Kiwi’s prison plight ends: Thai hellhole release brings a breath of relief

[Felton Jarvis]

39 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

.

Try a month in a Thai prison and see if you think it’s “B0ll0cks”

[tandor]

47 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Oh, dear, is that the best you could come up with? 

Here's anther cliché for you, "You should always judge a book by it's cover" (LL).

 

42 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

"We also know" that embassies cannot intervene in Thai legal proceedings to get their miscreant nationals off the hook.

why should they

[Burma Bill]

6 hours ago, wombat said:

He sounds and looks like a drama queen using poetic license to embellish his story...there must be more to the story than he is telling...no one gets that sort of treatment for 2 tablets 

Probably - from the post:

 

The Kiwi’s cryptocurrency business tanked during Covid.

 

Did he scam someone?? 

 

[tandor]

2 hours ago, jesimps said:

He's a climate change expert. They're exempt aren't they?

..best keep up-wind

[Myran]

Just wait until the book is released. Then he'll reveal that he was actually tossed onto deadly spikes from a 50 meter tall building, forced to sleep with starved crocodiles, and molested by the reincarnated corpse of Jimmy Savile.

[Spock]

7 hours ago, Jonathan Swift said:

He's obviously old enough to have known better. I feel bad for his suffering, but come on, did he not know about drugs and Thai prisons? Why take those kind of chances? I knew about it long before I came here, and I wouldn't at the time (10 years ago) even go near anyone smoking weed.

I doubt that anyone buying a couple of ecstasy pills does so believing they will be caught by police. Drug takers generally take the odd risk in life, and 99% of the time don't pay a consequence. You are obviously not of his ilk. But the point of the article is the humiliating way in which he was treated. Having been in a similar but less serious situation 30 years ago, I am inclined to believe his story. At least Thailand has legalised marijuana. I for one have avoided coming here because I don't wish to visit somewhere more strict than my own country. I'm back now.

[tandor]

5 hours ago, Smokey and the Bandit said:

So lets here from the RTP and get the CCTV footage?

...seems he finished his number 'two' and asked them to wipe his botty and pull his pants up...that's when it all went to whatsaname and got lost in translation...poor chap...how degrading

[Spock]

6 hours ago, 4MyEgo said:

I learnt long ago that there is always two sides to a story.

 

Now do we honestly thing that the cops would waste their time to arrest him for 2 ecstasy tablets, I would think the other side of the story is that he insulted the police, now that could be by his foul mouth or spitting on them.

 

The above said, I don't know the other side of the story, but I got a rough idea.

 

His dad must be real proud of him.

 

His story could be true, but you have to weigh it all up. 

 

You're just making it up as you go with your assumptions of what MIGHT have happened and convinced yourself that your embellishments represent the truth.

[Spock]

5 hours ago, Ralf001 said:

Not as though the repercussions for being caught with drugs are not known.

Had a friend do 6 months for a joint he had in his pocket.

I don't think that could possibly be true. When I lived in Thailand, the penalty for small amounts of marijuana was 48 days jail. Most farangs would have paid their way out. 6 months for a joint was not going to happen.

[Smokey and the Bandit]

51 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

B0ll0cks.

 

1 hour ago, paul1804 said:

Its a hell of a story but it is possible that he is only tell some of it. Why did he need to come to LOS to trade crypto when all you need is an internet connection? and leave his family behind! But Thai media often get the story wrong and or leave out vital pieces of information so only he and the fine upstanding RTP know the full story if there is more to it. 

You make a good point. Thai media especially TThaiger aren't known for reporting accuracy. As you say the RTP would know but as we all know they don't always tell the truth?????

[Ralf001]

1 minute ago, Spock said:

I don't think that could possibly be true. When I lived in Thailand, the penalty for small amounts of marijuana was 48 days jail. Most farangs would have paid their way out. 6 months for a joint was not going to happen.

I went to court when my friend fronted the judge and witnessed first hand the sentencing.

 

I apologise for lying to you.

[Spock]

4 minutes ago, Ralf001 said:

I went to court when my friend fronted the judge and witnessed first hand the sentencing.

 

I apologise for lying to you.

Whatever. From personal experience I say 6 months for one joint is impossible. There has to be something else involved. Posters here are querying how this guy got months for 2 ecstasy pills, a crime much more serious than marijuana.

[Smokey and the Bandit]

6 hours ago, 4MyEgo said:

I learnt long ago that there is always two sides to a story.

 

Now do we honestly thing that the cops would waste their time to arrest him for 2 ecstasy tablets, I would think the other side of the story is that he insulted the police, now that could be by his foul mouth or spitting on them.

 

The above said, I don't know the other side of the story, but I got a rough idea.

 

His dad must be real proud of him.

 

His story could be true, but you have to weigh it all up. 

 

As you say there are 2 sides to every story! The chances of the RTP coming forth and saying anything is extremely low, so we only have his story?

[bignok]

1 hour ago, paul1804 said:

Its a hell of a story but it is possible that he is only tell some of it. Why did he need to come to LOS to trade crypto when all you need is an internet connection? and leave his family behind! But Thai media often get the story wrong and or leave out vital pieces of information so only he and the fine upstanding RTP know the full story if there is more to it. 

Ever read The Sun?

[BusyB]

''Pre-Covid-19 Salinger moved to Thailand from the Philippines because he believed his cryptocurrency business would thrive in the Land of Smiles, ''

 

I'm by no means an expert but this baffles me ... why should a crypto currency business be any more lucrative depending on location? Surely it's all Internet based. Unless he's setting up a mining operation, which will certainly attract the flies.

[BusyB]

I guess that picture's not from his jail cell ????

 

[Ralf001]

7 minutes ago, Spock said:

Whatever. From personal experience I say 6 months for one joint is impossible. There has to be something else involved. Posters here are querying how this guy got months for 2 ecstasy pills, a crime much more serious than marijuana.

The only charge he faced was the one for the joint.

 

Iam sorry you find this unbeleivable, If similar happens again I will take video to show as proof to those that think they know otherwise.

[jcmj]

Sounds like he’s setting himself up to write a book and cash in on his own personal experience with a lot of drama and trumped up lies added to it. I’ll bet he’s glad his jail boyfriends don’t speak English. 

[BTB1977]

No mention of his famous father trying to help. Must have known what a dumb $ss his son is. 

[NoDisplayName]

12 hours ago, webfact said:

Pre-Covid-19 Salinger moved to Thailand from the Philippines because he believed his cryptocurrency business would thrive in the Land of Smiles, reported the New Zealand Herald.

I was not aware the Philippines had such strict laws regarding ponzi scams.

Good for them.

[kingstonkid]

5 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

One does not need to side with the RTP to know that if one gets caught with illegal drugs in one's possession one's life is going to turn to <deleted> real quick.

Personal responsibility and all that.

thank you

[connda]

He should be glad he didn't get busted for drugs in the PI. 

Although I like an occasional toke of bud, I completely stopped after coming to Thailand.  The old saying, "Don't do the crime if you can't do the time?" 

Yep.  My philosophy goes for all other drugs as well. 

 

Edited July 10, 2023 by connda

[kingstonkid]

3 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Another gem from someone who has no idea what a Thai prison is actually like.  

You do not have to be an inmate to know there is enough on the web to tell what it is like.  As well as comments on here .

 

The bottom line is that Thai prisons are not meant to be the social cub they re in western countries.  

 

We all know that if you get caught with drugs it is not going to be a wonderful experience.

 

I find that he probably embellished the facts.  I m sure that the food was not to his level or standards if he didn't wnt to eat it tht is his problem. 

[connda]

12 hours ago, webfact said:

He was carrying two ecstasy pills he now claims weren’t his, even though he initially pleaded guilty to the charges.

"They just fell into my pocket out of the sky!"  Of course.

Now, two tabs of X in most Western countries would be a slap on the wrist.  Here?  Probably considered 'trafficking' as dumb as that is.  Thailand's 500 lb gorilla is meth.  But the way the system is set up?  Some people can make a lucrative living, some get popped for some minuscule and amount that is then labelled "trafficking."  Brown envelops.

[schvonsky1]

8 hours ago, Skipalongcassidy said:

Poor is me... what an absolute tool... more of the "I'm special brigade"

Nobody is perfect not even u ☝????

[Liverpool Lou]

18 minutes ago, kingstonkid said:

3 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Another gem from someone who has no idea what a Thai prison is actually like.  

You do not have to be an inmate to know there is enough on the web to tell what it is like.  As well as comments on here .

As I have commented elsewhere, that's cobbler's, it is necessary to be an inmate to actually know what a Thai prison or RTP jails are like and how they are operated.   Reading embellished (and sometimes completely made up) garbage on the internet (and believing depictions in television series') from people who haven't been there, and then quoting it as fact, is ridiculous.

[Liverpool Lou]

1 hour ago, Smokey and the Bandit said:

You make a good point. Thai media especially TThaiger aren't known for reporting accuracy. As you say the RTP would know but as we all know they don't always tell the truth?????

"...the RTP would know but as we all know they don't always tell the truth?????"

Neither do those possibly planning on benefiting from their embellished "experience" always tell the truth.  I wonder why he never made all those allegations while he was here?  MY money says most of it is cobbler's.

[Liverpool Lou]

1 hour ago, tandor said:

2 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

"We also know" that embassies cannot intervene in Thai legal proceedings to get their miscreant nationals off the hook.

why should they

They shouldn't because they can't.  I, clearly, did not suggest that they should.

[Liverpool Lou]

1 hour ago, Felton Jarvis said:

Try a month in a Thai prison and see if you think it’s “B0ll0cks”

I have.  I do know what I'm talking about.

[phetphet]

8 hours ago, wombat said:

He sounds and looks like a drama queen using poetic license to embellish his story...there must be more to the story than he is telling...no one gets that sort of treatment for 2 tablets 

Depends if there's another Joe Ferrari on the force.