title ‘Thai Cops’ to ‘Big Trouble In Tourist Thailand’. I complained – in the strongest possible terms – that this would be a slap in the face of the Thai authorities who so kindly gave me such unrivaled and unique access. If I’d said we were making ‘Big Trouble In Tourist Thailand’ I seriously doubt we would have been permitted to do what we did. Had the title not been so provocative – personally I saw it as an attack on Thailand’s tourism industry – and had the JJ scenes been edited in a more balanced manner (as had been the case in the rough cut I was sent to look at) then I think the series would have received less adverse attention and certainly attracted less controversy. I might not be facing arrest and imprisonment there. After all, it is only a very minor series being watched largely by young males who amount to the population of a small english town – at most.
But … yes, then there is You Tube which does make a difference these days.
But people have got a bit carried away nevertheless.
Me? I’m just a stickler for truth insofar as it’s possible to tell it, and getting the balance right. Thai Cops was also my idea and it had enormous potential. It was a tricky proposition, I’ll admit, but everything was going swimmingly until the content we’d gathered in the field was handed over to Vera Productions in London. Everyone was on board – from JJ and the Marines to the Thai police and prison authorities.
Regardless of what anyone might think of JJ, there was absolutely no justification for faking the audio.
Though I was not responsible for doing so, I do apologise to the viewers that my idea for a highly-watchable Thai police series came to this.
I think it’s about time that reality TV got its house in order and production companies opened a dictionary and looked up the world “integrity”. This way we who work in the industry, in this genre, can hold our heads high in the knowledge we’re not disrespecting the TV viewer who would, I’m sure, like to believe that reality TV can either be trusted, or if not, carry a warning in the way cigarette packets do – along the lines of your summation Talen … don’t believe all you see or hear.
So the truth was out there, wasn’t it?
Talen at ThailandLandof Smiles has as usual demanded the last word.
So you, tabloid scum, think you are a journalist, Tim thinks he is something big in the military and Gavin thinks he is some swanky film producer. You can all argue until to are blue in the face but I can tell you I work on facts gleaned from some 150 hours watching and re-watching the videos, and by nicking stuff off other blogs and quoting them out of context to make my site look better!
You tell you I know nothing, but let me tell You I know f*ck all! Did you like my blog on Mukdahan by the way. Freudian eh. Me pretending to look for a whore but only finding this woman’s luscious dim sum. Bet that had you in a sweat! (enough now Ed).
My, my, my! You really should develop your skills at sarcasm!
Seriously, though, you and I are on the same page it seems today:
http://www.tfs2m.com/main/2009/10/13/big-trouble-in-thailand-creator-admits-j-j-gun-scene-faked-slams-truth-bending-editors/
Well written Andrew… Irony is not dead. To Pattaya Ghost, it is irony not sarcasm by the way as it is not directed to cause harm to anyone but is rather more tongue in cheek. Refreshing to see an ironic take on things that well put together and I suspect it will go right over many people’s heads. ha-ha…
It is quite clear in this unedited footage posted 3 days ago on Youtube that JJ is not threatening with the gun in any way but the way it was edited with the voice over from JJ when he WAS threatening them verbally makes it appear so on what was aired on TV.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GuPGNyKdR7U
Ivan: (1) Exactly mate that’s what I am saying. It was a complete stitch-up!!
Ivan (Answer 2) A pretty widely accepted rule among people who have trained with guns, as I have, is that you do not bring them out at all unless you are going to need them and certainly not in a situation which could be misinterpreted with your finger over the trigger. Prior to bringing out the gun JJ is recorded saying ‘Motherfuckers not (going to) mess with me!’ and referring to the Marines as ‘mun’. This of course could be jovial banter too but it also open to misinterpretation.
I think it is widely accepted that the wide-boys in London made a completely unethical edit causing them to lose credibility. Had they been smarter and with a little more journalistic training they could have cut a much stronger piece using the material they had already been given and a smarter script (v/o).
In fact had I been the Producer I would have 100 per cent used the gun scene, but in a very different way.
This is why the in-Thailand series producer is so furious because it reflects directly on him whether he likes it or not.
He is all the more furious because a real situation in which a Marine had to be stopped from attacking JJ is cut out altogether.
The producers are much more into the ratings in this sort of programme.
At the end of the day you have to ask. What was the purpose of bringing out the gun? Just because there was a bit of jovial banter does not mean that some of the marines were not thinking ‘What the f.ck!’
There is a danger in watching certain footage in not taking in all the circumstances and not really understanding the real vibe going on in JJ’s boat sheds. There is a lot of standing around waiting. Obviously people are going to make small talk. It does not mean there is no real threatening situation in hand.
Was the irony lost on you?
So there were 2 policemen in the boatyard sat watching this the whole time? We never got to see them on camera. What were they doing there? Waiting to receive their cut of the money the Marine handed over?
How long before ‘insurance’ arrives on the opposite coast, given a further THB 50,000 is believed to have changed hands this week?
The figures shown for Chaweng are actually from the entire archapeligao with the main offenders being in Chaweng, Lamai, Nangwan & Had Rin. Quad-bikes/ATV’s attract similar attention & are therefore included (Nangwan-in the jungle near Samui court). The victims are predominantly ‘Ferangs’ but include the occasional non-Thai asian (Japan/Korean etc).
In fairness there are other business in the area who must be operating fairly because no complaints are ever made. I bet they’re pissed off at being tarred with the same brush!
RB
Ivan: JJ told the producers he has to pay police 20 per cent when they are involved in negotiations. I don’t actually know what happened in this case, but clearly as Tim Wright says, police were doing nothing to help the Royal Marines. They did not involve themselves at all. There is footage of the police on the scene btw. But the police did not arrive until after the gun incident.
Contrary to Thai opinion this series had been cut to put Thai police in good light. There is certainly stuff on the cutting room floor which might give a less favourable impression. But of course this was meant to be ‘Thai cops’ and you don’t bite the hand that feeds you.
I love the stuff with drunk drivers being stopped by even more drunk Thai cops!
Rowley: Thanks for that. Seems our source is the same. Chawaeng,I gather takes top prize though.
I won’t edit as people will not realise what your post is about. But for the record the 150 people in Chawaeg who have had to pay damages in fact had to pay out at several places mentioned in Rowley’s in (Samui, Phangan etc) post above and these damages claims included quad bikes.
If you think Phuket is bad…
BTIT have cut a scene involving a jet ski rip-off in Chaweang btw where there is quite a nasty on camera confrontation worse apparently than the one with JJ. I do not know whether it is still going to included in the series which has two more parts. I have spoken briefly to one of the British victims however, who will not be returning.
Well written Andrew and I agree one does not bite the hand that feeds you but i also believe there should be no dumming down of the reality of these scams.
Calling in the thai ambassador in london was a positive step. he should now get his thai colleagues to work a little faster on reducing corruption and scams; and despite potential loss of face admit the problem and indicate it will be dealt with. a slow process of course, decades to achieve fully.
the production company have made the gesture of not showing the unacceptable bits of the thai way that they could have shown; it is time for the thai side to do the honourable thing and not try to continue to act as if all is well in the kingdom of denmark.
people have made their minds up about jj and tim, and at the very least tim is owed an apology.
Newbie. Thanks. I think the Ambassador asked to see the Production people. Gavin was in London but the Production people understandably felt his presence would not be helpful.
I think the only thing which is going to change the situation is continued publicity in the international press about these scams. There is a lot of stuff up already on Thailand scam websites. But you have to look for it.
As a rule of thumb Thai Ambassadors often do not send bad news back to the Foreign Ministry here if its going to pose a problem.
JJ. A wimp with a gun, a completely overinflated ego and a big Jathukham.
Next stop, the Banana Boat Mafia
As a military man, Sergeant Wright must be familiar with the concept that responsibility for placing subordinates at risk must be accepted by the officers and the commands which take those decisions. As criminality — petty and gross — has long been rife at all high-traffic Thai beach resorts, why would the leadership of 40 Commando, the Royal Marines, the Naval Service and the Ministry of Defence put their people into that situation? Simple lack of intelligence (in both senses of the word)?
Talen and JJ should be stuck in a rowboat together. But if they scratch it, they owe me 1 million Baht.
Mongersea:I do not think British Intelligence has yet categorised Phuket as a hostile port. Interesting thought though
At times it must have seemed worse than Helmand Province in Afghanistan where most of these lads lost colleagues last year!
Personally the worst journalism in this case was, as usual, by the Thai Press and television, including the Bangkok Post, who bleated like lambs, about foreigners trashing Thailand, rather than addressing themselves to the issues in question. JJ was almost enshrined as a TV hero!
Dear Andrew, at first I couldn’t tell if you were being sarcastic for Farang and apologetic for the Thai readers to save Thai face and so well written I thought you were pulling it off and perhaps you should have written it for the Post that would have been as clever as your piece here but maybe I am just asleep as I write this :). Seems like Mr. Hill hired a production company that knows little or nothing about Thailand comparatively speaking and perhaps he did not follow up enough. It seems out of the ordinary and almost criminal they would change the title last minute and completely stray from your Masterpiece by changing the format. What was the arrangement? Partnership? As it sounds like you would otherwise have a lawsuit in the making against the production company. I would have loved to see a show called Thai cops. What was Vera trying to accomplish by changing the format? There wasn’t enough arrests (content) So after said and done how much content did you get? How many hours and weeks did you spend filming? So in the final analysis is there enough Farang crime going on besides drunken fighting and whore mongerng to do many more shows? What are some of the stories if any are missing that landed on the cutting floor that put Thai cops in a good light? You cannot finish the show with proper format to help right things? Try not to feel badly Mr. Hill how can the show last anyway after you expose prostitution and cop corruption filming in Pattaya and Phuket? Personally I really liked watching it thanks for the real life Thai cop drama or kinda something sorta like that
If you bring a lawsuit against the production company and win you should not have to worry about re entering Thailand. Just for show and if your in Thailand File a lawsuit from Thailand if you can and send out press release and if you stay in touch with the right people you could perhaps give it another try with some more serious backing. Even a Thai on Thai crime cops show would be higher aspiration and a big money maker. Approach the people you pissed off in Thailand. The corporate people and offer to make the show after you win a lawsuit. Damn good idea “Cop’s Thailand”
Dear Toby,
Yes there are enough foreign crooks in Thailand to make a documentary. But there’s an old expression out there. ‘The truth will never die. But you may surely die if you tell it.”
Life is just as you wish to see it
I believe this apology is long over due. It is well known that thailand has one of the finest police forces money can buy.
Every day I see officers, such as officer glass (http://www.flickr.com/photos/bangkokhiro/3394989583/), who I am certain have never lied, committed purgery, kidnap, murder, extortion or taken a bribe and are clearly an inspiration as to what can be achieved in thailand.
Andrew I commend you; for seeing the error of your ways and offering up such a heartfelt apology where it is due.
Andrew Drummond: To the reader ‘Smackhead’ who sent me the following by email.
“If the girl had to pay 40,000 Thai baht bail and then had to wait a month to go to trial and then was fined just £5,000 for possessing cannabis, would it not in effect be cheaper to pay the bribe and be done with it, especially if there is a threat of jail. I am told that when there is not a film crew around these people are told they could actually have to wait six months for a trial!”
The answer to your question Smackhead is, that is assuming this is a hypothetical case, ‘Yes’.
Similarly embassy officials cannot offer that advice in a real situation. If the Embassy official twiches his left eye when you ask ‘Should I pay now’ you have the answer (hypothetically).
In this case the woman got her bail back. Bail however is not usually granted to foreigners on drugs charges of any kind.
Andrew - on the contrary … from what we saw on the Full Moon Party island of Koh Phangan, it’s quite usual for bail to be granted to foreigners on drugs charges. In Fact in Ep. 1 of ‘Big Trouble In Thailand’ the British Hon. Consul reminds those banged up for drug offences that they should ensure it’s their name on the bail receipt otherwise they won’t get their money back. Though we didn’t follow their cases through the system, we certainly saw numerous foreigners being let out of the Thong Sala cells on bail on the days we were in town. Amounts varied - the most I saw someone pay was 65,000 Baht - a Brit who was intending to travel to Australia a few days later. I assume it depends on the quantity and type of drugs you’re caught with.
Gavin: Thanks for that. Its unusual for foreigners to get bail on drugs charges in Thailand period. Koh Phangan does however sometimes appear to be a different country. While it is true that foreigners should have their name on the bail, this is not always possible because the foreigner does not have that amount of cash to spare for bail, for a lawyer, and does not want to go to trial, so in steps the bail bond man for his high commission.
(These guys by the way you can be sure are not risking anything. Their job goes beyond bail bonding. In every other tourist city in Thailand they are also the fixers)
The figure of 65,000 baht bail should tell you something. It is very high for a something like cannabis where the fine is normally only a few thousand baht.
Then again if it is the bail for a Class one drug like ‘E’ then clearly nobody expects this money to be paid back and the foreigner would be stupid to hang around for trial, for possession of that stuff is a guaranteed jail sentence.
In this case if the Brit was still confident of travelling to Australia in a few days anyway then part of the deal would have been the return of his passport and that he should disappear.
Technically its the courts who decide on bail. But there is no, or was not last I heard, a court on Koh Phangnan. I have not researched to find out how many peopl go through the courts, but we rarely if ever get reports of foreigners being jailed for drugs in Surat Thani.(Though it must happen in serious cases) I’ll need to check.
Actually I have heard of many cases of police giving on the spot fines. The thought of having to wait for a long time, or even one or two days in custody, does up the ante!
I have been to the lock up on Thongsala in younger days when all the inmates had to pay for their release direct to the locals so to speak. I think Cleary has done a blog on this or something like it.
You told me the girl was given a little help. What was it? From my memory the girl’s boyfriend says on tape that he had been asked for 65,000 Thai baht? Is that right?
If you were not doing a Thai Cops programme that would have been your point of departure.
PS You don’t have to answer the last two questions here
If you think all my info is out of date please do not hesitate to come back on it.
ps; I am led to suspect, possibly wrongly, that the 65,000 baht was requested at the police station for the problem to go away.
Andrew - yes, that’s what Marcus Hilton, jailed for ecstasy possession in Pattaya jail told me - that it IS unusual, unheard of even, to get bail for drugs offences. So, his bad luck was to get caught in Pattaya then?
It was actually 70,000 Baht that was requested/required of Micha’s boyfriend Martin by a woman who appears to work at Thong Sala police station, but told me she represents a law firm. She is a ‘regular fixture’ at Thong Sala police station and specifically around the cells upstairs - certainly the morning after the five Full Moon Parties I attended (in a row). She was acting as a translator/go-between, winning clients through the bars, and was receiving bail money directly from the accused (or their friends just back from the ATM). I don’t know about the problem going away but certain the Brit, as the door was opened to his cell, was fully expecting to continue his onward travels to Australia a few days later.
I assume he must have to return for his Samui court date?
You’ve got me worried now - should I have had my passport stamped on entry to Koh Phangan then?
The scam works like this:
1.Druggie gets arrested (circumstanses are a seperate issue)& taken to Police Station.
2.Police notify the, err, ‘lawyer’ who invariably reaches the station before they do.
3.Druggie starts to flap.
4.’Lawyer’ does the dance of the seven veils (promises miracles on production of passport & ATM card……or rings mummy in Europe)
4.’Lawyer’ escorts Druggie to ATM or Western Union.
5.’Lawyer’ pays bail @ police station (guess whos name it’s in?)
6.Druggie gets fast-tracked to court in about a week, where he/she is fined THB 2500-5000. Druggie then discovers that the bail money is no longer theirs (see para 6).
7. Police, ‘Lawyer’ & others involved in the scam devide their spoils & move to the next in the queue.
The ‘lawyers’ only qualification seems to be to have a better grasp of the English language than the BIB. Those that can’t/won’t pay can expect to be ‘in the system’ for 4 to 6 months (see para 3)
These idiots deserve to be punished, but who’s the bigger criminal & how far (Para 7) do their tentacles reach?
…I should add that there’s also a fee for the lawyers services. A typical victim won’t get much change from THB 100,000 / 1800 Euros, making it a very expensive joint.