Beware of police checkpoints

[Salerno]

46 minutes ago, EricTh said:

What's the implication of 'show your hands'? I am confused on this.

To ensure he has nothing in them that he could "find" during a search.

[richard_smith237]

40 minutes ago, Isaanbiker said:

 

 

 

  I've been here 18 years full time, but I've never heard of a similar story. 

 

 

 

I’ve also been here a while and have never heard of a similar story, however, there is no ‘normal’ here, as such the randomness of events such as this doesn’t really surprise me any more... 

 

I generally get waved through checkpoints... if at night, I turn on the interior light so they can see me more easily, seems to work. 

 

Most police are just ‘going through the motions’ at these check points hoping something will pop up and they can cash in. They seem to have an indifference towards us foreigners which makes them not want to deal with the hassle of dealing with us unless we make a deliberate nuisance of ourselves and make a battle of ego.

 

I wouldn’t feel comfortable with a car search though, more for the inconvenience. If the BiB wanted to search my car I’d become very suspicious of their intentions.  

[Nyezhov]

11 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

I’ve also been here a while and have never heard of a similar story,

Well I always just blow past the late night monthly checkpoint under the Phra Kanong Bridge, but I did talk to one Thai-American kid that got nipped for 20K there. He made the mistake of speaking Thai.

 

Something I would submit the OP should not have done, but with the glasses, it wouldnt have made much of a difference.

[stevenl]

3 hours ago, Nyezhov said:

Well I always just blow past the late night monthly checkpoint under the Phra Kanong Bridge, but I did talk to one Thai-American kid that got nipped for 20K there. He made the mistake of speaking Thai.

 

Something I would submit the OP should not have done, but with the glasses, it wouldnt have made much of a difference.

So he got nipped for speaking Thai?

[Nyezhov]

1 hour ago, stevenl said:

So he got nipped for speaking Thai?

Hell yeah dude, a young dude speaking Thai with an American accent (he has Asian eyes and tatoos too) out at 4am? That means: he has money and is up to something. Here falang, pee in this cup? 5,000? Nope, lets make it 20, Somchai will drive you to the ATM. OK, peeing not necessary, put your scooter in the truck.

Edited March 7, 2020 by Nyezhov

[stevenl]

21 minutes ago, Nyezhov said:

Hell yeah dude, a young dude speaking Thai with an American accent (he has Asian eyes and tatoos too) out at 4am? That means: he has money and is up to something. Here falang, pee in this cup? 5,000? Nope, lets make it 20, Somchai will drive you to the ATM. OK, peeing not necessary, put your scooter in the truck.

Your post makes no sense at all.

 

Nobody gets nabbed for 20k without doing something wrong.

[soalbundy]

On 3/4/2020 at 7:13 PM, Psimbo said:

At what point did they show themselves to be corrupt? How do you see extortion when you didn't pay a single satang?

 

Why speak to them in thai- the best thing to do is feign ignorance and say you don't understand, one normally gets waved through checkpoints immediately. Roll down the window in advance, take off the sunglasses, turn off the music and give them a smile as you show them your licence.

 

I have never been hassled or searched in over 15 years of driving here. Attitude counts for a lot and you project a lot of attitude in your post.

Must agree here, I took my father-in-law to hospital by car, I was a bit flustered and didn't take my driving license with me, on the way back I was stopped, ''Oh I've left my driving license at home, I've just taken my FIL to hospital and was in a hurry"

He looked at the tax disc, all OK, looked at me for a second, nodded and said "OK on your way" This was in Isan and the conversation was in Thai, never had problems with the police here.

[Nyezhov]

2 hours ago, stevenl said:

Your post makes no sense at all.

 

Nobody gets nabbed for 20k without doing something wrong.

Guess you dont smoke weed then

[scubascuba3]

21 hours ago, ivor bigun said:

why would they stop us ? have tax and a clean car in good condition.

Why would they care if your car is clean and running ok, strange thinking. I think they should profile bald people, always up to no good, one ran off with 300 million baht the other day

[bwpage3]

On 3/5/2020 at 5:07 AM, spidermike007 said:

Most. Louisville, Kentucky now training their cops to shoot to wound, unless the cop feels his life is in danger. Their shooting rates have dropped dramatically. Same applies to other progressive police departments in the US. I understand how dangerous a job it is. But the number of shootings by law enforcement in the US, of unarmed people is astonishing and unjustified. I have family in law enforcement. And even they agree with that. Homicidal police are not the answer. 

You have an uncanny way of classifying anything to do with the entire USA down to one location; if that is even real or not?

 

You sound like you hate the USA and make things up because you cannot afford to live in your own country?

 

Do your homework, the number of shootings versus the entire population of the USA.

 

This makes no sense at all "now training their cops to shoot to wound, unless the cop feels his life is in danger"

 

You have an evidence of your claim to training or is this just more hearsay?

 

 

[bwpage3]

On 3/5/2020 at 9:55 AM, Airalee said:

Of course they weren’t picking on me for my race.  They were picking on me because of my car....and as Nyezhov says, my crazy hair and Andy Warhol junkie glasses.  Can’t say I’ve ever listened to Nickleback.  And if you think I’m trolling...all I can say is...thanks for contributing!  ????
 

Would you like to hear about the time I was swarmed by clowns at a police checkpoint in Tak? ????

You think you are the only farang with a nice car in Thailand?

 

That in itself is an exaggeration and a story.

 

 

[bwpage3]

7 hours ago, Nyezhov said:

Hell yeah dude, a young dude speaking Thai with an American accent (he has Asian eyes and tatoos too) out at 4am? That means: he has money and is up to something. Here falang, pee in this cup? 5,000? Nope, lets make it 20, Somchai will drive you to the ATM. OK, peeing not necessary, put your scooter in the truck.

Let us guess?

 

You were driving right behind the young dude, got out of your own car, and listened to the entire interrogation?

 

Preposterous!

 

 

[bwpage3]

Here is another take.

 

On the way to my wife's remote village in Isaan, we would always pass a checkpoint.

 

As the driver, roll down the window and discretely give the cop a 100 baht note, who would pass us through with no issues.

 

Became routine for me to do this.

 

Now why would I pay this?

 

First of all 100 baht is nothing.

 

Second of all, understanding the nature that the junior ranking officers collect money and give to the senior officer. That's the way it works, right or wrong.

 

Is it worth arguing or questioning these rural police in Isaan for 100 baht?

 

Not for me it wasn't.

 

I always looked at is as a donation.

 

I know the money collection game is a part of life for these junior cops and they are just doing what they are told.

 

Right or wrong, never bothered me one bit.

[richard_smith237]

15 minutes ago, bwpage3 said:

Here is another take.

 

On the way to my wife's remote village in Isaan, we would always pass a checkpoint.

 

As the driver, roll down the window and discretely give the cop a 100 baht note, who would pass us through with no issues.

 

Became routine for me to do this.

 

Now why would I pay this?

 

First of all 100 baht is nothing.

 

Second of all, understanding the nature that the junior ranking officers collect money and give to the senior officer. That's the way it works, right or wrong.

 

Is it worth arguing or questioning these rural police in Isaan for 100 baht?

 

Not for me it wasn't.

 

I always looked at is as a donation.

 

I know the money collection game is a part of life for these junior cops and they are just doing what they are told.

 

Right or wrong, never bothered me one bit.

Perhaps contributing towards the problem and enabling the sense of entitlement that even law abiding citizens should be paying this ‘donation’....  

 

[Is it worth arguing or questioning these rural police in Isaan for 100 baht?] - Yes, its 100% worth it, they are just chancing their luck and they luck out with guys like you. 

 

I don’t mind paying 100 baht or 200 baht when I’ve been caught making a traffic mistake, but the stop for the sake of collecting money at a checkpoint, no, I’ve never paid anything, it just adds to the idea that these check-points are ok when quite often they are placed in ill thought out dangerous positions after a bend etc...  The BiB should be out on the roads and pulling over the idiots, not sitting back and collecting ‘donations’ from gullible drivers. 

 

 

 

[spidermike007]

13 hours ago, bwpage3 said:

You have an uncanny way of classifying anything to do with the entire USA down to one location; if that is even real or not?

 

You sound like you hate the USA and make things up because you cannot afford to live in your own country?

 

Do your homework, the number of shootings versus the entire population of the USA.

 

This makes no sense at all "now training their cops to shoot to wound, unless the cop feels his life is in danger"

 

You have an evidence of your claim to training or is this just more hearsay?

 

 

Every year, around 1,000 people are shot and killed by police, according to the databases. Of those victims, more than half were wielding guns, leaving officers few choices in how to respond. But in the rest of the cases, where people were holding knives, toy weapons, or no weapons at all, police might have taken additional steps, like using communication skills or waiting for backup, to try to defuse the situations. These are the cases that ignite public outrage, whether the 2014 shooting of unarmed Michael Brown in Ferguson; the shooting of Tamir Rice, who held a toy pellet gun, in Cleveland, Ohio, the same year; or the 2015 shooting of unarmed Walter Scott in North Charleston, S.C., as he was running away after a traffic stop.

 

https://www.apmreports.org/story/2017/05/05/police-de-escalation-training

[bwpage3]

9 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

Every year, around 1,000 people are shot and killed by police, according to the databases. Of those victims, more than half were wielding guns, leaving officers few choices in how to respond. But in the rest of the cases, where people were holding knives, toy weapons, or no weapons at all, police might have taken additional steps, like using communication skills or waiting for backup, to try to defuse the situations. These are the cases that ignite public outrage, whether the 2014 shooting of unarmed Michael Brown in Ferguson; the shooting of Tamir Rice, who held a toy pellet gun, in Cleveland, Ohio, the same year; or the 2015 shooting of unarmed Walter Scott in North Charleston, S.C., as he was running away after a traffic stop.

 

https://www.apmreports.org/story/2017/05/05/police-de-escalation-training

1,000 out of 327,000,000+ people

 

Your not a cop and you probably have never been faced with a life or death situation where the criminal has a gun or knife and threatening your life

 

You don't even quote a named news source here.

 

 

 

 

 

[jvs]

We get respect when we are stopped,usually no questions  at all.

He is a nice dog but hates it when people approach the car and he gets quit

verbal.

[Traubert]

1 hour ago, bwpage3 said:

1,000 out of 327,000,000+ people

 

Your not a cop and you probably have never been faced with a life or death situation where the criminal has a gun or knife and threatening your life

 

You don't even quote a named news source here.

 

 

 

 

 

1000 dead people in questionable circumstances don't matter, because there is a bigger number not shot dead?

 

Riiggghhttt....

 

That's like the argument that flu isn't important because only 1% of those who catch it die (130,000) but corona virus is worse because 2.3% who catch it die (501).

 

Bizarre reasoning.

[stevenl]

On 3/7/2020 at 5:52 PM, Nyezhov said:

Guess you dont smoke weed then

So unlike your earlier comment " Well I always just blow past the late night monthly checkpoint under the Phra Kanong Bridge, but I did talk to one Thai-American kid that got nipped for 20K there. He made the mistake of speaking Thai. " he was not nabbed without reason, he had been smoking weed.

[BKKBike09]

Not sure why there's so much disbelief of OPs story. Makes a lot of sense to me. That checkpoint around Petchburi is a regular fixture. Roadside <deleted> testing a speciality. I know; I was asked to do it there couple of years back: brimmed the cup and asked if it was enough. They had a large household bin full of used cups so they check a lot of people. There were maybe 15-20 sorry looking folk sat on benches who'd tested positive, including a handful of Western dudes. Weed etc can stay detectable for weeks, hence question "do you smoke". 

 

Right now, too, there is a big anti-gun campaign going on, so that may make it more likely to be pulled over at a checkpoint and have your car searched. Do most foreigners have guns in their car? No, but so what. If you've got nothing to hide my view is better let the cops search - but maybe say first "excuse me but I will film while you search". That alone may put them off. But don't get lippy with them, because these guys can easily find some reason to cause you a problem, even if it that may end up being no more than an hour's delay or whatever.

 

A lot of law enforcement here like pretty much everywhere is statistics-driven. Those big checkpoints help with that.

 

 

[Sakeopete]

Please why is it that some people always have to attack posters who make observations? Get over yourselves <deleted> happens in developing countries and the OP is kind enough to share his experience. Just because the same scenario hasn't happened to you doesn't mean it will not. I'm sure more scams by civil servants in Thailand are happening to expats. Unfortunately long term TV members may be reluctant to share their experiences knowing the reception they will get from some posters. Sadly we all lose, warnings will not be posted and forum activity reduced by less active posting. 

[phantomfiddler]

On 3/4/2020 at 4:16 AM, Don Mega said:

they search and found nothing.......... whats the point of this post ?

But quick thinking by the girlfriend, who obviously knows the ways of Thai policemen ! The obvious point of the post is to warn people to be alert to the possibility of the police planting drugs in your car and then busting you.

[wombat]

On 3/4/2020 at 7:29 PM, Airalee said:

his was unlike any checkpoint I had ever been through in my eight years of living here.

maybe you just looked dodgy?

[Airalee]

11 minutes ago, wombat said:

maybe you just looked dodgy?

Can you give me an example of “dodgy”?

 

Dodgy like a bald headed cro-magnon looking Pattaya real estate sheister?

 

Dodgy like a dreadlocked backpacker?

 

Dodgy like a long haired chopper riding freak brothers type of dude?

Edited March 9, 2020 by Airalee

[jingjai9]

Why did your gf say, "Show me your hands"? I thought it was to prove the police were not trying to plant contraband in your car. You did not mention anything about that. 

 

[sherwood]

There really are some doppy replies on this topic. Thanks to the OP for your warning.

For the people that actually live in Thailand this info is to be taken seriously.

Never lower your guard.

[Airalee]

33 minutes ago, jingjai9 said:

Why did your gf say, "Show me your hands"? I thought it was to prove the police were not trying to plant contraband in your car. You did not mention anything about that. 

 

Sorry...I figured that by applying a modicum of logic, readers would have understood that.

[bkk6060]

On 3/4/2020 at 7:04 PM, Airalee said:

keep the ones with money here so we can extort them”.

And how much did they extort from you?

If a person is not a criminal or drug addict/dealer, go thru the process and move on.

[Andycoops]

On 3/4/2020 at 7:13 PM, Psimbo said:

At what point did they show themselves to be corrupt? How do you see extortion when you didn't pay a single satang?

 

Why speak to them in thai- the best thing to do is feign ignorance and say you don't understand, one normally gets waved through checkpoints immediately. Roll down the window in advance, take off the sunglasses, turn off the music and give them a smile as you show them your licence.

 

I have never been hassled or searched in over 15 years of driving here. Attitude counts for a lot and you project a lot of attitude in your post.

Let's wait when you get the same treatment and be as smug.

[NoshowJones]

On 3/5/2020 at 12:41 PM, spidermike007 said:

Always bear in mind, these are NOT law enforcement officials. These guys are local franchisees, simply working the franchise. Resist them with all of your might. 

 

In the US the police are highly militarized, and shoot to kill. They do not even attempt to wound or incapacitate. The least bit of resistance from someone, provokes an extreme response. Many of the police departments in the US, are out of control. Here? The police here are very soft. I have had many interactions with them, and I would never be able to get away with treating them the way I do here, in the US. Not for a nanosecond. I tell them no here alot. I tell them I am not interested in negotiating today, and drive away. I dodge them when they try to pull me over. I treat them with utter disdain. And get away with it. I do not think a Thai could get away with any of that. They seem to have some fear of the cops. I do not have any fear of these local franchisees. Most are looking for an easy mark. When you resist, they tend to back down, as they do not want to work hard for their tips. 

 

Sometimes, we just have a short, friendly conversation, and that is it. Usually when they see the Thai motorcycle or car DL, and the helmet, they just wave me on. But, if caught speeding, etc, I give them a really hard time. And I would never agree to a random drug test, anywhere, anytime. Never. Nunca. Nada. 

Your last sentence is spot on, they will never get to pee test or drug test me in any way, they will get a hard time guaranteed.