The baffling 27 years of Richard Burrows, aka. ‘Peter Smith’

[Liverpool Lou]

17 hours ago, BangkokReady said:

18 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

How much did close friends actually know about his dark past?

 

Is the Phuket Go trying to get his friends in trouble? 

Even if they did know, how would that get them into trouble?  It is not illegal to know dodgy people, even those with warrants.

[Scouse123]

Few comments about how rough he looks, well he would, wouldn't he

 

Arrested at an airport, put in cells, up before a magistrate and remanded to prison.

 

Hardly time to think since getting off a long flight from LOS.

 

I bet his appearance is low on his list of priorities right now.

[richard_smith237]

3 minutes ago, Scouse123 said:

Few comments about how rough he looks, well he would, wouldn't he

 

Arrested at an airport, put in cells, up before a magistrate and remanded to prison.

 

Hardly time to think since getting off a long flight from LOS.

 

I bet his appearance is low on his list of priorities right now.

 

He's also 80 years old....  I'm sure I've looked much rougher than this in my 20's when waking up after a big night out...

 

Its incredible how some posters focus on the utterly irrelevant....      I really have to wonder what degree of simpletons we have on this forum who are completely oblivious to the fact that they are simpletons.... 

 

 

 

[Liverpool Lou]

3 hours ago, roo860 said:

Before he was charged in the UK years ago he used to drink occasionally in my local pub in Congleton, Cheshire. 

Oh.

[roo860]

4 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Oh.

<deleted >

[The Fugitive]

20 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

It is not illegal to know dodgy people, even those with warrants.

Very easy to get an arrest warrant against yourself. Non-compliance with a court order or non-payment of a fine for example. Doesn't necessarily make one a 'dodgy' person.

[Liverpool Lou]

3 hours ago, wombat said:

18 hours ago, Moonlover said:

the real 'Peter Smith' never reported it missing

as he was paid to do?

Who said he was in on it?

[PETERTHEEATER]

2 hours ago, saintdomingo said:

Great Britain is not a country, the United Kingdom is.

🫡

[Liverpool Lou]

2 hours ago, foreverlomsak said:

which NI number was he using for DWP Peter Smith or Richard Burrows, did he ever have to do "Proof of Life" certificates, and were HMRC taxing his private pensions if any (or at least assessing him for tax).

Not very likely that a man who knew that there was a warrant for his arrest (Burrows) would advise any government agency of his whereabouts just to get a pension and his impersonating Smith would make it very difficult for him to claim a state pension in Smith's name.

[PETERTHEEATER]

30 minutes ago, Scouse123 said:

Few comments about how rough he looks, well he would, wouldn't he

 

Arrested at an airport, put in cells, up before a magistrate and remanded to prison.

 

Hardly time to think since getting off a long flight from LOS.

 

I bet his appearance is low on his list of priorities right now.

Some people will do anything to avoid the Immigration queue at Heathrow.....😀

[tandor]

16 hours ago, ukrules said:

I wonder if he went back to the UK multiple times over the years.

 

This is not about a stolen passport, he assumed the identity of the real guy named 'Peter Smith', once he did that it would have been plain sailing for him unless the original guy noticed.

Had the real Peter Smith at any point attempted to get a passport back in the UK then his number would have been up immediately, perhaps this is how they got him as they were ready and waiting for him on arrival.

 

There's still one piece of the puzzle missing though - how did they know this particular guy was the same on who did a runner all those years ago?

it's possible Peter Smith knowingly allowed Burrows to use his Passport.

[Liverpool Lou]

1 hour ago, Dart12 said:

Did it say how he was found out or caught?

Did you read the article and link?

[Liverpool Lou]

52 minutes ago, Scouse123 said:

Living on very limited funds in a packing crate or something near old Phuket Zoo? Whatever or wherever.

Nowhere did it report that he was living "in a packing crate".

[Liverpool Lou]

25 minutes ago, The Fugitive said:

48 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

It is not illegal to know dodgy people, even those with warrants.

Very easy to get an arrest warrant against yourself. Non-compliance with a court order or non-payment of a fine for example. Doesn't necessarily make one a 'dodgy' person.

"Doesn't necessarily make one a 'dodgy' person".

I didn't say that it did!   My point was that knowing a dodgy person such as Burrows is not illegal but having an arrest warrant for the offences of Burrows most certainly does make him a dodgy person.

[Liverpool Lou]

19 minutes ago, tandor said:

it's possible Peter Smith knowingly allowed Burrows to use his Passport.

You really think that the father of a boy Burrows was abusing would do that?

[Scouse123]

21 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Nowhere did it report that he was living "in a packing crate".

 

 

In recent years ‘Peter Smith’ lived in a container home near the old Phuket Zoo in Chalong.

 

Near enough, for me, an adapted container!

[Jonathan Swift]

"professionally but spasmodically,"  Guy gave you cramps and back pain?

[n00dle]

my only question is why go back to England after decades of living peacefully in Phuket? 

[The Fugitive]

1 minute ago, n00dle said:

my only question is why go back to England after decades of living peacefully in Phuket? 

Run out of money. Health problems.

[n00dle]

Just now, The Fugitive said:

Run out of money. Health problems.

username checks out

[saintdomingo]

1 hour ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Did you read the article and link?

That says the NCA was tracking his return but does not say how long for or how long they had been aware of his identity. Puzzling, possibly one day we will be told. Until then 

[Jaggg88]

18 hours ago, ukrules said:

I wonder if he went back to the UK multiple times over the years.

 

This is not about a stolen passport, he assumed the identity of the real guy named 'Peter Smith', once he did that it would have been plain sailing for him unless the original guy noticed.

Had the real Peter Smith at any point attempted to get a passport back in the UK then his number would have been up immediately, perhaps this is how they got him as they were ready and waiting for him on arrival.

 

There's still one piece of the puzzle missing though - how did they know this particular guy was the same on who did a runner all those years ago?

They probably didn't know who he was but the stolen passport had finally been flagged up. Maybe the real Peter Smith had applied for a new one or had passed away. Once they arrested him for using a stolen/fake passport his fingerprints would identify him.

[BangkokReady]

3 hours ago, Maejo Man said:

Being British just means that he was a native of England as opposed to being Welsh and being a native of Wales. All are issued with a British passport.

 

Welsh people are British. As are Scottish people. 🤦‍♂️

[BangkokReady]

3 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Even if they did know, how would that get them into trouble?

 

Someone might think they are deserving of some sort of physical assault.

 

3 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

It is not illegal to know dodgy people, even those with warrants.

 

Correct.

[saintdomingo]

20 minutes ago, BangkokReady said:

 

Welsh people are British. As are Scottish people. 🤦‍♂️

Exactly, perhaps Maejo Man was just having a senior moment.

[stevenl]

7 hours ago, oxo1947 said:

True --if he had a work permit he would not have had to leave every 90 days --- a normal 1 year visa was leave the country every 90 days, then when 1 year was up

--leave the country and go find an Thai Embassy in  a different country that would issue you with another 1 year visa to come back in.

 

How easy it is now.........................

 

With a extension he would not have had to leave. Just renew every year without leaving. I am still doing that except I have to report every 90 days now.

[Tongjaw]

12 hours ago, Robbkk said:

 

Thai immigration dropped the ball. They let this guy in with somebody else's passport and kept renewing his visa for 27 years.

 

 

 

 

What a load of BS. The UK authorities dropped the ball. Firstly by allowing him the leave the country. Secondly by renewing his passport which was stolen. Nothing the Thai immigration did was wrong, as far as they knew his passport was genuine. 

[dunroaming]

23 hours ago, GroveHillWanderer said:

The linked article provides an explanation of how he got the passport - it was apparently stolen from the father of one of his victims. 

 

As for renewing it - well, when you think about it all you need to renew a British passport from abroad is a passing resemblance to the previous holder and somebody (usually, but not necessarily, a British citizen) to sign saying that they've known you for several years and can vouch for your identity.

I have renewed my passport in Thailand (Chiang Mai) some fifteen years ago and it was very simple, straightforward and easy to do.

[scottiejohn]

Just now, dunroaming said:

I have renewed my passport in Thailand (Chiang Mai) some fifteen years ago and it was very simple, straightforward and easy to do.

Pointless post!

How was it when you renewed it about 5 years ago?

[scottiejohn]

1 hour ago, BangkokReady said:

 

Welsh people are British. As are Scottish people. 🤦‍♂️

Neither of us are English! although we will admit to being British or "from the UK" if forced to say it!

 

PS; We do not want to be united!  🥊