A Canadian man, Ibrahim Laamiri, is accused of stealing 20,000 baht from a motorcycle rental shop in Samut Prakan, Thailand, after allegedly refusing to pay for damages to a rented Yamaha Tenere 700. The motorcycle was rented from January 13 to February 20, with Laamiri paying a 20,000 baht deposit. Upon return, the motorcycle had extensive damage, with repair costs estimated at 141,165 baht.

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Despite being contacted for payment, Laamiri denied responsibility and arranged to meet at the shop on March 4. During the meeting, the owner offered a discount on repairs, reducing the bill to 68,115 baht, but Laamiri still refused to pay. Attempts to involve police as mediators were unsuccessful, as officers advised both parties to meet at the local police station, which Laamiri declined.

The owner claimed that during a staged call with police, Laamiri stole 20,000 baht from the counter. CCTV footage allegedly captured him taking the money and some documents before fleeing. The shop owner filed a complaint at Samrong Nuea Police Station, urging police to issue an arrest warrant to prevent Laamiri from leaving the country, but received no updates.

Laamiri has since posted videos on Instagram, allegedly showing him taking the cash from the shop, but remains unlocated. The case has drawn attention to concerns over rental agreements and dispute resolutions involving foreign nationals.

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  Adapted by ASEAN Now · The Thaiger · 25 Mar 2026

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The old Thai 'you've damaged the bike, and it needs repairs that are 3x it's value' scam. At least the guy got his deposit back.

I knew a guy in CM that owned a m/c rental shop, he used to boast that he made far more in repairs, then he did in rentals to foreigners. He had a guy on staff that just sprayed over scratched panels that cost almost nothing.

The cost for repair since the bike managed to ride back to the shop should not be more than 40k-50k baht for a 400K bike.

that initial 141,165 Baht was for sure trying to cheat and steal from the customer.

So the POS owner does deserve it for tying to cheat the customer in the first place!!!

Canadians are not the most prolific bad tourists.

You don't hear about them too often.

But that's precisely why the locals keep their guard down with them.

1 hour ago, BritManToo said:

The old Thai 'you've damaged the bike, and it needs repairs that are 3x it's value' scam.

Supposed to take photos before for proof.

If the shop doesn't, you can.

40 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

Canadians are not the most prolific bad tourists.

You don't hear about them too often.

But that's precisely why the locals keep their guard down with them.

Generally its too far for us to travel to Thailand for holiday. There are similar places much closer at prices on par or below whats offered.

You can get an all inclusive holiday for less than the flight to Thailand.

11 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

A Canadian man, Ibrahim Laamiri

I don't know, I guess his passport says he's Canadian, but his name certainly hints at another nationality. Sad candians are being tarnished for this dirt bag's crime

9 hours ago, save the frogs said:

Supposed to take photos before for proof.

If the shop doesn't, you can.

Sounds like there is no argument that the bike was damaged. He signed paperwork saying he would be responsible for the full value of the bike, as per the usual contract. The owner also loses potential rental while getting it fixed. This will be another guy wanting a passport as deposit!

Some might suggest the renter gets insurance, I recall one shop in Pattaya that did offer insurance at a supplement.

10 hours ago, brfsa2 said:

The cost for repair since the bike managed to ride back to the shop should not be more than 40k-50k baht for a 400K bike.

that initial 141,165 Baht was for sure trying to cheat and steal from the customer.

So the POS owner does deserve it for tying to cheat the customer in the first place!!!

And somehow you know exactly what the damages were without being there or even seeing a picture? If repairs were so cheap I would bet the renter could have taken it to be repaired himself and end of story. No shortage of bike repair shops. Stealing 20 k baht is not a great way to settle a dispute. Crap like this is why more and more bike shops want a passport to hold onto just in case.

Many moons ago a rental place in Chiang Mai tried to take my passport.... I said you can have a photocopy but no more.

I ended up going to another place close by, cheaper and better bike. It pays to shop around

12 hours ago, save the frogs said:

Supposed to take photos before for proof.

If the shop doesn't, you can.

Indeed the shop may have taken the "before" pix, perhaps showing all the existing damage, just like they do with the jet skis on Pattaya Beach?

When it is returned, in precisely the same state as the "before" pix, you can find that those shop taken pix have been photoshopped to show zero "before" damage.

Always take your own pix.

3 hours ago, Pouatchee said:

I don't know, I guess his passport says he's Canadian, but his name certainly hints at another nationality. Sad candians are being tarnished for this dirt bag's crime

Yup, for sure he most have sneaked across the [Southern]border. Good Canadian names must include minimum one Q😉

12 hours ago, save the frogs said:

Canadians are not the most prolific bad tourists.

You don't hear about them too often.

This is why we need to hammer this point every single time. Their government let in a bunch of Africans and gave them passports.

I don’t know why people are sympathetic towards the bike shop owner. My view of the story is, crook number one, (bike shop owner), was done over by crook number two., (Canadian) Crook number one must remember you cannot win them all.

27 minutes ago, NorthernRyland said:

This is why we need to hammer this point every single time. Their government let in a bunch of Africans and gave them passports.

28 minutes ago, NorthernRyland said:

This is why we need to hammer this point every single time. Their government let in a bunch of Africans and gave them passports.

28 minutes ago, NorthernRyland said:

This is why we need to hammer this point every single time. Their government let in a bunch of Africans and gave them passports.

OH, that is so racist.....but so true.

Allegedly Canadian, eh? Certainly not a lumberjack though.

In fact, "allegedly" is used so often in this story, one could be forgiven for thinking an Arab was somehow involved.....

a) THB 141,000 "repair" on a bike you can buy brand new at THB 479,000 (not discounted yet) ..........
b) an individual named Ibrahim Laamiri, traveling with a Canadian passport, does not mean, that Laamiri is essentially a founding father of Canada - possibly .......... I might suggest not to push the "Canada" fact too strong as it has - really - nothing to do with the country whose passport is held by the accused.

Canadian....55555. Sure.

Also, why are the cops dragging their feet? There is vid of him stealing the money. Jesus Efin Christ. Do your job!

11 minutes ago, Taboo2 said:

Canadian....55555. Sure.

Also, why are the cops dragging their feet? There is vid of him stealing the money. Jesus Efin Christ. Do your job!

Don't think a video of him taking his deposit back counts as stealing.

34 minutes ago, Jack Hammer said:

I don’t know why people are sympathetic towards the bike shop owner. My view of the story is, crook number one, (bike shop owner), was done over by crook number two., (Canadian) Crook number one must remember you cannot win them all.

"The biter bit!"

27 minutes ago, Zimar said:

OH, that is so racist.....but so true.

And a million plus Indians and now they have a major housing problem and unemployment issues. Well done.

Those Canucks eh?

You can’t take them anywhere.

Has a Canadian passport

33 minutes ago, Zimar said:

OH, that is so racist.....but so true.

I'm so over this racism nonsense, don't care anymore whatsoever. It's just not fair to Canadians who really are exceedingly nice people. The government will literally give that passport to anyone from anywhere so when the headline is "Canadian Man" it means nothing whatsoever. It could be a heritage Canadian colonists or an African from Congo that just got his passport last week.

Two people with nothing in common but joined together by a common passport. Honestly it's slander and identity theft. Why should people with from countries with bad reputations get to parade around like Canandians and piss all over their good reputation? So unfair.... what the government did is a crime against humanity.

Damn I'm ranting now. Better get back to work. :)

With that name, my first thought was "yup, he's Canadian".

20 minutes ago, NorthernRyland said:

I'm so over this racism nonsense, don't care anymore whatsoever. It's just not fair to Canadians who really are exceedingly nice people. The government will literally give that passport to anyone from anywhere so when the headline is "Canadian Man" it means nothing whatsoever. It could be a heritage Canadian colonists or an African from Congo that just got his passport last week.

Two people with nothing in common but joined together by a common passport. Honestly it's slander and identity theft. Why should people with from countries with bad reputations get to parade around like Canandians and piss all over their good reputation? So unfair.... what the government did is a crime against humanity.

Damn I'm ranting now. Better get back to work. :)

He has a Canadian passport and entered Thailand on that passport. So he is Canadian whether your biased thoughts like it or not. Just the way it is.

6 hours ago, Pouatchee said:

I don't know, I guess his passport says he's Canadian, but his name certainly hints at another nationality. Sad candians are being tarnished for this dirt bag's crime

Other common surnames in Canada these days are "Singh and Zhang...

2 hours ago, NorthernRyland said:

This is why we need to hammer this point every single time. Their government let in a bunch of Africans and gave them passports.

You forgot to mention the million or so dot Indians who don't want to go home. Biggest scammers ever...

15 hours ago, brfsa2 said:

The cost for repair since the bike managed to ride back to the shop should not be more than 40k-50k baht for a 400K bike.

that initial 141,165 Baht was for sure trying to cheat and steal from the customer.

So the POS owner does deserve it for tying to cheat the customer in the first place!!!

How did you come up with that figure sherlock? Did you actually see the damage,were you there wehn he brought it back to the shop. Unbeleivable some idiots on this site.

4 minutes ago, theshu25 said:

How did you come up with that figure sherlock? Did you actually see the damage,were you there wehn he brought it back to the shop. Unbeleivable some idiots on this site.

just from experience :)

it's ok, I get called idiot all the time, doesnt bother me.