Belgian 80, Attacked and Robbed by Teenage Gang on Christmas Day in Pattaya

[liddelljohn]

8 hours ago, Tomtomtom69 said:

 

If I were you, I would have never gone anywhere near Soi Khaotalo since the first incident you experienced back in 2002.

My House was Soi khaotalo and  having worked in dangerous places all over the world  i am always on alert ,, ironicly both times i have been attacked and  stabbed were in my home town in England  in 1974 and  1993   , both events ended badly for the perps ,,  you can have trouble anywhere  ,  But i have always realised Thailand is not as safe as the myths would have .

[jacko45k]

19 hours ago, fredwiggy said:

I think some never bother watching the daily news, which alone shows how much of this kind of behavior goes on daily. There is also researching the stats, which shows more of how much violent behavior happens yearly. Some probably never wander far from the safety of their village homes, relying only on locals to tell them what happens worldwide, which amounts to almost nothing because they don't know either.

I wonder if that presents a true picture. Some years ago there was an English guy here who ran a media outfit, regular TV News reports in English on cable TV, then also internet. On a Forum he once admitted he had been asked to keep down the negative image news reports....

That said I still feel quite safe here. 

[actonion]

On 12/26/2024 at 10:22 AM, MalcolmB said:

Who said they were Thai?

 

Probably Burmese or Cambodians.

 

There is two sides to every story.

Burmese or Cambodians? you sound like the Thai government, blaming anyone  else except Thai's

[ChipButty]

1 hour ago, actonion said:

Burmese or Cambodians? you sound like the Thai government, blaming anyone  else except Thai's

I remember years ago Thai's would blame everything on the Burmese, 

[fredwiggy]

5 hours ago, jacko45k said:

I wonder if that presents a true picture. Some years ago there was an English guy here who ran a media outfit, regular TV News reports in English on cable TV, then also internet. On a Forum he once admitted he had been asked to keep down the negative image news reports....

That said I still feel quite safe here. 

Living here you only see a fraction of what goes on daily. The news stations waste a lot of time on nonsensical things. In the country, generally a person is safe if they keep to themselves and respect others, just as you would do anywhere. Crime here is pretty high in many avenues. Guns, knives, machetes, sticks, as well as all the others.

[bristolgeoff]

Nasty attack for little money on a elderly man.lets hope they are caught

[renaissanc]

Maybe the threat of punishment is too weak. A mandatory 20 years in prison without parole for anyone participating in robbery and mugging together with a huge, huge fine would help stop it.

[kiwikeith]

On 12/25/2024 at 7:21 PM, dddave said:

Attacks on foreigners like this have been rare in my 20+ years coming to Pattaya but there seems to have been an uptick in them recently.   Maybe one gang gets away with a successful grab, others follow.  

In my years here I've never once felt threatened but that doesn't mean it can't still happen, being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

My GF and me were walking home to hotel close to Bayoke when a bike with a passenger on the back flew past with no light on and snatched the GF's bag tearing the strap from around her neck.

Lucky she had her phone in he pocket and bank cards but they got some cash and her ID card.

Police came , no one was ever caught, I suspected motorbike taxis who hung round at the top of the soi , they were a bad bunch, they have been disbanded for a while now, its very sad to see 6 Thai men attack an 80 year old with knives to rob him, it shows no respect at all for the elderly, to assault  a man of this age, the could have killed him, very shameful act.

 

[Tomtomtom69]

On 12/27/2024 at 8:09 PM, georgegeorgia said:

So you had NO money to hand over if they had targeted you 

 

Could of worked out bad for you though ,you should of apologised them if that was a he case 

Please try to have at least a few coins to give to people in need 

 

 

I am not a charity, so I don't give handouts to anyone.

 

Like I said, I usually don't carry much cash and in this day and age of us approaching a cashless society, I'm far from an anomaly; in fact, most Thais use cash much less than I do (most use QR codes). I merely spend cash quickly; I don't not use it, I spend it, leaving me with little in my wallet once I've done my shopping or whatever else I need to use my money on. I start with say, 10000 Baht and then 3 hours later I might have only 2000 left and by the next day there's only 50 Baht left in my wallet. 

I also find that in SE Asian countries in general (or by extension, even China and most East Asian countries actually) you can usually get yourself out of trouble, even if you're targeted, by the way you act.

 

OK, fortunately, I'm not 80 and slow on my feet, but if I were, I wouldn't be walking outside in a dark area late at night.

 

If I am approached by beggars, scammers, thieves or anyone that looks shifty, I immediately leave the scene, cross the road, ignore them, scream (never had to do that) or otherwise act in a way that they lose interest. It has always worked and you almost always have people around so robbers and other criminals usually don't have time to hang around long as someone will soon notice them (and you).

 

I don't play around. 

[Tomtomtom69]

On 12/29/2024 at 8:11 AM, renaissanc said:

Maybe the threat of punishment is too weak. A mandatory 20 years in prison without parole for anyone participating in robbery and mugging together with a huge, huge fine would help stop it.

 

Yes or the same sort of response as a tourist in a bar who is the victim of a prank involving a 2000 Baht bar mat.

 

I'm referencing the case of an Australian woman, who was with her friends at a bar in Patong in Phuket I think it was, who's friend emptied her purse and placed a small mat inside, with a value of 2000 Baht as part of a prank (which by the sounds of it, sounds totally lame and hardly what I'd call a "prank"). Hopefully, she never saw those "friends" again. 

 

She left the bar with her friends and was stopped by security, who noticed she had some property of the bar in her handbag. 

 

Then the story becomes a bit confusing, but apparently her friends tell her to run, which she does, but is eventually caught. The police charge her with theft at night, which is apparently much more serious than theft during the day.

 

Initially, she is given the chance to bribe her way out, with a 20000 Baht fine. Crazy, but this is actually a rather small figure, compared with what's to come. Apparently, she refuses and then the bribe jumps to 100000 Baht and eventually to something ridiculous like 450,000 (the way she told the story was, it's like the police and bar would negotiate to INCREASE the amount, rather than decrease every time they spoke), which is rather odd. Eventually, she ends up in jail??

 

In other words, do only farang end up in jail for small scale theft, because even if the official penalty is something like "up to 3-4 years in prison", it seems like no one goes to jail here for that, except farang who are extorted by corrupt police. 

 

Something doesn't add up - but if the Thai justice system treated everyone like they did this poor woman, then there would be no crime here at all, as it would be way too risky. 

[cranki]

8 hours ago, Tomtomtom69 said:

 

Yes or the same sort of response as a tourist in a bar who is the victim of a prank involving a 2000 Baht bar mat.

 

I'm referencing the case of an Australian woman, who was with her friends at a bar in Patong in Phuket I think it was, who's friend emptied her purse and placed a small mat inside, with a value of 2000 Baht as part of a prank (which by the sounds of it, sounds totally lame and hardly what I'd call a "prank"). Hopefully, she never saw those "friends" again. 

 

She left the bar with her friends and was stopped by security, who noticed she had some property of the bar in her handbag. 

 

Then the story becomes a bit confusing, but apparently her friends tell her to run, which she does, but is eventually caught. The police charge her with theft at night, which is apparently much more serious than theft during the day.

 

Initially, she is given the chance to bribe her way out, with a 20000 Baht fine. Crazy, but this is actually a rather small figure, compared with what's to come. Apparently, she refuses and then the bribe jumps to 100000 Baht and eventually to something ridiculous like 450,000 (the way she told the story was, it's like the police and bar would negotiate to INCREASE the amount, rather than decrease every time they spoke), which is rather odd. Eventually, she ends up in jail??

 

In other words, do only farang end up in jail for small scale theft, because even if the official penalty is something like "up to 3-4 years in prison", it seems like no one goes to jail here for that, except farang who are extorted by corrupt police. 

 

Something doesn't add up - but if the Thai justice system treated everyone like they did this poor woman, then there would be no crime here at all, as it would be way too risky. 

She was later refused a Visa to visit the US to take her kids to Disneyland after that Patong incident, great friends she had at the time......

[actonion]

On 12/25/2024 at 1:36 PM, billd766 said:

The answer is, no they don't.

 

The majority of Thai mwn don't do that.

 

A very small minority of Thai's do, and that is usually blown way out of proportion by the press and the social media.

The answer is no they dont?....Yes they do,  Apart from the 80 year old man attacked in  Nongprue last week, We now have an update, to include a Chinese man attacked by Security Guards, 2/1/25, & a Norweigian man, (not drunk) attacked by Phuket Taxi Driver 1/1/25, In each case  multiple Thai's  attacking Foreign males  alone

[actonion]

An update on this for those who think this was  a one off incident,  Hong kong tourist attacked  in Pratumnak area, Chinese tourist attacked by Security Guards,   Norwegian tourist attacked  in Phuket  by Taxi driver, all  within the last 7 days, multiple Thai's attacking alone Foreign Men, More to follow no doubt..

 

On 12/25/2024 at 1:36 PM, billd766 said:

The answer is, no they don't.

 

The majority of Thai mwn don't do that.

 

A very small minority of Thai's do, and that is usually blown way out of proportion by the press and the social media.

The answer is no they dont?,  Apart from the 80 year old man attacked in  Nongprue last week, We now have an update, to include a Chinese man attacked by Security Guards, 2/1/26, & a Norweigian man, (not drunk) attacked by Phuket Taxi Driver 1/1/25, more to follow im sure

[billd766]

1 hour ago, actonion said:

The answer is no they dont?....Yes they do,  Apart from the 80 year old man attacked in  Nongprue last week, We now have an update, to include a Chinese man attacked by Security Guards, 2/1/25, & a Norweigian man, (not drunk) attacked by Phuket Taxi Driver 1/1/25, In each case  multiple Thai's  attacking Foreign males  alone

Well there are approximately 34 million Thai males ranging from new borns to elders in Thailand.

 

Please explain and give a percentage of the number of farangs attacked in Thailand compared to the 34 million Thai males that actually attacked the number of farangs that you seem to have no idea about.

 

Then explain to all and sundry if  it was more than 17 million Thai men + 1 which would give a more accurate representation of your ridiculous claim.

 

Please don't forget to add all the verified links as well.

 

BTW, a majority is normally 50% plus 1.

[newnative]

2 hours ago, billd766 said:

Well there are approximately 34 million Thai males ranging from new borns to elders in Thailand.

 

Please explain and give a percentage of the number of farangs attacked in Thailand compared to the 34 million Thai males that actually attacked the number of farangs that you seem to have no idea about.

 

Then explain to all and sundry if  it was more than 17 million Thai men + 1 which would give a more accurate representation of your ridiculous claim.

 

Please don't forget to add all the verified links as well.

 

BTW, a majority is normally 50% plus 1.

    And, also take into consideration that 2024 saw 35 million foreign tourists visit Thailand.  With that many interacting with the Thai population, there are bound to be some incidents.  35 million is a lot.  The incidents mentioned, not a lot at all.  

[georgegeorgia]

23 hours ago, Tomtomtom69 said:

I don't play around

Oh get off your high horse Grandpa , you know and everyone else knows if you had 4 guys with machetes approach you ......

[jacko45k]

17 hours ago, billd766 said:

Please explain and give a percentage of the number of farangs attacked in Thailand compared to the 34 million Thai males that actually attacked the number of farangs that you seem to have no idea about.

Well, as a number, he did actually list 5 or so too many... and like you, authorities will list that as a small percentage of those walking the streets and not a problem.

[watchcat]

On 12/24/2024 at 11:33 PM, Georgealbert said:

An 80-year-old Belgian man was brutally attacked and robbed by a group of teenage assailants wielding knives on Christmas Day in Pattaya.

 

What's the matter with teenagers these days?   Mummy didn't give you money enough for your yaba pills....

[watchcat]

On 12/25/2024 at 6:36 AM, billd766 said:

The majority of Thai mwn don't do that.

 

I wouldn't call them "men"..!

[Xonax]

On 12/26/2024 at 4:47 AM, SiSePuede419 said:

Out for an intoxicated walk at Midnight?

Am I reading this correctly?

Hmmm.

That doesn't sound wise for an 80 year old.

Truth is if he had taken a taxi or Grab home from his Xmas party we wouldn't be having this discussion now. 😆

And if your dad had worn a condom, we would not have to read your utter rubbish comment!!

[Xonax]

On 12/26/2024 at 9:10 AM, ChipButty said:

Silly old bugger walking home at that time of the night, I'm not saying he deserves it, but eliminate any possibility, why does he need 7000 baht on him? 

The muggers could have gotten angry and killed him, if they had only found 200 Baht on him.

[jacko45k]

18 hours ago, Xonax said:

The muggers could have gotten angry and killed him, if they had only found 200 Baht on him.

And you know this how exactly?