Crispin Free At Last!

[SamuiRes]

Just had a phone call to say that Crispin has been found not guilty on all charges and has been released. TV cameras apparently in attendance so should be on the Thai News tonight. Anyone have any more news on this?

[Samui Coconut]

Just had a phone call to say that Crispin has been found not guilty on all charges and has been released. TV cameras apparently in attendance so should be on the Thai News tonight. Anyone have any more news on this?

That is great news indeed ! Welcome back Crispin !

[stiggy]

About Time....

Welcome back enjoy that Beer..

[Samuian]

That's indeed GOOD news!

[bbcsamui]

This is incredible news.

Incredibly good, that he has finally been released

Incredibly scary to think that he has spent nearly 18 months in a place that I cannot imagine, for no good reasons;

and doubly incredibly scary to me as I was also on the list and if I had been higher up, then perhaps I too could have spent 18 months in hel_l.

My heart goes out to Crispin and wish him a speedy recovery from the mental and physical suffering he must have endured and hope he quickly gets to enjoy some happy time with his family and friends.

I shed a tear for him now... but thankfully it is now a tear of happiness.

[pattayadave]

who the <deleted> is crispin

[bbcsamui]

who is crispin

see Crispin

[Noodles]

More here

www.crispin-paton-smith.com/

[pattayadave]

who is crispin

see Crispin

so why is everyone applauding his release

[Lite Beer]

who is crispin

see Crispin

so why is everyone applauding his release

Good question. We await the answer.

[Samuian]

Well, Pattayadave who the kcuf you think you are?

Read the the Web-Page (link) about his story and you may understand a little about why people applauding here....

[pattayadave]

Well, Pattayadave who the kcuf you think you are?

Read the the Web-Page (link) about his story and you may understand a little about why people applauding here....

inappropriate web content so cant read but why was he arrested in the first place , the mib must have some sort of evidence against him in the first place.

[pattayadave]

Well, Pattayadave who the kcuf you think you are?

Read the the Web-Page (link) about his story and you may understand a little about why people applauding here....

100 DSI, police officers raid Koh Samui, arrest Briton

Koh Samui, Surat Thani: -- A team of 100 officers from the Crime Suppression Division, Anti-Money Laundering Office and Department of Investigation raided this tourist destination island Tuesday morning and arrested a Briton and three Thais.

The Briton, Peter Watkinjones, 40, was accused of leading a multinational mafia gang which bribed land officials to gain access to public land on the island for sale to foreigners.

The officers, divided into small teams, raided ten spots to try to arrest seven members of the so-called Bandidos gang.

DSI spokesman Pol Col Dussadee Arayawutthi said the three Thai men were identified as Pramual Somwong, a land official, and two ordinary people - Samroeng Buanak and Prateep Muangkaew.

He said a Briton and two Danish men were still elusive.

He said the seven were suspected of using influence to pressure local businesses and people to sell business and land to them and they paid bribe to land officials to use land documents elsewhere to forge ownership of public land on the island and sold them to foreigners at steep prices.

Dussadee said the sale contracts were undervalued as the buyers paid the rest of the money to the gang abroad.

--The Nation 2006-07-18

ok so what am i supposed to understand clever cloggs

[Samui Coconut]

Well, Pattayadave who the kcuf you think you are?

Read the the Web-Page (link) about his story and you may understand a little about why people applauding here....

100 DSI, police officers raid Koh Samui, arrest Briton

Koh Samui, Surat Thani: -- A team of 100 officers from the Crime Suppression Division, Anti-Money Laundering Office and Department of Investigation raided this tourist destination island Tuesday morning and arrested a Briton and three Thais.

The Briton, Peter Watkinjones, 40, was accused of leading a multinational mafia gang which bribed land officials to gain access to public land on the island for sale to foreigners.

The officers, divided into small teams, raided ten spots to try to arrest seven members of the so-called Bandidos gang.

DSI spokesman Pol Col Dussadee Arayawutthi said the three Thai men were identified as Pramual Somwong, a land official, and two ordinary people - Samroeng Buanak and Prateep Muangkaew.

He said a Briton and two Danish men were still elusive.

He said the seven were suspected of using influence to pressure local businesses and people to sell business and land to them and they paid bribe to land officials to use land documents elsewhere to forge ownership of public land on the island and sold them to foreigners at steep prices.

Dussadee said the sale contracts were undervalued as the buyers paid the rest of the money to the gang abroad.

--The Nation 2006-07-18

ok so what am i supposed to understand clever cloggs

No worries, may be just stay in your own regional forum.....

[pattayadave]

Well, Pattayadave who the kcuf you think you are?

Read the the Web-Page (link) about his story and you may understand a little about why people applauding here....

100 DSI, police officers raid Koh Samui, arrest Briton

Koh Samui, Surat Thani: -- A team of 100 officers from the Crime Suppression Division, Anti-Money Laundering Office and Department of Investigation raided this tourist destination island Tuesday morning and arrested a Briton and three Thais.

The Briton, Peter Watkinjones, 40, was accused of leading a multinational mafia gang which bribed land officials to gain access to public land on the island for sale to foreigners.

The officers, divided into small teams, raided ten spots to try to arrest seven members of the so-called Bandidos gang.

DSI spokesman Pol Col Dussadee Arayawutthi said the three Thai men were identified as Pramual Somwong, a land official, and two ordinary people - Samroeng Buanak and Prateep Muangkaew.

He said a Briton and two Danish men were still elusive.

He said the seven were suspected of using influence to pressure local businesses and people to sell business and land to them and they paid bribe to land officials to use land documents elsewhere to forge ownership of public land on the island and sold them to foreigners at steep prices.

Dussadee said the sale contracts were undervalued as the buyers paid the rest of the money to the gang abroad.

--The Nation 2006-07-18

ok so what am i supposed to understand clever cloggs

No worries, may be just stay in your own regional forum.....

why is TV not open to all

[bbcsamui]

so why is everyone applauding his release

It is an 18 month story, so would take a lot to explain it, here in a nutshell is the story:

100 or so DSI police, TV crews etc come to Samui and arrest 1 person, then get 2 more (including Crispin who lived and worked in Samui but was in Pattaya at the time).

We find out later that the DSI have taken on board a report written by an ex-business partner of Crispins which talks about drug running and money laundering on Koh Samui. That report lists 70 or so individuals and many businesses including large hotel chains and even a bank, as being party to the illegal activities.

If you want to read the report, then PM me and I can direct you to it.

It is totally fictitious and actually quite funny to read it ... except that it resulted in 3 arrests, one person got out after a month or so and after paying significant cash, the other 2 are still in jail, but I understand since Crispin was found innocent of all charges, he should get out later today, and Kim is likely to spend another month in jail as they found him guilty of one drugs related charge.

Crispin, was a businessman on Samui with a dive operation and publishing business. He had a wife and kids, he used to ride a large motorbike and like to have a long moustache and he always appeared to be a friendly family loving guy.

His friend fell out with him and with help from a Thai person who had high up contacts, managed to get Crispin arrested using his fictitious report.

Crispin has spent 18 months in a Thai jail.

Crispin has today been found innocent of all charges.

We believe that he may come out today once all paperwork is completed.

We believe he will be able to come to Samui and be with his family (although there is a small doubt about whether he could get in trouble because he technically has not got a valid visa).

It has been a horrible road of pain for Crispin, we all hope that the worst is now over.

[Samuian]

he technically has not got a valid visa.

Will they after all charge him with "overstay"?

Hope all goes well and the interior ministry/Immigration will take care of this!

After all he spend 18 month of his life in a lock up.... for NOTHING....

[BL4u]

I always thought it was a well organized arrest, deliberately with A LOT of publicity to divert attention from another scandal which was published on the same day these 3 guys were arrested:

No evidence ministers involved in land scam. Irregularities in the issuing of land-right documents because the Samui island had only 150,000 rai of land and there were land-right documents for about 200,000 rai. Mr Thaksin insisted that the encroachers would be brought to justice, no matter who they were (bangkok post July 18th 2006)

Who are the real criminals?

[highdiver]

yehhh crispin!!!

18 months in the slammer for nothing.

now after the "freedom party" he will get a realy good bangkok lawyer and sue the Thai goverment for the loss of his life and his business.

the goverment will pay him a shit load just to save face.

i realy hope this idiot from Australia who started this whole thing will be sued as well.

[koheesti]

After all he spend 18 month of his life in a lock up.... for NOTHING....

He owned/owns a publishing biz. Sounds like he could publish his own book on the matter.

[ClaudeFeller]

I wonder who will apologize for having made a "mistake"...

And I wonder if the british embassy will support him to sue the thai government.

So why did this happen? Was he too succesfull in biz? I cannot imagine who can be as powerful to let a 100 DSI officer make a raid for nothing.

[bbcsamui]

I cannot imagine who can be as powerful to let a 100 DSI officer make a raid for nothing.

Crispin was not the powerful party ... he was an innocent party...

the power was

the blind power of the other mans hate for Crispin

the blind power of this other mans friends (actually his ex-girlfriends friends) who were high ranking police and army people who saw an opportunity to make a headline

the blind power of hate toward drugs

the blind power of hate toward things that are different to ones own "norm" (Crispin was a foreigner, Crispin had a successful business making money, Crispin worked out at the Gym, had a long moustache and wore leathers and rode large motor bike)

the blind power of face (i.e. the inability to see one has done wrong, admit it and deal with it quickly)

sometimes it is a combination of smaller things that causes a major catastrophe ...

[Maestro]

...why was he arrested in the first place , the mib must have some sort of evidence against him in the first place.

In Thailand, anybody can accuse you of anything and the police will arrest you without asking the accuser for any evidence or investigating themselves to determine whether there is any basis for the accusation other than the accuser's complaint. If after the arrest you cannot immediately prove your innocence to the police in a way that is acceptable to the police, you will remain in detention and your case is referred to a court of law.

Just pray that you will never be at the receiving end of a fabricated accusation.

--

Maestro

[ClaudeFeller]

...why was he arrested in the first place , the mib must have some sort of evidence against him in the first place.

In Thailand, anybody can accuse you of anything and the police will arrest you without asking the accuser for any evidence or investigating themselves to determine whether there is any basis for the accusation other than the accuser's complaint. If after the arrest you cannot immediately prove your innocence to the police in a way that is acceptable to the police, you will remain in detention and your case is referred to a court of law.

Just pray that you will never be at the receiving end of a fabricated accusation.

--

Maestro

Sorry but I don't believe this! If it is true there would be endless arrests in this country. "No evidence = no arrest" is one of the basics in the investigation worldwide...

Who has the power to make an arrest warrant? Police or prosecutor?

[jocwaoh]

so why is everyone applauding his release

It is an 18 month story, so would take a lot to explain it, here in a nutshell is the story:

100 or so DSI police, TV crews etc come to Samui and arrest 1 person, then get 2 more (including Crispin who lived and worked in Samui but was in Pattaya at the time).

We find out later that the DSI have taken on board a report written by an ex-business partner of Crispins which talks about drug running and money laundering on Koh Samui. That report lists 70 or so individuals and many businesses including large hotel chains and even a bank, as being party to the illegal activities.

If you want to read the report, then PM me and I can direct you to it.

It is totally fictitious and actually quite funny to read it ... except that it resulted in 3 arrests, one person got out after a month or so and after paying significant cash, the other 2 are still in jail, but I understand since Crispin was found innocent of all charges, he should get out later today, and Kim is likely to spend another month in jail as they found him guilty of one drugs related charge.

Crispin, was a businessman on Samui with a dive operation and publishing business. He had a wife and kids, he used to ride a large motorbike and like to have a long moustache and he always appeared to be a friendly family loving guy.

His friend fell out with him and with help from a Thai person who had high up contacts, managed to get Crispin arrested using his fictitious report.

Crispin has spent 18 months in a Thai jail.

Crispin has today been found innocent of all charges.

We believe that he may come out today once all paperwork is completed.

We believe he will be able to come to Samui and be with his family (although there is a small doubt about whether he could get in trouble because he technically has not got a valid visa).

It has been a horrible road of pain for Crispin, we all hope that the worst is now over.

uh sorry, being released is NOT being "found clear of all charges" ESPECIALLY in Thailand!!! And all you guys proclaiming his innocence?...what evidence do you actually have of that?? MOST...almost ALL of the big "businessmen" on this island...ARE crooks, and I don't mean they are merely cheating on their tax returns a smudge or occasionally speeding on the ring road.

[breezein]

...why was he arrested in the first place , the mib must have some sort of evidence against him in the first place.

In Thailand, anybody can accuse you of anything and the police will arrest you without asking the accuser for any evidence or investigating themselves to determine whether there is any basis for the accusation other than the accuser's complaint. If after the arrest you cannot immediately prove your innocence to the police in a way that is acceptable to the police, you will remain in detention and your case is referred to a court of law.

Just pray that you will never be at the receiving end of a fabricated accusation.

--

Maestro

Sorry but I don't believe this! If it is true there would be endless arrests in this country. "No evidence = no arrest" is one of the basics in the investigation worldwide...

Who has the power to make an arrest warrant? Police or prosecutor?

Coffe wake up smell

[NALAK]

great news one of the nicest guys i ever met, will be fantastic to see him about in Samui again

[lazeeboy]

i've known crispin for 13 years and never seen him do a thing wrong ,i believe 100% he is innocent of all charges ,i also have known the aussie who caused all the problems ,now thats another story.

[SamuiBond]

The Nation: 27 Dec 2007

"Bandidos" member gets 18 months

A key member of the "Bandidos" criminal syndicate was Thursday sentenced to an 18-month prison term for extortion and intimidating a British businessman based in Koh Samui early last year.

Danish national Kim Lindegaard Neilsen, 36, who has already served more than 17 months while undergoing trial, and will be released after he serves the remaining sentence.

He was convicted for criminal intimidation, but was acquitted of criminal conspiracy due to insufficient evidence and testimony.

Forty-three-year-old Briton, Crispin John Granville PatonSmith, the second defendant and a Bandidos member, arrested in a police raid last July 2006, was also acquitted of criminal intimidation due to insufficient evidence and testimony.

According to the Criminal Court, both Neilsen and Paton-Smith took over a bungeejumping business from Neil Patrick William, also a Bandidos member, after threatening to harm him if he revealed any information about their criminal posse.

The Nation

_________________

I have only heard that he's a square guy. On the other hand people do mostly know Bandidos (like Hells Angels) and what they do is not just trimming their bikes...

[limbos]

so why is everyone applauding his release

It is an 18 month story, so would take a lot to explain it, here in a nutshell is the story:

100 or so DSI police, TV crews etc come to Samui and arrest 1 person, then get 2 more (including Crispin who lived and worked in Samui but was in Pattaya at the time).

We find out later that the DSI have taken on board a report written by an ex-business partner of Crispins which talks about drug running and money laundering on Koh Samui. That report lists 70 or so individuals and many businesses including large hotel chains and even a bank, as being party to the illegal activities.

If you want to read the report, then PM me and I can direct you to it.

It is totally fictitious and actually quite funny to read it ... except that it resulted in 3 arrests, one person got out after a month or so and after paying significant cash, the other 2 are still in jail, but I understand since Crispin was found innocent of all charges, he should get out later today, and Kim is likely to spend another month in jail as they found him guilty of one drugs related charge.

Crispin, was a businessman on Samui with a dive operation and publishing business. He had a wife and kids, he used to ride a large motorbike and like to have a long moustache and he always appeared to be a friendly family loving guy.

His friend fell out with him and with help from a Thai person who had high up contacts, managed to get Crispin arrested using his fictitious report.

Crispin has spent 18 months in a Thai jail.

Crispin has today been found innocent of all charges.

We believe that he may come out today once all paperwork is completed.

We believe he will be able to come to Samui and be with his family (although there is a small doubt about whether he could get in trouble because he technically has not got a valid visa).

It has been a horrible road of pain for Crispin, we all hope that the worst is now over.

uh sorry, being released is NOT being "found clear of all charges" ESPECIALLY in Thailand!!! And all you guys proclaiming his innocence?...what evidence do you actually have of that?? MOST...almost ALL of the big "businessmen" on this island...ARE crooks, and I don't mean they are merely cheating on their tax returns a smudge or occasionally speeding on the ring road.

Crispin has been released of all charges, what other <deleted> evidence do you need. Do you know the guy?

As others stated on this forum, people who know him a long time are all convinced that he's never done anything wrong for what he was accused of.

Good on you Crispin, hope to see you back soon!