SOURCE: Pattaya City News: May 13th 2008

Italian and Australian Tourists caught up in room theft cases.

We now report on two cases of theft from rooms occupied by foreign tourists.

We begin at the Golden Star Apartments in South Pattaya. Mr. Massimo Gambelli aged 62 from Italy called the Police upon his return to the room after a night out. There were no signs of forced entry to the room, and the room had not been ransacked, however 1,200 Euro’s and 40,000 Baht in cash along with a digital camera and mobile phone had been taken. The room was dusted for fingerprints and impressions were taken from the scene and are now being analysed by forensic officers.

The second case of robbery occurred at the Captain’s Bar and Guest House located in Soi Honey Inn, Central Pattaya. Police Major Witaya from Pattaya Police Station took up the case and spoke with Mr. Mark Woods aged 46 from Australia who also returned to his room after a night out.

He went to open the wardrobe in the room and realized his safe box inside the wardrobe had disappeared. Inside the safe box was around 100,000 Baht, a Half Baht weighted gold necklace and Mr. Woods’s flight ticket.

CCTV cameras were checked and a man of middle-eastern origin was seen checking out during the evening. There was no other suspicious activity caught on camera. Once again, Police are investigating.

Do people ever learn? - don't leave this sort of dosh in your room. You are begging for people to nick it.

Do people ever learn? - don't leave this sort of dosh in your room. You are begging for people to nick it.

Guess they wouldn't feel comfortable walking around with it on them while they are enjoying a night out either. I doubt tourists would be interested in opening bank accounts for the short time they are here, so where-else are they going to stash that sort of cash? To be fair, most tourists who are visiting this country for, maybe, the first time, wouldn't expect their hotel room to be robbed, since there should be some sort of security around.

From this news story, however, there seems to be no forced entry in either case, so what can we surmise from that?

Called using the ATM, travelers cheques, and credit card.

Called using the ATM, travelers cheques, and credit card.

How about the fact that the Australians safe got nicked?

I've said it before and I'll no doubt say it again, a safe is simply an easy to find box where the valuables are kept. Until hotels learn to bolt them to the wall we shall keep reading these stories. The only way it will change is when tourists refuse to rent a room when the safe is unsecured

Called using the ATM, travelers cheques, and credit card.

Called using the ATM, travelers cheques, and credit card.

Hmmm I agree but I alway get my cards cancelled by the bank if I use them in Thailand. How secure are the hotel safeboxes?

Hmmm I agree but I alway get my cards cancelled by the bank if I use them in Thailand. How secure are the hotel safeboxes?

Easily solved, just phone your bank BEFORE you get to Thailand and warn them that they may start seeing transactions from Pattaya's finest happy finish massage parlours

SOURCE: Pattaya City News: May 13th 2008

a Half Baht weighted gold necklace

The mere possession of a gold necklace is usually a harbinger that a fool and his money are to be soon parted.

Hmmm I agree but I alway get my cards cancelled by the bank if I use them in Thailand. How secure are the hotel safeboxes?

I have advised my credit card issuers that I spend time in SE Asia and use there is not unusual.

The room safes are quaint little boxes securely bolted to the particle board base of the wardrobe in most cases. The safe bxes are as safe as the hotle allows them to be with staff they hire for the minimum wage. Your milage will vary depending on the current staff.

I know it's popular to blame the mysterious visitor of middle-eastern origin but I suspect

these are inside jobs. They are just too many keys floating around to trust the silly door

lock if that's all you've got. More than likely a little too indiscreet flashing wads of money

around as well. Hotel staff isn't very interested in security, and with problems, even less.

It's a sad reality of touristing through Thailand, you really must take extra measures.

Here's another angle on the story from a different local news agency (below)

http://www.pattayapeople.com/default.asp?F...IdArticle=11741

While the Australian guest was away in Hua-Hin, The Thai lady owner of the hotel

claims a middlle-eastern man checked in but never showed any identification. ha-ha

Talk about stupid, either it's a blatant lie or they have no concept of guest security.

Here's another angle on the story from a different local news agency (below)

http://www.pattayapeople.com/default.asp?F...IdArticle=11741

While the Australian guest was away in Hua-Hin, The Thai lady owner of the hotel

claims a middlle-eastern man checked in but never showed any identification. ha-ha

Talk about stupid, either it's a blatant lie or they have no concept of guest security.

Nor are they complying with the laws about reporting foreigners to immigration on their daily report that is supposed to include name, nationality, passport number and arrival card number. Only the more reputable places do this (and the ones that get raided regularly ).

Well when i stay in pattaya i always leave most of what i have in the safety boxes behind reception , not 100% as we all know, but at least its better than nothing.

Also i let my bank know where i am so any use of cards out of that area should be picked up .

I'll tell you something about those "safeboxes". At the apartment where I stay, was on my way

downstairs to reception and noticed the maintenance guys behind the counter prying open the

door to someones box with a couple of large screwdrivers. Real secure. The other problem

with these boxes is that staff observe what you take out and put in there every time. It very

quickly becomes public knowledge if your storing considerable booty in there. And we used to

have security cameras on every floor, but then they disappeared, taken-down, stolen, whatever.

Big hotels - safe deposit boxes are fine. Normally only keep traveler cheques, passport, and small electronic items. Never had a problem at legitimate places of stay.

With regard to the safe theft - it was bolted to the wall - but managed to pry it off and take chunks out of the wall at the same time.

They do keep to the regulations as well. The "gentleman" stated that he was staying at Jomtien and wanted to move - he paid for the room and asked if he could leave his small bag in the room and he would go to his prior hotel and collect everything including his passport.

It was all on CCTV but the police have taken very little interest.

There won't be any investigation. The police are too busy with murders, rapes and the drug crackdown.

Unless a solution falls in their lap, like a thief dropping out of a 3rd floor window and breaking his leg, you

can just forget about it. If the burglar is able to exit your premises with the safe it's all over, home free,

no worries mate. Tourists getting their rooms rifled, pilfered, ransacked, nicked happens many times every

day in this city. The modus operandi of the case on this thread has been seen repeatedly. I just think hotel

and guesthouse owners have an obligation to provide minimum security for their guests. So, what we're

saying here is this "mysterious middle-easterner" checked-in without identification, picked the lock on his

neighbors room, intuiting he was away, and then levered the safe from the wall without arousing anyones

suspicions, even though it's a 3 story shophouse with a 24 hour restaurant/bar downstairs. Inside job.