Be Careful

[Gaybutton]

Unfortunately, Pattaya has changed over the years from a city in which all of us could feel perfectly safe to a city in which you could easily become a crime victim if you're not cautious.

 

The following story appears in the PATTAYA CITY NEWS and illustrates what I'm talking about:

_____

 

New Zealand man assaulted as gang of youths attempt to steal his motorbike.

 

 

Mr. Goran Jurec aged 40 from New Zealand made his way to Pattaya Police Station on Monday Night and informed officers that he had just been assaulted by a gang of young Thai men on the Pratamnak Mountain. They attempted to steal his motorbike without success. Mr. Jurec wearing a blood stained Polo-shirt, made a report to officers who immediately began a search for a gang of four young men who were known to be armed with small pieces of wood. After a search, the gang were located and arrested under the overpass leading to the Bali Hai Port at the south end of Pattaya Third Road. Three men were arrested, one man who is thought to be the main instigator managed to escape. The men aged between 14 and 18 were taken back to Pattaya Police Station where they confessed to the assault but denied prior knowledge of the attack on the foreigner. Despite these claims, Police believe they are part of a gang who target foreigners who drive rented motorbikes. The bikes are stolen by force and resold in Pattaya and surrounding districts. The gang members are now behind bars on charges of assault and theft and will now face a judge who will decide their fate.

_____

 

The article does not mention what time this incident took place, but I can guess. It was probably in the wee hours of the morning and the "farang" was probably alone. These sorts of crimes don't take place when there are plenty of witnesses around.

 

The thing to do is to stay in well lit tourist areas at night and refrain from venturing off by yourself to other areas. If you have a reason to be in a more remote area, then at least try not to be alone. If you are a "farang," alone and in a more remote area, then you might as well wear a sign that says "victim." Street gangs that prey on easy targets have become a major problem in Pattaya and the police simply don't have the manpower to control it as much as we would like.

 

Street gangs prey on tourists by night. Scam artists prey on tourists by day. You have to watch out for them too.

 

Of course, the odds are that you'll come to Pattaya, have a fantastic time, and never be the victim of anything, but it doesn't hurt to be careful. I have a few suggestions:

 

1. At night, as I said above, stick to the well lit tourist areas where there are plenty of people around.

 

2. Most of the violent crime takes place after the bars have shut down for the night. When the streets are more or less deserted, then don't be out there.

 

3. At night, especially late at night, use the baht buses for transportation.

 

4. If you have expensive jewelry or gold bracelets and chains, leave it in your hotel safe. If you're out there wearing it, then you're looking for trouble.

 

5. Don't flash around large amounts of money. When you go out, take only the amount of money you actually need. If you anticipate taking a boy "off," then take the amount you plan to tip him and put it somewhere hidden in your room. That way, when the boy is in the room with you, you can immediately place your wallet in the room safe and won't have to take it out again to give him his tip.

 

6. Definitely put your wallet and other valuables, including passport and plane tickets, in the room safe if a boy is in the room with you. If your room has no safe, then be careful about "the shower." Many boys want to shower before "other activities" and want you to shower too. No problem about that, of course, but many "farang" have become victims when they emerge from the shower only to discover the boy has disappeared and so have any valuables that were accessible to him.

 

I hope others will post additional advice, most of which is common sense whether in Pattaya or anywhere else. I think it was Mark Twain who said something like this: "The only thing common about common sense is that it's uncommon."

[Maple]

PATTAYA CITY NEWS Tuesday 9th May 2006

 

New Zealand man assaulted as gang of youths attempt to steal his motorbike.

 

Mr. Goran Jurec aged 40 from New Zealand made his way to Pattaya Police Station on Monday Night and informed officers that he had just been assaulted by a gang of young Thai men on the Pratamnak Mountain. They attempted to steal his motorbike without success. Mr. Jurec wearing a blood stained Polo-shirt, made a report to officers who immediately began a search for a gang of four young men who were known to be armed with small pieces of wood.

 

After a search, the gang were located and arrested under the overpass leading to the Bali Hai Port at the south end of Pattaya Third Road. Three men were arrested, one man who is thought to be the main instigator managed to escape. The men aged between 14 and 18 were taken back to Pattaya Police Station where they confessed to the assault but denied prior knowledge of the attack on the foreigner. Despite these claims, Police believe they are part of a gang who target foreigners who drive rented motorbikes. The bikes are stolen by force and resold in Pattaya and surrounding districts. The gang members are now behind bars on charges of assault and theft and will now face a judge who will decide their fate.

 

 

[Guest freeyourmind]

Unfortunately GB, I have to agree with you about the crime. I have lived here for nearly five years and I see a lot more of these thug type guys hanging around not only on beach road but in the dark stretches of Jomtiem Beach and packs of guys in different sois around town after 11:00 PM.

 

I know all the business owners will have to comment about the crime in other Countries etc. etc, and how safe you are here. I don

[Gaybutton]

it is only a matter of time before the international community starts taking closer look at

[Guest noy9000]

Is there a higher occurance of crime in Pattaya.....? I really suspect that it's a bad case of ugly american or ugly farangs, I'd personally witness how ugly these folks are - (I'm in the hospital 1 day in Bangkok)

 

There was this american asking for the breakdown of ingredients of a particular food, because it tasted funny.. she went all the way to check on the brand of the sauce, salts & pepper used. Screaming she was, Unbecoming she was, Ugly she is.

 

btw. for those supporting education for boys.. any guidelines on the educational fees in university there?

[Guest freeyourmind]

"Is there a higher occurance of crime in Pattaya.....?"

 

 

Noy9000,

 

A higher occurance of crime compared to your home? My home? The Moon?

 

Not sure what you are asking. What some of us are saying is the street crime and crimes against farangs in Pattaya is a lot higher than it was a few years ago. Not because there are more people, but because the social standards are changing and drug use is increasing. (My opinion)

 

An ugly American or any farang being stupid is always a present situation that occures in Pattaya or any hoilday venue. Aways has happen and always will happen. Mai pen rai.

 

Crime stats are hard to come by since the TAT doesn't want to scare tourists away by allowing the true figures/numbers to be made public.

 

I hope this helps answer your inquiry.

 

As far as education expences are concern, I haven't a clue.

 

Best Regards,

 

fym

[Guest noy9000]

It'll be good if I can support just 1 guy for his university education, a local university should be really affordable & is likely to be 20,000TH - 40,000THB p/year. I'm not 100% sure but I know that an English Language degree in a Bangkok University with Farang lecturers - it'll be 60,000THB to 80,000THB ... and the F&A section says that it's alot more expensive than local students because they pay for english lecturer's flight, accommodation & salary etc. etc.

 

Good because I'll find a long term companion more attractive than bar boys - there's some level of intimacy & emotional connection, even though it's on the surface but I'm willing to go on the hook. I'm sure that my lifestyle will be healthier this way too.. no? Comparing Bangkok & Pattaya, I believe Pattaya has a higher crime rates against farang; fortunately I'm a Chinese and I has been walking around looking like a overly fed Thai - I pass off well, and I'm walking into many tourist temples for free.

 

I'll just need to try to source for an illegal Thai ID card & brush up on my Thai.

 

On a personal level, farangs are nice to interact with - but not nice to really know in depth; like it or not - whenever I talk to a farang, they'll stray & correcting my pronunciation. To be fair, brit. & american english can be different already, and personally I never had a problem with pronunciation when I'm in Dublin, New Jersey, Perth, Singapore, KL - why would I only suffer with communication problems in Thailand?

 

Oh. I look like a Thai - so people expect me to behave like 1. - Queen Please - But of course, being an english speaking person in Bangkok - a Farang is likely to have more credits if he gives me informations. a Thai... tit. tit. tit.

[Gaybutton]

Somehow, this thread about preventing becoming a crime victim in Pattaya turned into a thread about how much it costs to put a boy through college? Now, maybe I'm just being narrow minded, but I would have thought that issue would have been just a little more appropriate on a separate thread.

 

I hope nobody minds too much if I bring this thread back to crime prevention issues.

 

One of the latest scams seems to involve "farang" scamming other "farang" at ATMs. There are several methods being used, but the general idea is that they convince you to use your ATM card in their presence. No matter what someone tells you, do not ever let someone observe you using your ATM card and make damned sure nobody can see you entering your PIN number. In last Friday's Pattaya Mail, one reader sent a letter-to-the-editor explaining how this very kind of scam cleaned his friend's bank account of over 500,000 baht. At today's exchange rates, that's well over US $13,500.

 

Don't be caught off guard. Any time I use an ATM I give thought to the possibility of a scam. I cover the keyboard with one hand while entering the PIN with the other, even when nobody is around. I am constantly on the alert for anyone else nearby. I always try, if it is possible, to use an ATM when nobody else is even around. To date, I have not lost any money to scam artists and I plan to try to keep it that way.

 

The police recommend that if there is any suspicious activity, call them. Try to have as accurate a description of whoever was suspect as you can, including height, weight, age, hair color, any distinguishing characteristics you can remember, what color the clothing is, etc. If the person makes off on a motor vehicle, try to get the license number. If you can't read the Thai writing, you can at least try to get the numbers.

 

I want to reiterate what I said above about wearing gold and jewelry. Especially gold chains. Gold chains seem to be a very attractive target for criminals. These crimes are being committed in broad daylight, even with witnesses available. A typical method is for a motocycle, with driver and passenger, to sneak up from behind on the intended victim. The chain is grabbed, yanked off, and before the victim recovers from the surprise and shock, the criminals have made their escape.

 

My recommendation - forget about the gold. Leave the gold, especially chains, in your room safe. Personally, I fail to see the pressing need for wearing those kinds of things in the first place, but that's just me. You definitely won't see me wearing gold chains. I don't own any and I never will. To my mind, the only thing those chains do is invite trouble. No thanks. I'll just have to struggle through life without wearing gold chains.

 

I don't think a week goes by without reading about gold chain grabs. All I can say is that if the victims weren't wearing those chains in the first place, then they wouldn't have been victims.

 

Another "I am begging to be a victim" type of crime is perpetrated on people and their mobile phones. I constantly see people placing their mobile phones on tables at outdoor cafes and restaurants. My response to that is, "You've got to be kidding me." That is literally begging for some criminal to sneak up, grab the phone, and run off with it and be out of sight before you can even get out of your chair.

 

And it happens. It happens all the time. I see people being careless with their mobile phones in many other ways too. Unless you're expecting a call from Ed McMahon, asking where to bring the check, I fail to see the point of carrying the mobile phone in a careless and unsafe manner. As a matter of fact, even if you really are expecting that call, I still don't see why people can't figure out that they need to be more protective of their mobile phones and other valuables.

 

Most of the theft and scam crimes I read about are so easily preventable. Just use some common sense, take a few precautions, and you will be able to read about someone else being the victim instead of having to cut out the article about what happened to you for your scrapbook.

[Guest jomtien]

 

 

I don't think a week goes by without reading about gold chain grabs. All I can say is that if the victims weren't wearing those chains in the first place, then they wouldn't have been victims.

 

 

 

And if those silly farang that go flying off their balcony had just stayed in their home country they wouldn't have been victims. Yes?

 

 

 

[Gaybutton]

Good contribution there, Jomtien. Not a suggestion or additional advice to help people. Only a snide remark. I see nothing has changed.

[Guest jomtien]

Good contribution there, Jomtien. Not a suggestion or additional advice to help people. Only a snide remark. I see nothing has changed.

 

 

Not a snide remark at all. I just don't agree with finding excuses for thieves. The person that does the stealing is a criminal, simple. Saying 'don't wear gold chains' is like saying 'don't carry any money' or 'don't wear a watch'. If someone steals my money, gold chain, laptop, watch, whatever....THEY are the criminal and it is not MY fault. There is no excuse for theft. Rationalizing about how poor they are is poop. A thief is a thief. Not all the boys steal.

[Gaybutton]

Not a snide remark at all. I just don't agree with finding excuses for thieves. The person that does the stealing is a criminal, simple. Saying 'don't wear gold chains' is like saying 'don't carry any money' or 'don't wear a watch'. If someone steals my money, gold chain, laptop, watch, whatever....THEY are the criminal and it is not MY fault. There is no excuse for theft. Rationalizing about how poor they are is poop. A thief is a thief. Not all the boys steal.

 

I don't see where I wrote anything that consititutes an excuse for thieves, I do not agree at all with you when you say, "Saying 'don't wear gold chains' is like saying 'don't carry any money' or 'don't wear a watch.'" You have to carry money, but you don't have to carry the equivalent of hundreds of dollars. Most people wearing gold chains have spent several hundred dollars for them. You don't have to wear gold chains. You don't have to wear a watch either, that's true, but if you do wear a watch, it doesn't have to be an expensive one, although I don't read or hear about watch thefts very often, but I do read and hear about gold chain thefts all the time. If you think it's a good idea to take the risk and wear gold chains, then wear them. If you want to be cautious and prevent the temptation for thieves, then don't wear them. Very simple. You could also place the chain in your pocket until you reach your destination, put it on again when you get there, and pocket it again when you're returning to your room or going somewhere else.

 

This thread is meant to be about tips for preventing becoming a victim of a thief. I fail to see how who is at fault even has relevance to that. Of course the thief is at fault. Unfortunately that doesn't help very much when you've lost something valuable to a thief. It might be his fault, but it's your belongings that are now gone.

[Guest jomtien]

I don't see where I wrote anything that consititutes an excuse for thieves, I do not agree at all with you when you say, "Saying 'don't wear gold chains' is like saying 'don't carry any money' or 'don't wear a watch.'" You have to carry money, but you don't have to carry the equivalent of hundreds of dollars. Most people wearing gold chains have spent several hundred dollars for them. You don't have to wear gold chains. You don't have to wear a watch either, that's true, but if you do wear a watch, it doesn't have to be an expensive one, although I don't read or hear about watch thefts very often, but I do read and hear about gold chain thefts all the time. If you think it's a good idea to take the risk and wear gold chains, then wear them. If you want to be cautious and prevent the temptation for thieves, then don't wear them. Very simple. You could also place the chain in your pocket until you reach your destination, put it on again when you get there, and pocket it again when you're returning to your room or going somewhere else.

 

This thread is meant to be about tips for preventing becoming a victim of a thief. I fail to see how who is at fault even has relevance to that. Of course the thief is at fault. Unfortunately that doesn't help very much when you've lost something valuable to a thief. It might be his fault, but it's your belongings that are now gone.

 

 

I don't see where I wrote anything that consititutes an excuse for thieves,

 

You are correct. I was remembering things you wrote in other threads. It's hard to forget every post from the past when responding. My bad. No snide.

 

 

If you think it's a good idea to take the risk and wear gold chains, then wear them

 

I don't see where I wrote anything about it being a good idea. I just see no reason for chastising those who do.

 

 

This thread is meant to be about tips for preventing becoming a victim of a thief.

 

Sorry. Maybe I got confused when you brought up pedophiles and Sunee Plaza.

 

 

I'm not trying to be snide. Crime here is the same as it is everywhere. Same rules apply. Why do grown adults need reminding? When I was last in London, stealing cell phones was a cottage industry. In New York, criminals have been grabbing gold chains for decades. Perhaps I just get tired of threads treating grown adults as children. I really don't know. Sorry that you take it as an attack of some sort. It certainly isn't meant that way.

 

 

 

[TotallyOz]

Big C Scam

 

Pattaya Big C SCAM!

 

A "heads up" for you and any of you who may shop at Big

C. Over the last month I became a victim of a clever scam while out

shopping. Simply going out to get supplies has turned out to be quite

traumatic. Don't be naive enough to think it couldn't happen to you.

Here's how the scam works: Two handsome 18 or 19-year-old guys come over

to your car as you are packing your shopping in the trunk.

 

They both start wiping your windshield with a rag and Windex, then take off

their t-shirts to dry the windshield. It is impossible not to look at their

lean muscular chest and ripped abs. When you thank them and offer them a

tip, they say "No" and instead ask you for a ride to Beach Road You

agree and they get in the back seat. On the way, they start having sex with

each other. Then one of them climbs over into the front seat and performs

oral sex on you, while the other one steals your wallet. I had my wallet

stolen May 4th, 9th, 10th, twice on the 15th, three times just yesterday,

and very likely again this upcoming weekend. Again - please beware!!

 

 

 

[Guest freeyourmind]

GT

 

Are you trying to make a joke here about stealing/ripping off farangs or are you not the brightest light on the Christmas Tree?

 

Quote from someone: " Fool me once-- shame on you, Fool me twice-- shame on me.

 

8 times in 12 days?

 

Sorry, I don't see the humor in Farangs getting ripped off.

 

If this is your idea of a joke, please don't give up your day job.

 

 

[TotallyOz]

Are you trying to make a joke here about stealing/ripping off farangs or are you not the brightest light on the Christmas Tree?

 

If this is your idea of a joke, please don't give up your day job.

 

Ba Humbug! I have been told I was the weakest link on the Xmas tree as I hate holidays. I am a scrooge!

 

It was my idea of a joke. My apologies if it rubbed you the wrong way. It was not my intent. Perhaps tasteless on my part. But, last night I got rubbed the right way and was in a cheery mood.

[Guest jomtien]

Ba Humbug! I have been told I was the weakest link on the Xmas tree as I hate holidays. I am a scrooge!

 

It was my idea of a joke. My apologies if it rubbed you the wrong way. It was not my intent. Perhaps tasteless on my part. But, last night I got rubbed the right way and was in a cheery mood.

 

 

NOW you tell us it was a joke! I just spent the whole day at big c waiting for someone to wash my windshield and i don't even have a car.