Woman Tourist Killed By Bag Snatchers

[Wallenda]

naughty,naughty.

i never said people were too lazy to walk from the airport.

i mentioned that some people are not prepared to walk short distances after a night out.

OK but that's not really relevant to the problem, the taxi mafia are forcing people to pay 2000 to get from the airport, not 50m from their hotels. There's no choice but to be scammed. I suppose you could avoid flying.

[sayjann]

Wow! They had jet skis in biblical times?

you beat me to it with that comment.....

[sayjann]

I wouldn't holiday there if you paid my way really. Pattaya seems less problematic really, and that is surely saying something.

 

I wish there was some way to warn the clueless tourists who go there that seem to not know how fucked up it is down there.

 

Phuket seems to be the the worst of the Thai holiday destinations these days.

 

i will continue defending Phuket as i kinda know the place.

 

but the 2 points you raise are bad press to anyone new reading these tales.

you would never go to Phuket because of what you seem to hear/read in the press and seem to have pre-conceived ideas of the place.

you never know you might enjoy the place if you went?....

i could spend a Week with you on Phuket and i could easily show you good times all hours of the Day.

Phuket is my choice of destination but would never say never to Pattaya,but i would definately need a guide.

 

 

but your other point hits the nail on the head....'clueless tourists'.

exactly what i have been saying for Years.

i am quite savvy about Phuket and know where to go and where not to go.

in Pattaya i would be the 'clueless tourist'.

[kamui]

but your other point hits the nail on the head....'clueless tourists'.

exactly what i have been saying for Years.

i am quite savvy about Phuket and know where to go and where not to go.

in Pattaya i would be the 'clueless tourist'.

 

This is of course an ongoing discussion. Of the millions who visit LOS how many have any idea about the country? Not many I guess. Mass tourism promises and needs a holiday experience within a safe and secure setting for the uneducated (about the country) and uninterested masses. Otherwise it wouldn't work.

 

Which means that the LOS government and, within their means, the tourism industry should have a common interest to provide the framework for a good holiday.

Alas the problem with the jet ski and the tuk tuk scam is that obviously LOS authorities and other powerful figures are involved in the scam. It seems that the governor of Phuket is unable/unwilling to end the scams. That's why now Chalerm is getting involved.

[sayjann]

This is of course an ongoing discussion. Of the millions who visit LOS how many have any idea about the country? Not many I guess. Mass tourism promises and needs a holiday experience within a safe and secure setting for the uneducated (about the country) and uninterested masses. Otherwise it wouldn't work.

 

Which means that the LOS government and, within their means, the tourism industry should have a common interest to provide the framework for a good holiday.

Alas the problem with the jet ski and the tuk tuk scam is that obviously LOS authorities and other powerful figures are involved in the scam. It seems that the governor of Phuket is unable/unwilling to end the scams. That's why now Chalerm is getting involved.

 

the scams are not exclusive to Phuket i'm sure?.

but the way people portray Phuket it seems it is the most evil place on earth which i disagree with as you would expect.

i'm fed up with hearing with this scam and that scam,is Phuket the only place in the world where things like this happen?.

 

i agree that the authorities on the Island do not do their best to stamp out problems,as long as they *might* be getting their pockets lined then it's easy to blame the tourist for any problems.

 

over the Years i have seen the MIB turning up in bars and money passed over,it might be a legitimate business arrangement but i talk to the bar-staff and i KNOW it's just a little extra cash for the boys who are meant to be protecting the place.

 

and what can Chalerm do to stop all this?.

very little i doubt.

[kamui]

the scams are not exclusive to Phuket i'm sure?.

but the way people portray Phuket it seems it is the most evil place on earth which i disagree with as you would expect.

i'm fed up with hearing with this scam and that scam,is Phuket the only place in the world where things like this happen?.

 

i agree that the authorities on the Island do not do their best to stamp out problems,as long as they *might* be getting their pockets lined then it's easy to blame the tourist for any problems.

 

over the Years i have seen the MIB turning up in bars and money passed over,it might be a legitimate business arrangement but i talk to the bar-staff and i KNOW it's just a little extra cash for the boys who are meant to be protecting the place.

 

and what can Chalerm do to stop all this?.

very little i doubt.

 

The jet ski scam is taking place in Patty as well. The tuk tuk/taxi scam seems to be a Phuket speciality.

 

Both scams a based on legit standard services for tourists - unless scams like the infamous gem scam which are based on the greed and stupidity of the tourists.

Even worse all people arriving at Phuket airport without pre-arranged pickup are forced for to partake in the scam.

 

Anyway, since tourist numbers in LOS are increasing those scams don't play a role in the perception of LOS of the average tourist.

 

 

[Flashermac]

Two arrested for killing of Perth woman

 

Police have arrested two suspects over the murder of an Australian travel agent and the wounding of her travelling companion in a street in Phuket on Wednesday night.

 

Phuket governor Tri Augkaradacha said on Monday that both men were in custody in Chumphon.

 

They were expected to be returned to the resort island later Monday, Mr Tri said.

 

Phuket deputy police chief Pirayoot Karajedi identified the suspects as Surasak Suwannachote, 26, from Nakhon Si Thammarat, and Surin Thapthong, 36, from Ratchaburi.

 

Mr Surasak, who is accused of fatally stabbing Australian Michelle Smith, 60, during a bag snatch, had been hiding in Nakhon Si Thammarat. Mr Surin, the motorcycle driver, had been hiding in Samut Songkhram, Pol Col Pirayoot said.

 

Officials and representatives from the tourism industry met in Phuket this morning to discuss tourist safety in the wake of the Smith murder and other increasingly frequent attacks on foreign tourists.

 

Last Wednesday, Smith, part of a group of travel agents from Perth visiting the area, and her friend Tammee Lynn, were walking back to their hotel in Karon around 10.30pm after eating at a restaurant. They were attacked by two bag snatchers on a motorcycle.

 

As Smith struggled to hold on to her bag, one of the men stabbed her in the chest. The two women walked off and then Smith collapsed a short distance away and died at the scene. The motorcycle thugs fled empty handed.

 

Video

[Redbaron]

The tuk tuk "scam" in Phuket is not really a scam per se, the prices are just ridiculously high compared to elsewhere. This could be seen as a scam if the passenger was unaware of the high prices and was expecting to pay 50-100 baht where the "going rate" is 200-500.

[Flashermac]

Woman's killers 'needed to pay their bar bill'

 

 

PHUKET - The two men accused of the street murder of an Australian travel agent last week have confessed to the crime and said they tried to steal her bag because they needed 300 baht to pay an outstanding bar bill.

 

The stabber, Surasak Suwannachote, 26, and the motorcycle driver, Surin Thapthong, 36, on Tuesday morning re-enacted the crime outside the Katathani Hotel in Phuket. They were arrested on Monday.

 

Pol Gen Pansiri Prapawat, the deputy national police chief, announced the outcome of the manhunt at a press briefing on Tuesday morning.

 

He said the two attackers told investigators that they had no intention of killing Michelle Smith, a 60-year-old mother of three from Perth who was part of a group of travel agents visiting the resort island.

"I admit that I committed the crime, but my intention was only to cut the strap of the woman's handbag because I owed a bar 300 baht for drinks," Surasak said. "I did not want her to die."

 

Surasak said that at the time he did not think Smith would die because she and her friend were asking for help from people nearby.

 

He found out only later that the Australian woman was dead, after he arrived home and watched the news on TV. He then decided to flee and hide in Nakhon Si Thammarat.

 

The deputy police chief said both men, particularly Surin, had long criminal records. Surin had been convicted of robbery four times and had served three years in jail for a drug offence.

 

"Police will create a database of tourist destinations, routes and checkpoints and more CCTV cameras will be set up to ensure the safety of tourists," Pol Gen Pansiri said.

 

Last Wednesday, Smith and her work colleague Lynn Tammee Lee, also Australian, were walking back to their hotel in Karon around 10.30pm after eating at a restaurant. They were attacked by two bag snatchers on a motorcycle.

 

As Smith struggled to hold on to her bag, one of the men stabbed her in the chest. The two women walked off and then Smith collapsed a short distance away and died at the scene. The motorcycle thugs fled empty handed.

 

My link

[Mekong]

 

"I admit that I committed the crime, but my intention was only to cut the strap of the woman's handbag because I owed a bar 300 baht for drinks," Surasak said. "I did not want her to die."

 

 

Whilst I can believe his intentions it does not diminish from the fact that this was an armed robbery gone wrong and an innocent woman lost her life.

 

Too many of these "Bag Snatch" crimes happening not just in Phuket but all over Thailand, the Modus Operandi seems to be cut the strap and offsky with the swag, but there was the case in Bangkok 2-3 years ago when a motorcyclist tried a bag snatch on Soi 22 and the woman fell to the ground hitting her head on the kerb as she fell resulting in her death.

 

I for one won't be losing any sleep if he does get the death penalty.