"Mr Thanachai Buachuang, president of the Pong Prasad SAO, acknowledged the long-standing issue. He explained that while the SAO had mediated discussions and acted in accordance with the law, Mathias’ lawyer appealed the case. A subsequent investigation by the Department of Health, Zone 5, in Ratchaburi found no aggressive dogs at Mathias’ property, leading to the case being dropped.
In this case, the law was enforced by authorities and a ban issued but it was dismissed on appeal. It would appear that Thai law enforcement was, in fact not useless and incompetent in the defendant's favour.