ManInSurat

Not a comedy genius i hope he makes a swift and full recovery. But being what you might say a man of the world i would say there are missing pieces to the story. Looks like a hiding and not just a random one by the injuries.

Alright mate, fair play.

Why would a random attack's injuries be less severe than a premediated one? I don't understand that though.

If you'd read what his Mum just said you'd see he'd lived in Thailand for 5 years, spent time at a school in the north, speaks Thai, respected Thais and was respected by them. Hardly the stereotype you appear to have in your head.

It's so easy to just tar someone with a brush before finding out what's what that it seems to be the norm, rather than a rarity these days.

Not to mention the fact that if it was your boy and you loved him and knew he was a good kid who got a totally unwarranted hiding, for no apparent reason, you'd probably be quite upset with people talking ill of your son and making totally unsubstantiated claims based on a few recent negative news stories featuring farang Muay Thai fighters in Thailand.

I find it amazing Deborah found the time and made the effort to let us know certain things. I can't think of any incident like this before. If you read what she says you can see she's being as geniuine as I think it's possible for someone to be.

Still quite stunned at the kind lady's response.

In the US many kids die each year over spring break. Not sure why so many people find so many conspiracy theories and shock in the number of younger people dying on an island which in a less developed nation which is basically like an all year round spring break and where there are lots of bacteria outsiders may not have built any immunity too as well as it being a place they are unfamiliar with and it being a place where drugs are readily available and where there are drugs there are bad people. As for the deaths two years ago, people dying without being able to confirm the initial cause of particular organ failures is not at all uncommon. One body of the bodies was cremated (assuming with the consent of next of kin as is law) and one body was autopsied in Norway where the cause of death was also unable to be determined.

Wake up people, in less devloped nations people die of things at higher rates and die of things they may not have in a more developed nation or in a city with lots of medical staff and not on an island with very limited medical facilities.

But I guess if bashing helps to inflate an obviously low self-esteem then go right on.

While I'd like to side with you on this one Nisa, the statistic that more Brits die in Thailand every year than any other place in the world (aside from the UK obviously) makes it hard for me to do that. (Source.)

Don't get me wrong, I love this place like no other. It is a perilous place though where people seem to die in suspicious circumstances too regularly for it to be coincidental.

Maybe it just attracts the wrong type of person. For hedonists this place can be a death sentence.

My take on it.

Right in your link right next to what you are claiming it says ...

"Most of those deaths are of long-term elderly British residents," says a Foreign Office spokesman.

It also states more Brits get in trouble here than anywhere else and require consular assistance but the fact that you are missing is most of the deaths are actually from drinking Britts who do themselves in on motorbikes while not wearing helmets.

I do read my sources in full, before I use them, to fail to do so would be churlish.

"Most of those deaths are of long-term elderly British residents," says a Foreign Office spokesman. But not all of them.

and

"Some 224 Britons died in Thailand between April 2005 and March last year (2007) - a toll five times higher than in the second deadliest tourist destination, India."

Even the amount that remain after elderly retirees is so far ahead of the nearest country globally that to just wave this away would be shortsighted, and that's also not to say that the eldery retirees aren't the ones on the receiving end of a suspicious death. Interesting that you didn't think of that. Given that the average age of an expatriate here would be quite high.

Not to mention the fact that Thailand doesn't have the most Brit retirees on a global scale, there's lots of countries that have way more retired expatriate Brits. My own folks are in Spain and there's a massive community there. They're not dying at any alarming rate and Spain does not even get a mention on the FO's list.

Yes I did take RTAs into account. Yes it is high. Thailand (unofficially) has the 2nd most deaths and RTAs in the world. (Source available.)

I don't want to get into a debate about it really. It's a fact the Home Office can prove on paper. It's alarmingly high. You can't deny that.

I admire you resolve in protecting Thailand here. I'm not out to bash Thailand! I love the place with a passion, speak read write the language. I'm saying what I see. Nothing more, nothing less.

A wise Irishman once told me that many a mans tongue broke his nose. I imagine this is the case.

How about you don't just read a title of a thread, ignore every other post in the thread and try and become the comedy genius? Can you do that?

I'll refer you to all the posts in communication with the boy's family (Mum) on this very page.

What's wrong with people here? I remember why I took a hiatus now.

Secondary issue.......what's this Facebook fund all about? Was this guy in Thailand without travel insurance?????

I'm not judging him as I can't deduce if he was or not, however anyone traveling to Thailand without insurance is a nutter.

houlI've been here for 7 months & I've yet to see any travel insurance that would insure you for any more than 90 days so what sort of crap are you talking....

Mate, the guy's Mum came on the thread an explained his insurance situation in clear detail.

No judging needed. Just reading needed.

"As for those asking whether he had insurance. Yes of course he has insurance. Health and Accident Insurance. We are all insured. But the insurance was used up to reconstruct his face and mouth."

That would mean they'd have none left for the massive cost of the ongoing care I would imagine Daniel will need now and for some time to come.

It also went a very long way to clear any doubts about what happened that evening and put things in a much clearer light than nearly all other threads here. A very rare thing indeed.

I know posts can be long and time-consuming to read, but it is important you hear what people have to say first.

I'd think that a small whatever donation in this case would be money very well spent knowing the facts now. What's a night's worth of Chang/Leo/Singha to anyone here, eh?

Thai TV news were showing stills from the video and room tonight. Show the Portugese guy holding hands with one girl in the hallway. Only the two were in the picture. Says he was staying in the hotel and something about him leaving a note saying he was sorry but had to go to Phuket (not sure who the note was to). They have been unable to locate him in Phuket. They also spoke about and showed images of CSI and masked and gloved workers going through the room. The Portugese guy is not a suspect (as of yet, there is no crime) but they want to speak to him since he knew the girls and was last seen with them. They think he may already be back in Portugal but didn't appear to attribute that thought to any source. The photos also appeared to show at least one girl (hard to see the other twin bed because lots if investigators and medical looking people in the room) was lying on the bed but it appeared both were on their separate beds and the one girl appeared in a normal sleeping position on her back. Pictured were blurred but looked like she was wearing a shirt and either black shorts or a skirt and was on top of the covers or at least somebody by that point had pulled down the covers. There was no obvious sign of blood or vomit on the bed that I could tell and it just looked like they blurred her but the photo was not up long enough to make any detailed observations. Channel 3.

So it would seem to me, that if the Thai media are reporting this in Thai, even knowing they desperately try to wrongly sheild their populace from negative news stories and are coming out and categorically not laying the blame at Tinto's door - they're not presenting evidence and allowing the public to draw wrong conclusions from the connections.

They could have easily spun this if they wanted to.

Was there any insinuation that it could be connected to the 2009 case in the news item? Are they giving any impression of foul play? Is there any inference of negligence here?

And now Mr Cynical in the Tin Foil Hat comes out to play...

Could it be they're straight batting this as Canada has the bodies and will almost definitely know cause of death very soon, if they don't already?

There's been people touting Tuesday as a possible release day for the toxicology report coming out. Remarkably fast turnourd given previous cases.

(Ok, tin foil's off now.)

No, they were not reporting it irresponsibly or like idiots if that is your question or wish. It is an ongoing investigation where police and medical personal are not releasing all the private details and theories for morons who are not trained in investigations, poisoning, pharmaceuticals or other medical illnesses to speculate for their own pleasure and to bread fear when all the facts are not in. But it appears there are some statements being made such as the Portugese guy is not a suspect in a crime because a crime has not even been determined but when people including English based media and expat forums ignorantly believe somebody is being hunted for a crime, they appear to have come out and cleared that up. So, no the reporters have not gone through all the numerous investigators and medical professional notes, photos, videos, tests and so on and reported on them. Like anywhere else, they talk to other non-professionals who have limited info (like the girl who partied with them) and try to speculate on what has been officially released.

Not a wish, simply a question.

I'm really saying that there are easily citeable instances from past cases, even ones extremely similar to this, where Thailand's response to an incident like this could be viewed as being difficult to the extent that they might be hiding something.

It is fair to level the criticism at the Thai government that they deal with cases like this with almost no transparency at all.

You can see from my post history that I'm normally branded a Thai apologist, so I'm not a basher. I'll try and defend the reputation of my adopted home, but only if I think it's genuinely merited.

As for breeding fear and unsubstantiated speculation? Welcome to the internetz my friend.

"Feedest ye notte yon trolles."

In the US many kids die each year over spring break. Not sure why so many people find so many conspiracy theories and shock in the number of younger people dying on an island which in a less developed nation which is basically like an all year round spring break and where there are lots of bacteria outsiders may not have built any immunity too as well as it being a place they are unfamiliar with and it being a place where drugs are readily available and where there are drugs there are bad people. As for the deaths two years ago, people dying without being able to confirm the initial cause of particular organ failures is not at all uncommon. One body of the bodies was cremated (assuming with the consent of next of kin as is law) and one body was autopsied in Norway where the cause of death was also unable to be determined.

Wake up people, in less devloped nations people die of things at higher rates and die of things they may not have in a more developed nation or in a city with lots of medical staff and not on an island with very limited medical facilities.

But I guess if bashing helps to inflate an obviously low self-esteem then go right on.

While I'd like to side with you on this one Nisa, the statistic that more Brits die in Thailand every year than any other place in the world (aside from the UK obviously) makes it hard for me to do that. (Source.)

Don't get me wrong, I love this place like no other. It is a perilous place though where people seem to die in suspicious circumstances too regularly for it to be coincidental.

Maybe it just attracts the wrong type of person. For hedonists this place can be a death sentence.

My take on it.

Thai TV news were showing stills from the video and room tonight. Show the Portugese guy holding hands with one girl in the hallway. Only the two were in the picture. Says he was staying in the hotel and something about him leaving a note saying he was sorry but had to go to Phuket (not sure who the note was to). They have been unable to locate him in Phuket. They also spoke about and showed images of CSI and masked and gloved workers going through the room. The Portugese guy is not a suspect (as of yet, there is no crime) but they want to speak to him since he knew the girls and was last seen with them. They think he may already be back in Portugal but didn't appear to attribute that thought to any source. The photos also appeared to show at least one girl (hard to see the other twin bed because lots if investigators and medical looking people in the room) was lying on the bed but it appeared both were on their separate beds and the one girl appeared in a normal sleeping position on her back. Pictured were blurred but looked like she was wearing a shirt and either black shorts or a skirt and was on top of the covers or at least somebody by that point had pulled down the covers. There was no obvious sign of blood or vomit on the bed that I could tell and it just looked like they blurred her but the photo was not up long enough to make any detailed observations. Channel 3.

So it would seem to me, that if the Thai media are reporting this in Thai, even knowing they desperately try to wrongly sheild their populace from negative news stories and are coming out and categorically not laying the blame at Tinto's door - they're not presenting evidence and allowing the public to draw wrong conclusions from the connections.

They could have easily spun this if they wanted to.

Was there any insinuation that it could be connected to the 2009 case in the news item? Are they giving any impression of foul play? Is there any inference of negligence here?

And now Mr Cynical in the Tin Foil Hat comes out to play...

Could it be they're straight batting this as Canada has the bodies and will almost definitely know cause of death very soon, if they don't already?

There's been people touting Tuesday as a possible release day for the toxicology report coming out. Remarkably fast turnourd given previous cases.

(Ok, tin foil's off now.)

Dear new friend,

Thank you for your response. Yes we asked about the cameras but police said there aren't any in that location. However, I must say that right now my energy is better spent on getting our son back to full recovery.

People will always have their opinions and rightly so. I'm not here to justify or protect, I told it as it is. I think it's fair to clarify things to others so they may have a more genuine picture.

What is important is that for those who don't know Daniel, that they may stop making unsubstantial claims of a wonderful young man, with a passion and talent. He is in no way arrogant

or even aggressive. In fact most people don't believe he's a Muay Thai fighter. The reason he has so much support and people wanting to help in any way they can, is a direct result

of his attitude towards people. He respects and is respected.

I gave Daniel your message.

Take care

Ah, shame about the cameras. Sorry to ask such a patronizing question, it just struck me that that'd be definitive it showed anything up. Sod's law there's none on that route!

When he's back in the ring, I'll take a trip down with the missus and older kids to come and see him fight and say hello.

I'm sure you kindly providing us with real facts will stop the doubters. It seems the internet is awash will "trolls" these days making grossly unsubstantiated claims.

We'll keep them in check! Don't you worry about that.

I did some reading from another article on Daniel and you seem really really proud of him and even supported him to the extent you were willing to swap Aus for Phuket to encourage his career as a fighter. I can't ever think of hearing that before and that really shows how dedicated he must be to what he does. Knowing he's tried to assimilate into the country and culture and learning the language is really admirable. It's way more than the vast majority here on this forum would ever bother to do.

We'll be keeping tabs on Daniel's progress and be urging anyone in a position to help, even with a small donation, to do so.

I hope you manage to get some well-deserved rest!

- I'm a Daniel too! A Brit, but still a Daniel! Best name in the world.

My name is Deborah and I am Daniel's mum. I have read many of the posts regarding this incident and thought it would be fair to clear up some things.

Firstly Daniel was with a friend and they went to Laguna Bar in Rawai. Daniel wanted to go out because he was starting a heavy regime of training as he was preparing for a title fight in Malaysia early July.

Daniel is a high profile fighter and ranks 3rd in the Australian International Kickboxer ratings. Also known as the best foreigner fighter in his weight division in Phuket.

His training is very stringent and his commitment to this title fight was all he talked about.......

My sincere thanks for coming on here and sharing this with us Deborah and let me be the first to say we genuinely hope for a speedy recovery for Daniel.

You've had a really tough time of it and it must be hard to see so many opinionated (including myself) people making bad judgement calls here.

From how you've explained it, it does now seem sadly to be what I hoped it would not be. What's sadder is that is does not suprise me in Phuket.

Sadly you're right. A young, talented Muay Thai fighter is going to be stereotyped in a bad way. Mainly as there's a precedent for it on the island with fighters only seeming to attract trouble to themselves and there's been a few high-profile cases that really show the negative side of people, especially farangs, in that profession. Daniel could be the one who helps turn that opinion around.

Thanks for also explaining what your doctor thinks. I'd have to be frank and say (citing real serious examples of friends of mine who have died here) it'll be nigh on impossible to try and hold people accountable for this. Your time spent here would lead me to believe you already realise this.

Is there no CCTV anywhere that you can access? Silly question which I'm sure you've thought of, but I have to ask.

Amazing that your Daniel breaks all of these stigmas and I'm really very impressed.

Please tell Daniel "Hai Wai Wai Na Khrap"! I hope the publicity here has enhanced the donations for Daniel too. That will be a positive outcome of being on here, if it helps in any way.

I read somewhere that they're hopeful he'll be back in a ring. I really hope this is true.

- Cheers, a new friend and wellwisher in Surat Thani.

Only the USA claims that he is the "Lord of War" he did not comment any crime inside Thailand and per international law you can only extradite him to either his home country or a country where he committed crime.

Sure NK isn't a nice country, but our thinking is influenced what propaganda is telling us. What would you think about the USA when you hear NK propaganda about the US president is proud to select victims to be killed without trial, even own citizen and that without any proof that they did something wrong.

I really don't know for NK, but it happens that I know some people from Iran (one is Atheist and Manager of a big state enterprise) and the difference between real life in Iran and what the propaganda makes us believe couldn't be bigger. For NK it might or might not be the same.

I've read accounts from people who have lived in a North Korean gulag for 10 years. Specifically "The Aquariums of Pyongyang" by Kang Chol-Hwan as well as other reading. I've done a lot of reasearch on the place. You only have to see a satellite photograph of DPRK at night to make this point. There's nowhere in the world as densely populated as North Korea that is totally black at night. No electrical light, where there should be.

That's just one of a thousand examples I could give. They have no internet access, mobile phones, everything they see and hear is manipulated for them to be indoctrinated into the largest cult in the world. There's no other description for it. It's also the only hereditary communist country to have ever existed. They don't just go after dissenters, they go after their entire families too.

The only good thing I have to say about DPRK is that they allegedly have the highest literacy rate in the world. Something like 99%. Only really so they can be sure that all their citizens are indoctrinated as young and as quickly as possible.

No foreign journalists, doctors, government empoyees are ever allowed to be alone in that country. Anywhere. Ever. For any reason. Everything that's ever been seen of DPKR is only what their government allows you to see. There's some images somewhere from a Swedish eye doctor that managed to sneak some photos of real DPKR and it's like looking into a world from 100 years ago. There is evidence to back this up, not to mention the plethora of satellite photos available to be found from Google to back all this up.

You do realise Jong-Il is alleged to be responsible for the death of over 2 million of his own people through starvation in the world's only case of starvation (out of wartime) in a country that can easily feed itself, that I can think of. That's one tenth of the population.

For you to say that it's all propaganda in the face of all of this is really very laughable. Now onto your point about Iran...

Iran? What the country that allows female drivers, unpoliced internet use and smartphones? I know Iran has its fair share of problems and their government can be brutal but I know they do have moderates there and those voices do get heard or I wouldn't know about them.

Extradition and dealing with refugees are not the same thing, however you want to try and spin it. It's a very irrelevant comparison.

As for Russia's standpoint on Bout, taken from Wikipedia....

"On 18 November 2010, shortly after Bout's extradition to the United States, Russian President Medvedev's aide Sergei Eduardovich Prikhodko claimed that Russia had "nothing to hide" in Bout's criminal case stating, "it is in our interest that the investigation ... be brought to completion, and [bout] should answer all the questions the American justice system has."

Russia are whiter than white too, aren't they? I still laugh when I hear about Putin's 107% ballot victory in Chechnya. Now that IS impressive!

I've lived and worked with a Russian for 6 years and it was he who brought this to my attention.

You drawing a comparison to these two incidents is totally ridiculous, I don't change that perspective in any way and there's nothing you can say to make me change my mind.

Only one of the men would have had to have handed in their passport to the hotel when staying in one room.

I disagree. I just returned from Phuket 2 weeks ago. Everywhere we stayed on the island, each and every hotel demanded my passport as well as my g/f's passport or Thai ID as well. They never asked for my son's ID. This seems to be a Phuket thing and possibly other islands in the area as well. Makes sense to me.

Ah fair enough. I stand corrected. I'm married to a Thai too and this has happened to me in BKK also. A more interesting question would be, if our wives were Western and not a lady and not our wives, would they still have asked for it?

They're off the hook though now.

EDIT : Stop reading my thoughts Justaword!

"Thai authorities will not repatriate them to North Korea."

A massive thumbs up to the Thais for this. Spot on.

Good job again Thai Gov't. 10/10!

Why would you say this? Under international refugee conventions, Thailand should not return the North Koreans. The fact that the Chinese do so, only speaks to China's complete disregard for human rights and its lack of both compassion and morality. China's position is understandable though, since North Korea is a quasi proxy state created by the Chinese. Thailand on the other hand needs to stay on good terms with South Korea, and the west. Unlike the situation with the Rohingyas, these countries would protest and Thailand would get a retaliatory smack if the refugees were deported. The reality is that it would have been difficult to get these people back to North Korea. It's much easier to dump the refugees from Myanmar and Laos. No one really cares about them and the protests from countries are somewhat hollow. Yes, the Thai government is to be commended for doing the right thing, but do we need to commend a government for being moral and complying with international refugee conventions? It's not as if Thailand is going to pick up the bill for these people. South Korea will provide the moneies necessary to care for the refugees.

Well China and North Korea allied. Thailand is doing exactly the same if the USA want to have someone. Well known example is Victor Bout, but there are a couple of other examples.

The "Lord of War" and an impoverished rural people being brutally opressed by the most insular and draconian government in the world are the same are they?

Extradition for serious crimes and refugeeism are the same how exactly?

Conflicting news reports, conflicting police statements. "Possible food poisoning, certainly nothing else" > "perhaps Ibuprofen, it's tremendously dangerous when taken with alcohol" > " signs of ingesting a toxic substance" > "hunting for Portuguese men" > what's next?.

Only Columbo can solve this case. Unfortunately, he's dead. Perhaps better sign it over to Inspector Clouseau.

I still see good old "Squinter" munching on cohibas on my TV. The loss of Peter Falk is very sad indeed.

I'm pretty sure Peter Sellers died a while back. If you are using Steve Martin as your Clouseau then you've got no right even using him as an example. Bad form, bad form.

Are the police sure the portuguese guys name is Tinto, I have a suspition his name might have been Tonto, if so, I think I might have found his accomplice...

Sorry, I just could not resist

Sorry nothing really funny about the tragic deaths of two young girls.

Are the police sure the portuguese, Portuguese guys, guy`s name is Tinto, I have a suspition suspician his name might may have been Tonto, if so, I think I might may have found his accomplice.

I would first learn to spell before you crack jokes at the expense of someone else`s suffering.

*Suspicion.

Right about the jokes though.

"Thai authorities will not repatriate them to North Korea."

A massive thumbs up to the Thais for this. Spot on.

Good job again Thai Gov't. 10/10!

Why would you say this? Under international refugee conventions, Thailand should not return the North Koreans. The fact that the Chinese do so, only speaks to China's complete disregard for human rights and its lack of both compassion and morality. China's position is understandable though, since North Korea is a quasi proxy state created by the Chinese. Thailand on the other hand needs to stay on good terms with South Korea, and the west. Unlike the situation with the Rohingyas, these countries would protest and Thailand would get a retaliatory smack if the refugees were deported. The reality is that it would have been difficult to get these people back to North Korea. It's much easier to dump the refugees from Myanmar and Laos. No one really cares about them and the protests from countries are somewhat hollow. Yes, the Thai government is to be commended for doing the right thing, but do we need to commend a government for being moral and complying with international refugee conventions? It's not as if Thailand is going to pick up the bill for these people. South Korea will provide the moneies necessary to care for the refugees.

Because any progress that Thailand can make towards its dealings with refugees from other Asian countries is definitely to be encouraged, if at all possible in the hope this becomes their blanket policy for all genuine refugees.

I distictly remember the boat full of ethnic Rohingyas being left to rot on a powerless boat from a couple of years back.

I'd say that now Burma has moved into sharp focus for good reasons, the ethnic minorities from there won't be treated anywhere near as badly.

Also because the fact Sino-Thai relations run very very deep in this country and you'd expect Thailand to follow suit.

Smack Thailand? LOL! Like Thailand would even care.

I know you're highly critical of the Thai system GA so I really don't want this to degenerate in a "my point is more valid and correct than your point" fight. You have your agenda, for whatever reason. That's cool, but I'm not really up for it.

My real sentiment here is - Well done defectors. I wish you the best in your new lives and are thinking of you and your families. People know about your plight and are genuinely moved by it.

HAHAHAHAHAHA Ibuprofen thats the biggest joke i heard in years. Police in Thailand dont buy their jobs , dont scam exams, aren"t corrupt, very professional, very skillfull are the rolemodel for thai society, all policemen can speak (a little) english the best guy for the job get promoted not by seniority, not trigger happy, not intimidating, threat farangs equal like Thai citizens, Thai police you the best in the world...!!!!!!!!!! HUH?????

Ah! The good old totally-off-topic-soap-box-stereotyper. Behave now! There's a good poster.

From "Mock The Week" BBC2 and on the topic of stereotyping.

David Cameron - an English old Etonian toff who's posher than is humanly possible.

Angela Merkel - a butch German battleaxe.

Francois Hollande - A Frechman who left his older wife for a young lover.

Barack Obama - The cool black guy.

Valdimir Putin - An ex-KGB spy who's actually murdered/tortured people.

Could they be more stereotypical!

Anyway, can we drag this thread back into the realms of ontopicness please? Cheers.

We don't know what he hit, how he hit it and what shape it was, we don't know anything at all actually other than the hospital he originally went to (most likely Vachira from the look of the hospital bed) say it's an RTA and he doesn't.

Exactly. He is quoted saying “I know I can’t have crashed. I know the roads very well", but admits not remember anything except that he was going to stop for gasoline. Unless somebody has already made his mind on what really happened, I don't see any point taking this logic as a truth.

Jumping on the conclusion that he has been attacked is based on the fact that, YES, there is an history of aggression's in the area. But there are also a bunch of deadly motorbike accidents here.

And the injuries he sustained can fit both scenarios.

Nail. On. Head.

Lets try to keep that "trying to make a point" to a minimum Khun ManinSurat. Remember that this is TV Forum and we wouldn't want to confuse anyone

You actually made me laugh out loud. Probably the only time I've used the term "LOL" and actually meant it, in a while.

(I've just realised that that could seem insensitive with the nature of this thread. No offense intended!)

Do you have any kind of medical experince at all? Are you trained in that kind of thing?

I suppose if you want a medical expert you go to the hospital but if you want to hear just normal people expressing their opinions you go to a public internet forum.

I have hospital experience and being ill experience, but I'm not a doctor. I never actually said I was making a diagnosis, I just said it looks more like a beating victim than a road accident victim to me.

I have primary-progressive multiple sclerosis and am in a wheelchair a lot, I get bone breaks and bruising all the time.

It seems odd that the guy would get those injuries from a bike crash. Other people seem to agree with me. Including his family who unlike the people on TVF, have actually seen him in person since the 'accident'.

I'm not trying to attack you. I said so before and I was being genuine. I'm just saying what I think as you are equally free to do.

Apologies if I offended you in any way.

There's people who agree with you and there's people that agree with my viewpoint, not least the medical staff that saw him first. I'm not trying to take sides. I will say that the Vachira hospital seem to be saying that he hit a pole. I really don't know why they'd lie and to start intimating medical staff of obfuscation and hiding something is really stretching reality.

Could it be an RTA? Yes.

Could it be GBH/Attempted Murder? Yes.

Does the fact that this has happened in Phuket in a week with another Australian being murdered cause people to be sensitive about such issues? I'd say definitely.

If the Bangkok Phuket could come out and say yay or nay, it'd be very helpful. It won't happen though.

By The way, there was a previous thread on this on TV :

http://www.thaivisa....otorbike-crash/

It did link to an external sources which has far more details on the events:

http://www.thephuket...amily-31469.php

Hospital, location, insurance issues, it's all there.....

That's a very good link there and a very interesting read. It does really give more details, but I'm sitting here looking at his face thinking - that could as easily be an accident as it could be inflicted intentionally - doing even 20-30km/h, it's very possible.

I find it interesting that the Dad at no point uses the hospital to reinforce his point. He doesn't even say that the hopsital have lead him to think what he thinks. He seems to be going on what his son said and that is 100% understandable. It must be heart rending for a father to see his son in such a mess. In his shoes I'd almost definitely be thinking differently.

I'm conflicted though, this is Phuket we're talking about here. Had this been set in Ao Nang for instance, I'd have said RTA without even questioning it.

Lol, I keep saying this, but we'll never actually know.

If you crash your bike and aren't wearing a helmet I doubt any impact damage to your head would cause these type of black eyes, it would either kill you or break your neck. I don't see those big black eyes consistent with crashing a motorbike.

actually a simple broken nose will cause eyes to swell up turn black and possibly even close - thats no trauma to the eyes at all - and if you read the OP you will discover that the injuries to this fellows upper face were quite horrific - so back to the drawing board for you

Actually, I said earlier, his other injuries - brain damage, skull damage, arm and neck damage. These imply if it was a bike crash it would be a serious crash. In a serious crash where as you say black eyes occur I would expect the cheeks nose and forehead and whole face to be bruised and cut up. The guys face looks really unhurt except the eyes and the ridge leading up from one eye. If you are saying he went flying off a bike and landed on his head I would expect the damage to be allover his face and not just his eyes.

He looks like every bloke I'm ever seen after they've come runner-up in a serious fight. In a bike crash I would expect either no injuries to face, or total massive head injuries depending on the type of crash. What he has got is bashed in eyes only, which seems a bit odd. You will also notice his eyes are smashed in, they are not as you say 'blackened from a broken nose' those eyes have taken a lot of damage directly all the way into the socket, and yet the surrounding face is fresh and sprucey.

Do you have any kind of medical experince at all? Are you trained in that kind of thing? (I'm seriously asking. Not to make fun of you, just you're making a diagnosis here based on some photos on a forum.)

People can have extreme brain, head, neck, eye, upperbody and even arm trauma from literally falling over, off a chair. You can be stationary on a bike and fall over and have severe head trauma. You can be doing 5km/h and the receive the same injuries. It's all completely circumstantial.

We don't know what he hit, how he hit it and what shape it was, we don't know anything at all actually other than the hospital he originally went to (most likely Vachira from the look of the hospital bed) say it's an RTA and he doesn't.

Nor are we qualified (unless you actually are) to say what injuries he should/should not have and what they should look like.

sorry, i probably wasnt clear in my post, what I meant was, if it was a motorcycle accident there would be the bike present right? so if they are saying the wounds are consistent with a motorcycle accident, yep I could understand that, IF there was a bike there, it appears that its only speculation at this point, so they not sure, which indicates to me that there was no bike, if there was a bike which there usually is in bike accidents, i guess then that would take the guess work out of the equation

Not speculation. Fact. It's already been said in the linked article from the OP (GoldCoast.com.au) that there's a bike that he was driving.

"There is no damage on the bike at all except that the top part of the dashboard is smashed in and two rear view mirrors are smashed off ... it just doesn't make sense." - His Dad Steve. Source.

Again, damage consistent with hitting a stationary object head-on. I've done it a couple of times, avoiding other drivers to prevent a collision with them.

Getting a look at the bike would be nice, but don't hold your breath.

From what another poster said here, it's common for head trauma patients to never recover the memories they had just before their trauma. Only he knows what really happened, whether he'll ever be able to access that information at any point in his life, is another matter.

The original hospital staff or the paramedics on scene seem to THINK it was an RTA

can you see what i mean, they THINK it was. The other thing is, i dont recall there being a mention of who found him or who called it in

Well that's really the artcile writer saying the word think there. Unless you spoke to the staff yourself, it'd be hard to know if they're sure it's an RTA or it could potentially be an RTA.

They'd know and be able to easily spot it given that Thailand has the second highest (allegedley) fatal and non-fatal RTA figures in the world. Alright based on non-official figures, but still. I've known 7 people who've died in the last 3 years on the road.

I'd really like to know what the surgeons that treated him thought at the private. They'd certainly know. Not that we'd be able to find out with the patient-confidentiality thing.

"Thai authorities will not repatriate them to North Korea."

A massive thumbs up to the Thais for this. Spot on.

China has a policy of returning refugees, which is terribly sad knowing what life (death) the people will be forced to return to and the fact their family and extended family will be affected too. I think Russia is the same.

If anyone's interested I was reading a heartwarming article about some defectors today that have their own talent-cum-chatshow in South Korea. Check it out here.

If there's people here who want to do some more research and get a really good picture of DPRK then I highly recommend this book. Check it out here. I managed to get it as a downloadable audiobook. So sad and poignant and moving.

a start up salary, a condo apartment and a new life awaits them in South Korea

"Though more than 23,000 North Koreans have made their way south since the 1990s, they find it hard to settle in, ending up in menial jobs and often shunned by their southern brethren."

I wish you the very best luck in the world defectors and may your families be safe. Thinking of you here in Thailand.

Good job again Thai Gov't. 10/10!

I had the experience of a farang who drugged a friend of mine and he would of died if i didn't check on him. Here is the story.

Back in 1992 I was living at Cowboy Guest house in Chiang Mai for 3 month stay. I met a journalist named Richard who was also doing a long stay and I showed him around North Thailand as I could speak Thai and new many nice villages. . . etc.

........to get into his room. He was laying their lifeless and would not respond to my trying to wake him up. Next to his bed was a heroin kit with needles, spoon, heroin and everying to make it look like a drug overdose. I ran downstairs and flagged a Songteaw. 3 of us carried Richard to the Songteaw and rushed him to McCormick hospital. Richard did survive but only barely. His laptop, money, passport and anything of value from his room was stolen.

Be careful,

Randy

... are you sure his "LAPTOP" got stolen . . . . how come, a LAPTOP in 1992 ????????

All you have to do is open a new tab, go to Google and type 1992 laptop and get this.... It took me less than 30 seconds to do.

1992 Laptop and this 1992 Laptop and this too IBM Think Pad 1992.

Or alternatively, you could read someone else's story and pick it apart without doing any research on the subject whatsoever to find that minor ridiculously trivial detail that will make you "King of Pedanticland", if only for a few minutes.

Whatever turns you on man.

P.S. If you don't know what Google is.... Google it.

In my experience living here I have found farangs can be more dangerous than Thais. many Russian, Chinese and European Mafias are in Thailand to exploit tourists.

Indeed. I ran in to some very dangerous people when I was in Phuket 2 weeks ago. Pakistanis and Russian and Italian mobsters. I won't go into details but much more dangerous than anything I have ever experienced with Thai people over the last 22 years.

Oh please go into details. It's really unfair to be a tease like that!

So the mobsters were dangerous were they? Who'd have guessed that!? Were the working girls slutty and the people who drank alcohol getting drunk too?