Police Fighting "Losing Battle" over Foreigners Committing Crimes in Thailand

[Gaybutton]

The following appears in the BANGKOK POST:

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Police 'Fighting a Losing Battle'

 

Crime Involving Foreigners is Rising

 

By: Wassayos Ngamkham

Published: 16/03/2009

 

Foreigners from nearly 50 countries are exploiting the Land of Smiles to make smiles of their own with money and assets they reap from plundering Thai victims.

 

Street pilfering by Cambodians and Vietnamese, the hacking of ATM card information by Malaysian gangs and robberies in luxury hotels by Pakistanis and Iranians are among nine criminal types categorised by Phanthana Nutchanart, an investigator with the Transnational Crime Coordination Centre. The agency is controlled by the Central Investigation Bureau.

 

Pol Lt-Col Phanthana's team has been assigned to track these transnational criminals after at least three cases, allegedly committed by foreigners, have been reported in the past two weeks.

 

Police have identified suspects in these crimes, but with so many cases to deal with, some officers fear they are fighting a losing battle.

 

Blaming a lack of international cooperation to share criminal records, Pol Lt-Col Phanthana said there was little hope to catch criminals unless better joint efforts among police in each country were established.

 

Thai police realised how serious the transnational crime problem was when they searched for clues in ATM-related crimes, which used sophisticated technology.

 

Investigations into gold and cash robberies also highlighted the extent of the problem.

 

During one case, on March 9, police managed to identify an Argentine man suspected of stealing from vehicles at car parks. Markos Saimon Bacili, 24, was alleged to have followed a gold and jewellery businessman to his car before accosting the victim and making off with gold and cash worth 4 million baht.

 

The man was later arrested at a Pattaya beach in Chon Buri, police said.

 

An earlier case involved a Taiwanese gang allegedly colluding with a Thai man in a tax refund scam.

 

The Department of Special Investigation later released a report that revealed Malaysian gangs were the prime suspects in ATM card fraud.

 

The DSI said the gangs install fake card slots at ATMs. Card holders' information is then stolen by tiny skimmers inside the slots and small cameras hidden above can record people entering their PINs.

 

Pol Lt-Col Phanthana also warned tourists at luxury hotels about Iranians and Pakistanis who disguise themselves as guests to steal from mostly wealthy victims.

 

He said hotel room safes were not always safe as these criminals were skilled at opening them, he said.

 

"All of these crimes have occurred in countries worldwide," said Pol Lt-Col Phanthana, especially in tourist areas.

 

He admitted it was an uphill job to crack down on these gangs which he said had spread to nearly 50 countries. The task could not be only done by Thai police, he stressed.

 

While many police are hoping for the introduction of a law to ensure foreigners who commit crimes in Thailand are prosecuted here, his team have at least paved the way for further investigation by identifying nine types of transnational crime.

[PattayaMale]

While many police are hoping for the introduction of a law to ensure foreigners who commit crimes in Thailand are prosecuted here, his team have at least paved the way for further investigation by identifying nine types of transnational crime.

I don't understand this part of the article. I thought foreigners that were caught here committing a crime are prosecuted in Thailand.

[Gaybutton]

I don't understand this part of the article. I thought foreigners that were caught here committing a crime are prosecuted in Thailand.

I'm confused about that too. Maybe something was lost in translation.

 

[Guest]

Malaysia's GDP per capita is roughly twice that of Thailand, so I would think they have more good targets at home for ATM scamming. Unless they are targeting tourists with bigger bank balances.

[Rogie]

Malaysia's GDP per capita is roughly twice that of Thailand, so I would think they have more good targets at home for ATM scamming. Unless they are targeting tourists with bigger bank balances.

 

I'm sure you are right about the GDP aspect, and assuming the Thai authorities are also right, ease of access from Malaysia to Thailand means those criminals in the sophisticated world of ATM fraud are spolit for choice. Also, for all I know, compared to Thailand, the banks' ATM's in Malaysia may be ahead of the game in terms of anti-fraud measures that've been instigated.

[Guest lvdkeyes]

Maybe Malaysia deals with their citizens more harshly than Thailand does with foreigners, I don't know, but that could be a reason.

[Guest fountainhall]

He said hotel room safes were not always safe as these criminals were skilled at opening them, he said.

 

This is something that has always concerned me, especially if you return to the same hotel on a regular basis. It took me a year or so after starting to use in-room safes before I realised that the 4 digit code I was using had the same first 3 digits as my suitcase lock - and I had not changed the suitcase numbers after unpacking. Now I am much more careful.

 

Mind you, to get into the safe, the thief has first to get into the room. Whilst 4 and 5 star hotels will have guards and security cameras all over the place, cheaper ones will mostly be less secure. I have occasionally locked my room key in the room. When I have phoned down to reception, all I have had to give is something like my date of birth and they sent someone from housekeeping to open it. So if a boy or other guest you have entertained in the room is able to find out some personal details, there is at least a chance they will be able to gain easy access in your absence.

 

I was impressed last week-end in Hong Kong when I again left the key in the room. A bellboy came to open it, but then I had to show proof of ID before he'd leave. If he'd been more cute, I would have taken a lot longer to provide it.