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Israeli Tourists Accused of Shoplifting in Phuket

A family of Israeli tourists has been accused of shoplifting at a convenience store in Phuket after staff allegedly caught adults encouraging children to conceal snack items and leave without paying.

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According to store employees, the incident involved a mother handing a packet of sweets to her son and instructing him to hide it inside a bag before quickly walking out of the shop. Staff later claimed the grandmother repeated the act by giving another packet of snacks to her granddaughter while shielding the child as she quietly exited the store.

Employees said they noticed the alleged theft and confronted the family outside the shop. However, staff claimed the tourists refused to return the items when challenged. The situation reportedly escalated when workers warned they would contact police. According to witnesses, members of the family responded in English with the phrase: “I don’t care.”

The allegation comes amid increased scrutiny of foreign tourists in Phuket following several recent incidents involving visitors on the island. Thai authorities have recently signalled tougher enforcement measures against foreigners accused of breaking local laws or causing public disturbances.

The case has drawn attention online after accounts of the confrontation circulated on social media in Thai, English and Russian-language posts. Reactions have focused on the accusation that adults encouraged children to participate in the alleged theft.

Legal experts note that shoplifting offences in Thailand can result in criminal charges if complaints are formally lodged with police. Businesses may also provide CCTV footage or witness statements as evidence during investigations.

Authorities have not yet released an official statement regarding the alleged incident. It remains unclear whether the store intends to pursue legal action or whether compensation for the missing items was later offered. Phuket officials have repeatedly urged foreign visitors to respect Thai laws and local customs as tourism numbers continue to recover.

Video courtesy of Phuketinsta

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image.png Adapted by ASEAN Now Phuketinsta 8 May 2026

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Jingthing Legendary Member

Jingthing

Advanced Member
11 minutes ago, Dogmatix said:

The shoplifting is reprehensible but trivial. The real story is that Thais are fed up with the behaviour of Israeli tourists in general. They are also fed up with their illegal businesses and land ownership.

In Western countries Israel has very powerful political lobbies that have influence or even control over governments. Such as the US, UK, Australia and some European countries. Any criticism of Israel or Israelis in the West is immediately branded as antisemitism which can even see politicians like Jeremy Corbyn hounded from office (by the Epsteinite Petie Mandelson) and replaced by the pro-Israel Kier Starmer.

in Thailand there isn’t a strong Israel lobby. So Thais can say what they like about Israelis without fear of being branded as antisemites. In fact the vast majority of Thais have no idea what is Judaism is the Jewish race. So they can’t hate something they don’t even know exists. They just react to what they see in front of their eyes which is obnoxious behaviour by arrogant tourists and flagrant violation of laws intended to protect rights of Thais.

Malaysia and Indonesia don’t have problems with Israeli tourists because they don’t let them in and there is no backlash from their tourism industries demanded that Israelis should be admitted. Perhaps Thailand should take a leaf from the books of their ASEAN neighbours and which would remove these problems and clean up the illegal businesses in Koh Phangnan, Samui etc in one fell swoop. A half way house would be to discontinue visa free entry.

Global Jewish control conspiracy theory garbage.

So you speak for the Thais?

Interesting.

Malaysia bans Israelis because of opposition to Israeli government policy.

Nothing to do with tourist behavior.

Malaysia has been rated the most Jew hating nation in the world.

Pretty neat trick for a country without Jews.

jacko45k Star Member

jacko45k

Advanced Member
10 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Malaysia has been rated the most Jew hating nation in the world.

Pretty neat trick for a country without Jews.

Moreso than say Iran and a few other Middle Eastern/Islamic countries?

That seems surprising.

spidermike007 Star Member

spidermike007

Advanced Member
On 5/8/2026 at 6:03 AM, Jingthing said:

So you think they deserve the death penalty for shoplifting? Interesting.

Well you have to admit, if a Jewish family lived in Gaza for a while it certainly might give them some perspective on the genocide taking place.

spidermike007 Star Member

spidermike007

Advanced Member
15 hours ago, Dogmatix said:

The shoplifting is reprehensible but trivial. The real story is that Thais are fed up with the behaviour of Israeli tourists in general. They are also fed up with their illegal businesses and land ownership.

In Western countries Israel has very powerful political lobbies that have influence or even control over governments. Such as the US, UK, Australia and some European countries. Any criticism of Israel or Israelis in the West is immediately branded as antisemitism which can even see politicians like Jeremy Corbyn hounded from office (by the Epsteinite Petie Mandelson) and replaced by the pro-Israel Kier Starmer.

in Thailand there isn’t a strong Israel lobby. So Thais can say what they like about Israelis without fear of being branded as antisemites. In fact the vast majority of Thais have no idea what is Judaism is the Jewish race. So they can’t hate something they don’t even know exists. They just react to what they see in front of their eyes which is obnoxious behaviour by arrogant tourists and flagrant violation of laws intended to protect rights of Thais.

Malaysia and Indonesia don’t have problems with Israeli tourists because they don’t let them in and there is no backlash from their tourism industries demanded that Israelis should be admitted. Perhaps Thailand should take a leaf from the books of their ASEAN neighbours and which would remove these problems and clean up the illegal businesses in Koh Phangnan, Samui etc in one fell swoop. A half way house would be to discontinue visa free entry.

I have a friend who lives on Koh Phangan and he tells me that the Israeli problem has become so severe that they've taken over entire swaths of the island and they've hired a private security squad composed of the local police, to guard certain locations like their temple.

Many Thais do not like the Israelis because many Israelis behave badly, and can be quite arrogant and self entitled.

Jingthing Legendary Member

Jingthing

Advanced Member
5 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

Well you have to admit, if a Jewish family lived in Gaza for a while it certainly might give them some perspective on the genocide taking place.

What are you smoking? They would be murdered.

Nick Carter icp Star Member

Nick Carter icp

Advanced Member
On 5/10/2026 at 10:41 AM, spidermike007 said:

Well you have to admit, if a Jewish family lived in Gaza for a while it certainly might give them some perspective on the genocide taking place.

Eh ?

Jewish families were expelled from Gaza , those who had been there for 100/0 s of years hd to leave .

They even had to dig up graves and take the long time dead with them .

Jews are the victims of genocide in Gaza

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