Bangkok police offer public apology, but do not admit to extortion of Taiwanese actress

[hotchilli]

2 minutes ago, Artisi said:

Isn't most of what they do an absurdity? 

Agreed..

Showing how stupid they really are, and now it's gone global.

Would have been better to let the lady go with a caution, but that's not how it rolls in Thailand.

[hotchilli]

13 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

National polcie chief Pol Gen Damrongsak Kittiprapas ordered the transfer and a disciplinary committee set up to assess the severity of penalties and criminal prosecution against the policemen if they are found being involved in the alleged extortion.

Caught red handed, but it'll be hushed up after transfers.

[Salerno]

11 minutes ago, hotchilli said:

Charging a tourist for possession of an electronic cigarette is absurdity in itself.

Indeed it is, nonetheless they are banned in Thailand therefore if using/carrying you leave yourself open to extortion.

 

That said, Thailand is a country where the endemic corruption allows you to negate the legal ramifications of doing so and therefore some are happy to test their luck. On the other hand, other countries that have also banned them with less accommodating Police Forces are off the visit list, such as ... Taiwan 

 

NB The law in Taiwan hadn't been finalised at the time of her trip.

Edited January 30, 2023 by Salerno

[nigelforbes]

A better approach of course might have been to say oops, I'm sorry, I didn't know vaping equipment is illegal in Thailand (which is true), of course I should be charged (which is also true)...let's go. At the station, the coin may drop with more senior people, hmm, this is the first person we've ever charged for this crime, perhaps we should let her go. Or, in court the judge may have the same reaction, if indeed a lawyer in the meantime didn't intervene. There's no extortion, there's no bribery charge and the fine would likely be less. 

[Eleftheros]

13 hours ago, internationalism said:

published 9h ago:

"Acting as a private detective, former massage parlour tycoon Chuwit Kamolvisit said Monday morning there's a video clip showing Taiwanese actress Charlene An facing extortion by police at Huay Kwang checkpoint.

Chuwit said in a post on FB a Thai woman who was part of An's party early Jan has a clip showing police extorting the money adding that it was the woman who handed 27,000 baht to police."

https://www.facebook.com/KhaosodEnglish/posts/pfbid02ddfWGzcikFKipZuPBswiR2s6hU4QeP5dkPDUVRKCJXFNMCgWdCUebWArisnGCTSgl

Chuwit was on Thai TV last night, issuing a public apology on behalf of the Thai nation, as though he were the prime minister or something.

 

He seems to be the go-to guy for whistle-blowers inside the police department, a kind of Witchsmeller Pursuivant, which must be very irritating to the higher-ups in brown.

 

I hope he checks under his car each morning, and doesn't allow motorbikes to pull up along side him at traffic lights.

[StayinThailand2much]

LOL. The web of lies gets sillier by the day!

 

The actress was released without charge, but, supposedly, after paying cash. This is now called a "bribe" instead of extortion, no doubt in order to blame the person paying the 'bribe', rather than police extorting money from the victim. Also, no explanation why a "charge for illegal possession of an electronic cigarette" is a whopping 27,000 baht.

Edited January 31, 2023 by StayinThailand2much

[nigelforbes]

3 minutes ago, StayinThailand2much said:

LOL. The web of lies gets sillier by the day!

 

The actress was released without charge, but, supposedly after paying cash. This is now called a "bribe" instead of extortion, no doubt in order to blame the person paying the 'bribe', rather than police extorting money from the victim. Also, no explanation why a "charge for illegal possession of an electronic cigarette" is a whopping 27,000 baht.

Yes, it is crazy. But you have to understand the subtle logic that is in play. She didn't have to pay them, she could have accepted the charge of having illegal vaping gear but she chose not to. So technically and in practise, she did bribe them. Fire away!

[StayinThailand2much]

13 hours ago, 2baht said:

I think they should send a least one officer, to pay back the 27,000 baht!

Send the one who can do the lowest and most beautiful 'wai'...

Edited January 31, 2023 by StayinThailand2much

[StayinThailand2much]

2 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

Yes, it is crazy. But you have to understand the subtle logic that is in play. She didn't have to pay them, she could have accepted the charge of having illegal vaping gear but she chose not to. So technically and in practise, she did bribe them. Fire away!

If she had vaping gear. What happend to the original story about the 'wrong visa'?

[Artisi]

17 minutes ago, Eleftheros said:

Chuwit was on Thai TV last night, issuing a public apology on behalf of the Thai nation, as though he were the prime minister or something.

 

He seems to be the go-to guy for whistle-blowers inside the police department, a kind of Witchsmeller Pursuivant, which must be very irritating to the higher-ups in brown.

 

I hope he checks under his car each morning, and doesn't allow motorbikes to pull up along side him at traffic lights.

Chuwit knows where all the bodies are - so he's  safe from the major villains. 

[nigelforbes]

1 minute ago, StayinThailand2much said:

If she had vaping gear. What happend to the original story about the 'wrong visa'?

That was just a red herring to distract dimwits and to embellish the story. ????

[jacko45k]

4 minutes ago, nigelforbes said:

That was just a red herring to distract dimwits and to embellish the story. ????

Muddying the waters.......

[Artisi]

8 minutes ago, StayinThailand2much said:

If she had vaping gear. What happend to the original story about the 'wrong visa'?

Don't worry too much, anything to keep the story going is ok - that includes the media and a few posters. 

[nigelforbes]

2 minutes ago, jacko45k said:

Muddying the waters.......

A brilliant blues singer.

[bamnutsak]

18 minutes ago, StayinThailand2much said:

If she had vaping gear. What happend to the original story about the 'wrong visa'?

 

Note that

 

The actress told Taiwanese media that Thai police put a vaping device into her hand and that she did not know what it was.

 

https://www.nationthailand.com/thailand/general/40024441

 

 

So "If" is correct. Given how often the "police" narative changed, I am more than comfortable assuming that the police planted the vape device. And that would make their crime(s) much, much worse.

 

And tourists should be warned that the police can and will plant evidence in order to extort cash.

 

 

[khunjeff]

12 hours ago, chickenslegs said:

That is not an apology.

They didn't apologize to her at all - they apologized to the Thai public for not arresting her:

 

"The MPB did, nonetheless, offer a public apology for the conduct of Huai Khwang police officers in allowing the Taiwanese actress to be released instead of charging her for illegal possession of an electronic cigarette." 

[JonnyF]

Double whammy for Thailand. Now everyone knows....

 

1.    Thai police are corrupt to the core.

2.   Vaping is illegal in Thailand and doing so makes you a target for extortion.

 

Just legalize vaping for god's sake. It's hardly crack cocaine.

 

 

[nigelforbes]

5 minutes ago, JonnyF said:

Double whammy for Thailand. Now everyone knows....

 

1.    Thai police are corrupt to the core.

2.   Vaping is illegal in Thailand and doing so makes you a target for extortion.

 

Just legalize vaping for god's sake. It's hardly crack cocaine.

 

 

I don't know, an admission from the top counts as something, it points to not everyone approving of corruption so that will have some positive mileage.

[MRToMRT]

10 hours ago, Puccini said:

Would this be a fair summary of the police statements, in chronological order:

 

1. There was no checkpoint.

 

2. There was a checkpoint, but no extortion took place.

 

3. Yes, we did extort 27,000 Baht.

One thing to add which is not in the OP (but in this mornings BKP). They are going to charge the officers with "dereliction of duty" but but but, get this, not for the bribe but not officially booking and fining her for the possession of an illegal item (the vape).

 

This country!!!!

[JonnyF]

Downtown Bangkok, where you can barely walk down the street without smelling Marijuana being smoked or bargirls offering sexual services, but vaping leads to extortion by corrupt police ????.

[Salerno]

15 minutes ago, bamnutsak said:

I am more than comfortable assuming that the police planted the vape device

Did they also plant it when she was filmed at her hotel vaping, or at the club prior to the shakedown and at the market after?

[bamnutsak]

4 minutes ago, JonnyF said:

Downtown Bangkok, where you can barely walk down the street without smelling Marijuana being smoked or bargirls offering sexual services, but vaping leads to extortion by corrupt police ????.

The Bangkok sidewalk police (tessakit) are back to extorting tourists for littering (cigarette butts). Opening bid is 2,000 baht.

 

I am very much against littering, but would like to see the "law" equally enforced with both tourists and Thais. And the fine is more like 200 baht.

 

 

 

 

 

[StayinThailand2much]

"Actress bribe claim borne out by officers' confessions: source"

 

(Headline in the online edition of a Thai English-language newspaper, published 31 Jan. at 04:06.) 

Edited January 31, 2023 by StayinThailand2much

[Smokey and the Bandit]

15 minutes ago, MRToMRT said:

One thing to add which is not in the OP (but in this mornings BKP). They are going to charge the officers with "dereliction of duty" but but but, get this, not for the bribe but not officially booking and fining her for the possession of an illegal item (the vape).

 

This country!!!!

Quite even though some of the officers admit they asked for the money, according to the BKP?

[bamnutsak]

3 minutes ago, Salerno said:

Did they also plant it when she was filmed at her hotel vaping, or at the club prior to the shakedown and at the market after?

 

I don't know. All I can say is that the police have proven to be unreliable narrators in this incident.

 

 

 

 

[newnative]

So, no apology to the actress; just an apology for getting caught.

[Salerno]

2 minutes ago, bamnutsak said:

I don't know. All I can say is that the police have proven to be unreliable narrators in this incident.

As has she, kudos for her on calling them out, I have no doubt she was ripped off but is a damn shame she had to embellish/omit from her account - some of which can be put down to translation issues but not all of them.

[StayinThailand2much]

34 minutes ago, JonnyF said:

Double whammy for Thailand. Now everyone knows....

 

1.    Thai police are corrupt to the core.

2.   Vaping is illegal in Thailand and doing so makes you a target for extortion.

 

Just legalize vaping for god's sake. It's hardly crack cocaine.

3. Thai police (sometimes) plant evidence.

4. Thai police (sometimes) use extortion methods to obtain money for their personal benefit.

5. Thai police on all levels will lie about, and manipulate (even in public) the truth of their corruption to protect themselves.

 

 

IMHO, if they had been smart, they should have just fired and prosecuted the seven involved, claiming the incident on 'bad apples'. But now, after the media farce, repercussions might be much bigger...

Edited January 31, 2023 by StayinThailand2much

[pomchop]

1 hour ago, nigelforbes said:

That was just a red herring to distract dimwits and to embellish the story. ????

according to todays reports the officers admitted to extortion...now why would they admit that if they did not do it?  also the reports indicate that checkpoint and cops helmet cameras had been wiped clean....now why would they do that as surely the video would prove their innocence?

dimwits?  

[nigelforbes]

3 minutes ago, pomchop said:

according to todays reports the officers admitted to extortion...now why would they admit that if they did not do it?  also the reports indicate that checkpoint and cops helmet cameras had been wiped clean....now why would they do that as surely the video would prove their innocence?

dimwits?  

Can you not read and comprehend, that post was in reference to the comment by a previous poster who queried what happened to the visa issue!