A Dutch tourist has reported the theft of a gold chain worth approximately 4,000 euros, after being approached by a group of ladyboys on Pattaya Beach in Chon Buri province.

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At 03.30 on 12 June 2026, Mr Ferdy Andree Singels, 53, a Dutch national, accompanied by a Thai female friend, filed a complaint with investigators at Pattaya City Police Station. He suspected that a group of ladyboys had stolen his gold necklace while he was walking along Pattaya Beach between Soi 7 and Soi 9.

According to the victim’s friend, Mr Singels left his hotel in Pattaya Soi 9 at approximately 00.45 to take a walk along the beachfront. He walked from Soi 9 towards Central Pattaya when he was approached by a group of two to three ladyboys.

The group reportedly struck up a conversation, hugged him and allegedly offered sexual services. Mr Singels declined the offer, and the group then left the area.

At the time, the tourist did not realise that any property was missing. However, after returning to his hotel and checking his belongings, he discovered that the gold chain he had been wearing had disappeared.

He subsequently concluded that the ladyboys may have taken advantage of the close physical contact to remove the necklace before leaving the scene. He then travelled to Pattaya City Police Station to report the suspected theft.

Police investigators have coordinated with the station’s investigation unit to inspect the location where the incident allegedly occurred. Officers are also reviewing CCTV footage from nearby cameras in an effort to identify those involved and gather further evidence.

Authorities are now working to establish the movements of the suspects and determine whether the incident may be linked to any similar reports in the area. No arrests had been reported at this time. The investigation remains ongoing, and police are continuing efforts to trace and locate the suspected offenders for further legal action.

Picture courtesy of SiamChon

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Adapted by ASEAN Now SiamChon 12 June 2026

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Walking Pattaya beach at 1 AM with a €4,000 gold chain is an extreme sport.

I am not buying this story....

Mr Ferdy Andree Singels, 53, a Dutch national....

Surely must have some Indian ancestry....

As a tourist , is it that easy to get though airport security

with 4000 euro gold chain ?

7 minutes ago, FlorC said:

As a tourist , is it that easy to get though airport security

with 4000 euro gold chain ?

Yes. Why not? It's about 35g weight, hardly Mr T.

8 minutes ago, Upnotover said:

Yes. Why not? It's about 35g weight, hardly Mr T.

Well you have to take it off to go through the metal detector,

so the gold will be seen by the xray machine.

Gold chain ok , but not a 1 oz coin ?

11 minutes ago, Upnotover said:

Yes. Why not? It's about 35g weight, hardly Mr T.

Aint getting on no plane with that crazy fool !

"The school of life has a high tuition" to quote Ben Franklin

1 hour ago, FlorC said:

As a tourist , is it that easy to get though airport security

with 4000 euro gold chain ?

Gold prices have doubled since 2022. $2000 USD to $4000

53 years of age with a brain of a ten year old.......these pesky ladyboys ☺️

Note to self: Stay away from ladyboys if I'm wearing or carrying anything worth stealing.

Short form: Stay away from ladyboys.

A bit stupid. First why showing of on holiday with expensive jewellery and second why walk around at 1 am? The night is for scumbags.

These alledged thefts of gold chains by ladyboys seem to be the go to method of trying to scam the insurers.

I suspect many of these alledged thefts are fiction.

Maybe I am wrong and that people are really stupid enough to wear expensive jewelry in a red light area and these thefts do actually happen?

5 hours ago, FlorC said:

As a tourist , is it that easy to get though airport security

with 4000 euro gold chain ?

Why shouldn't it be for a personal possession?

4 hours ago, FlorC said:

Well you have to take it off to go through the metal detector,

so the gold will be seen by the xray machine.

Gold chain ok , but not a 1 oz coin ?

So what? Was he carrying a 1 oz coin?

4 hours ago, Emdog said:

"The school of life has a high tuition" to quote Ben Franklin

To misquote Ben Franklin, you mean, he never said that.

24 minutes ago, mlkik said:

These alledged thefts of gold chains by ladyboys seem to be the go to method of trying to scam the insurers

I'm sure you have nothing empirical to base that accusation on.

2 hours ago, impulse said:

Note to self: Stay away from ladyboys if I'm wearing or carrying anything worth stealing.

Short form: Stay away from ladyboys.

Even if you do not know whether there are two, or three of them !

No matter what country, who, in their right mind, would walk around,with a 4000 euro necklace, personally, I think it's an ego thing, and you get what you deserve

4 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Why shouldn't it be for a personal possession?

Personal possession ?

Ok you try coming through an airport with a kilo of gold.

That kilo is also a personal possession.

2 hours ago, FlorC said:

7 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Why shouldn't it be for a personal possession?

Personal possession ?

Ok you try coming through an airport with a kilo of gold.

That kilo is also a personal possession

There's a difference between bringing personal gold jewellery into the country with no intended commercial purpose and importing gold bullion which is prohibited and needs a licence from the Ministry of Commerce even though it may be a personal possession.

1 hour ago, Liverpool Lou said:

There's a difference between bringing personal gold jewellery into the country with no intended commercial purpose and importing gold bullion which is prohibited and needs a licence from the Ministry of Commerce even though it may be a personal possession.

A kilo of gold jewellery is ok ?

Unless I'm missing something, this chain equates to less than 3 baht Thai gold weight? He is hardly showing off with that. 2 baht around the neck, 1 or 2 around the wrist not exactly uncommon for some Thais. Yes, probably not a good idea to be strolling along beach road wearing it at that time of the morning but it's hardly the Brinks Mat job is it?

41 minutes ago, FlorC said:

A kilo of gold jewellery is ok ?

If you need to ask.

Of course you would claim that your gold's was stolen with the prices falling as fast as they are.

I'm giving this only one Boo Hoo. Did he learn nothing after walking this earth for 53 years? Hopefully, he has now learned don't walk this earth at 1AM anywhere wearing a supposedly costly necklace on display.

3 minutes ago, newnative said:

I'm giving this only one Boo Hoo. Did he learn nothing after walking this earth for 53 years? Hopefully, he has now learned don't walk this earth at 1AM anywhere wearing a supposedly costly necklace on display.

Your fav city is riddled with crime. Most Thai cities you can walk around at 1am and they are safe and not packed with ladyboys but not Patts.

11 hours ago, FlorC said:

12 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

There's a difference between bringing personal gold jewellery into the country with no intended commercial purpose and importing gold bullion which is prohibited and needs a licence from the Ministry of Commerce even though it may be a personal possession.

A kilo of gold jewellery is ok ?

Yes, if Customs are convinced that personal wearing is the only reason and there is no commercial aspect attached to it but you have to ask yourself if your question about wearing more than B4m worth of jewellerywas rational.

On 6/12/2026 at 6:23 AM, Georgealbert said:

A Dutch tourist has reported the theft of a gold chain worth approximately 4,000 euros, after being approached by a group of ladyboys on Pattaya Beach in Chon Buri province.

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At 03.30 on 12 June 2026, Mr Ferdy Andree Singels, 53, a Dutch national, accompanied by a Thai female friend, filed a complaint with investigators at Pattaya City Police Station. He suspected that a group of ladyboys had stolen his gold necklace while he was walking along Pattaya Beach between Soi 7 and Soi 9.

According to the victim’s friend, Mr Singels left his hotel in Pattaya Soi 9 at approximately 00.45 to take a walk along the beachfront. He walked from Soi 9 towards Central Pattaya when he was approached by a group of two to three ladyboys.

The group reportedly struck up a conversation, hugged him and allegedly offered sexual services. Mr Singels declined the offer, and the group then left the area.

At the time, the tourist did not realise that any property was missing. However, after returning to his hotel and checking his belongings, he discovered that the gold chain he had been wearing had disappeared.

He subsequently concluded that the ladyboys may have taken advantage of the close physical contact to remove the necklace before leaving the scene. He then travelled to Pattaya City Police Station to report the suspected theft.

Police investigators have coordinated with the station’s investigation unit to inspect the location where the incident allegedly occurred. Officers are also reviewing CCTV footage from nearby cameras in an effort to identify those involved and gather further evidence.

Authorities are now working to establish the movements of the suspects and determine whether the incident may be linked to any similar reports in the area. No arrests had been reported at this time. The investigation remains ongoing, and police are continuing efforts to trace and locate the suspected offenders for further legal action.

Picture courtesy of SiamChon

Join the discussion?

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Adapted by ASEAN Now SiamChon 12 June 2026

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This is a long running racket and they are all involved..Authorities know who is involved.....

15 minutes ago, Rockyroad said:

Your fav city is riddled with crime. Most Thai cities you can walk around at 1am and they are safe and not packed with ladyboys but not Patts.

You raised the issue of Pattaya's crime on another thread. I responded on that thread and my reply hasn't changed. What I wrote:

"Crime against farangs". I googled this and it seemed to be a tossup as to whether Bangkok, Pattaya, or Phuket had the most crime against farangs, with Pattaya and Phuket above Bangkok when adjusted for population size. All three places attract large numbers of tourists, and that is where most of the farang crime takes place, with tourists. Google says violent crime is rare, with much of the crime of the petty type--scams, thefts, jewelry snatches, etc.

Google also stressed that the amount of crime 'varied significantly' depending on the 'specific neighborhood'. That last is the important thing for residents like me. Most of us are not drunk on Walking Street at 2am, and crime is really not an issue at all. Spouse and I have been here 15 years and have never encountered any crime, or felt unsafe. To be fair, that's also true for the entire time we have spent in Thailand, including visiting many different places. Conclusion: Pattaya's crime, much of it petty, is largely focused on tourists, in the tourist areas. Not a negative for most residents.

This latest incident is a good example of much of the crime in Pattaya. It happened late at night, in a tourist area, and it was of the petty variety described by Google, in this case a 'jewelry snatch'.