British Couple's Thailand Dream Becomes Legal Nightmare

[JJ-Thailand]

Thailand is no longer what it used to be.

[GroveHillWanderer]

1 hour ago, wensiensheng said:

I think it has to be pointed out that the attackers have brought a court case, which I guess is their legal right. It hasn’t gone to court yet, so there is no miscarriage of justice. Reading about the evidence, it seems quite likely that the case will be dismissed and justice done. 

It's not just that the other couple brought a court case though. It was the police that came and arrested them, confiscated their passports, fingerprinted them and charged them with multiple offences. 

 

As for it being likely the case will be dismissed, the Middlesbrough Evening Gazette reports the couple as having been warned that they will most likely be going to jail.

[Eloquent pilgrim]

31 minutes ago, Cameroni said:

Thai police are a lot better than their reputation suggests

 

Ferrari Joe ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

 

[GammaGlobulin]

19 minutes ago, Felton Jarvis said:

Your solution seems to be that Thailand should only let in those who have no need to be here. If you have enough money, you can live anywhere.

 

I do not care about NEED or those who say they have some need to be here.

Need has nothing to do with it.

Maybe the Africans and Indians have a need to live in London.

So then, should they be welcomed with openarms?

 

If they are vagabonds, keep them out.

If they intend to become Rascals in Paradise, don't let them in.

 

If their first interest is not Asia Asian culture, Asian language, then they should not be here,because they just become complainers.

 

They don't really care to be here, anyway...so get them out.

 

They would not care whatever country they might be in, as long as it is cheap, and they do not mind bashing the people of the country, whichever one it might be.

 

I do not like them,and I am not too bashful to admit it.

 

I say, get them out, and take those lousy digital nomads and send them elsewhere.

Why would anyone want some digital nomad near them?

 

It's like they have no attachment to anything of value.

It's all about narcissistic pleasures, and the ME of it all.

Truly disgusting people, and same with most YouTubers here, too.

Just get rid of them.

 

But, will they?

 

This all began with the dirty backpackers of the 1970s, of course, heading over to places like GOA, and now...they are here, too.

 

I am here in Asia because I actually want to live in Asia, no matter what the price, and Japan was once extremely expensive, but I lived there too.

 

 

 

[Celsius]

7 hours ago, webfact said:

 

However, in a baffling twist, the Byrnes were later arrested on counter charges alleging they caused "superficial injuries and mental anguish" to their attackers. Now, as their court date looms on March 12, the couple is grappling with a daunting legal battle, fearing a likely prison sentence.

 

Do they still need to do a 90 day report and file a tax return?

[GroveHillWanderer]

2 hours ago, BritManToo said:

I'd just tell the landowner, and let him sort it out.

We don't know that they didn't do that, but when they saw their neighbours ripping up plants in their garden and went out to see what was going on, they surely never expected the situation to descend into such extreme violence.

[BritManToo]

Just now, GroveHillWanderer said:

We don't know that they didn't do that, but when they saw their neighbours ripping up plants in their garden and went out to see what was going on, they surely never expected the situation to descend into such extreme violence.

Any confrontation with a Thai can lead to extreme violence!

Just telling them they're wrong is enough to start a gunfight.

[Freddy42OZ]

5 hours ago, John49 said:

As they cannot own land, there must be a leasing document from the landowner.

So, the dispute is really between the landowner and the neighbour claiming part of their garden.

 

Does not seem wise to engage in dispute with an angry neighbour, especially in a foreign country.

It seems they purchased a house in a 'retirement' community.  

The Thai court system, follows the rule of law.  They don't automatically side with Thais, the court will look at all aspects and I'd be very surprised if the Thais don't end up paying. 

The Thais filing a counter claim is a delaying tactic and the Judges will see that.


From the article 

“We rented at first then spent around £200,000 on a villa in a new retirement complex. We were so happy.”

 

But their dream life turned sour after returning from a shopping trip to find developers undergoing building work on their property.

And their neighbours said they now owned the access road to it.

 

A row broke out and the Byrnes managed to stop the development on their land for three months after hiring a lawyer and discovering the local residents had no legal right to muscle in on their home.

 

 

[Harrisfan]

46 minutes ago, rough diamond said:

Why don't you try that approach on AN?

Because the people here are not acting like real people. Everything is over the top drama. This is online fake behaviour.

[rough diamond]

2 minutes ago, Harrisfan said:

Because the people here are not acting like real people. Everything is over the top drama. This is online fake behaviour.

So you admit it is just like your behavior.

[rough diamond]

27 minutes ago, JJ-Thailand said:

Thailand is no longer what it used to be.

What was it in your opinion?

[Harrisfan]

3 minutes ago, rough diamond said:

So you admit it is just like your behavior.

In real life I have no weird stalkers like you. 

[rough diamond]

2 hours ago, CharlieH said:

Or as a Thai Judge once famously said, "if you hadnt come to Thailand, it couldnt have happened, so its your fault" 

Not trying to hijack but you could apply that phrase to any Nationality/situation.

[TedG]

6 hours ago, MalcolmB said:

Brit probably got a bit lippy with the Thais.

And got a fat lip. 
It amazes me how some farangs, and especially us Brits, think they can talk down and yell at the locals without any consequences.

That’s not a good reason to attack an old man. 

[newbee2022]

6 hours ago, hotsun said:

Their government gave their country away

To whom? 

I didn't get an offer😳

[JJ-Thailand]

10 minutes ago, rough diamond said:

What was it in your opinion?

Much better.

[bkk6060]

Very sad situation they look like a nice couple.  Hope things go right for them.

[Cameroni]

41 minutes ago, Eloquent pilgrim said:

 

Ferrari Joe ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

 

 

Ferrari Joe was arrested and imprisoned. So clear evidence the Thai pollice and judiciary root out the bad eggs.

[GroveHillWanderer]

31 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Any confrontation with a Thai can lead to extreme violence!

Just telling them they're wrong is enough to start a gunfight.

OK, but the person they first went out in response to, was British. His Thai wife didn't show up till later in the piece. And actually, from the video it seems that they didn't even go outside till he'd left. However after they were outside, he appears to return along with his wife.

[GammaGlobulin]

4 minutes ago, bkk6060 said:

Very sad situation they look like a nice couple.  Hope things go right for them.

 

 

Yes.

THIS is the thing about SE Asian countries.

 

It was very unlikely that the likes of the British couple and the aggressive guy from UK came from the same social strata in their home country, England.

 

However, it is often the case that in SE Asia, one unfortunately rubs shoulders with the wrong sort, not out of choice but necessity, or just dumb luck.

 

This is why I stay clear of Farang in Thailand.

 

One has no way of knowing what they might have been up to in their home countries, what kind of setting it was where they grew up, and many other important considerations.

 

This nice couple, most probably, would never have interacted  with the other sort, if it had not been for unluckily choosing a house in HH.

 

In the UK, this probably would never have happened.

 

And, this seems to be not the fault of the local community, but the fault of a UK import from the wrong side of the tracks.

 

Stay clear of Farang here, and be happier....!

 

 

[Blueman1]

7 hours ago, Denim said:

Great for the countries image.

 

If this all happened in December 2003 probably all done and dusted by now.

December 2023 M8 !!

[Shocked farang]

6 hours ago, MalcolmB said:

Brit probably got a bit lippy with the Thais.

And got a fat lip. 
It amazes me how some farangs, and especially us Brits, think they can talk down and yell at the locals without any consequences.

Well, we don't know what happened exactly. But if there was a loss of face, it could have been what triggered the violent "Muay Thai" reaction from the couple. Many foreigners will never fully understand that Thai social system operates under a "face saving" framework. You just cannot go against that in Thailand. 

[glennamy]

Try and get help from David Lammy? 😂 I'm afraid you do not have the correct heritage or culture for that imbecile to care about your situation!  

[tonypattaya]

Reader's cannot know the full story. There are always two sides to a story. If the whole thing was caught on CCTV then the outcome should be a simple affair.

[georgegeorgia]

7 hours ago, MalcolmB said:

Brit probably got a bit lippy with the Thais.

And got a fat lip. 
It amazes me how some farangs, and especially us Brits, think they can talk down and yell at the locals without any consequences.

The guy from Buzzin Lounge does it 

[georgegeorgia]

9 minutes ago, Blueman1 said:

December 2023 M8 !!

Denim is a smoker of the green so we must have empathy 

[rough diamond]

19 minutes ago, Cameroni said:

 

Ferrari Joe was arrested and imprisoned. So clear evidence the Thai pollice and judiciary root out the bad eggs.

They had no choice with all the leaked video evidence.

Even they could not shut that police brutality crime down.

[Shocked farang]

50 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Any confrontation with a Thai can lead to extreme violence!

Just telling them they're wrong is enough to start a gunfight.

Exactly, directness is not part of Thai culture, it's a face saving culture. For the sake of face saving just avoid any kind of confrontation. Specially about minor issues. 

[rough diamond]

37 minutes ago, JJ-Thailand said:

Much better.

An extremely helpful post,

Maybe you could expand and help others by say what is much better.

 

[Ralf001]

1 hour ago, thrilled said:

I could never live in Thailand. It seems like most police will favor Thai people no matter what the circumstances. 

 

Thats BS.

Been here since 2005 and have always been treated fairly by the police.