Brit Faces Two Years In Thai Jail For Being 'rude'.

[rethaired]

The immigration officer should be fired>?????????

<deleted>?

You think you have the right to swear at an immigration official? Do me a favour and try it in your own home country internet warrior. Please report back.

Hey! Watch your language or I send you to jail!

[zehner]

Answer the question.

Do you think you have the right to swear at an immigration official?

If so, please test it out with one of your own and report back.

[Splatter]

must be one of the sadest stories I've ever heard , could someone please hand me a handkerchief, sob sob.

All the people defending him with all these accurate statements are doing so because they witnessed the entire incident

Not so for me.

I am challenging my initial reading of a situation

headlined on TV as "Brit faces two years in Thai Jail for being rude"

I thought it seemed strange.

Two years for being rude?

Well weird.

That would mean

- the Brit had to have been really unbelievably rude.

and / or

- the airport authorities reacted in a way I don't often see.

And this, to me, didn't stack up.

So I searched around and waited for more information.

I doubt any of us here witnessed the situation, as you rightly said.

But I can EASILY read the emails sent to a reporter

from my own British Embassy.

They are in Andrew Drummonds blog.

I don't necessarily agree with all Andrew writes

but those embassy emails are making me think.

And those emails are making me feel very uneasy

about my own British Embassy.

[Splatter]

Answer the question.

Do you think you have the right to swear at an immigration official?

If so, please test it out with one of your own and report back.

No.

But I also wonder what was really said. And to who.

There are different reports on this.

[samgrowth]

From the paper:

"I was angry. I grabbed my passport and walked out of the immigration area, saying: 'I'm a British citizen who has come to your country to spend my money. Don't treat me like a f---ing idiot,' " he told The Guardian.

IMHO, I think this is more likely:

"I was angry. I grabbed my passport and walked out of the immigration area, saying: 'I'm a British citizen who has come to your country to spend my money. F---ing idiots. "

Edited March 12, 2009 by samgrowth

[Splatter]

24 pages of bickering, name calling and conjecture on a thread about a man none of you have met, in a case none of you have the facts for, concerning a passport and photo none of you have seen. Guess none of the armchair detectives learned anything from the bodyless head case.

So what do you suggest, post the news item and close the thread preventing any discussion? Sure there's a lot of conjecture, discussion and bickering but these threads are little more than bar room chat (without the beer ). If you don't like it don't read it or are you one of those who buy a copy of Shakespeare and then complain there's no pictures?

The arguing and bickering here on TV may have helped...

and shown some investigative work

behind the initially reported sequence of events was necessary,

...that the Phuketwan may not have the reources to undertake.

The British Embassy has already been pointed to

the activity on Thai and Travel Forums about these events.

That people are interested and passionate may mean

that the matter is resolved at a professional level

and that actions are taken so many of the events can be avoided in the future.

[Splatter]

From the paper:

"I was angry. I grabbed my passport and walked out of the immigration area, saying: 'I'm a British citizen who has come to your country to spend my money. Don't treat me like a f---ing idiot,' " he told The Guardian.

IMHO, I think this is more likely:

"I was angry. I grabbed my passport and walked out of the immigration area, saying: 'I'm a British citizen who has come to your country to spend my money. F---ing idiots. "

I also read that the reason he walked out of the "immigration area"

was so that he could find a higher ranking official that could help.

[Junglejumbo]

The length of time to find out whether a passport is real is laughable. Not surprising then that Thailand is a center for passport forgery. Checking a passport should take no more than 24 hours. However, this man remained waiting for 44 days. This is inexcusable. It's not clear from any of the reports whether or not he was really waiting for his passport to be checked (albeit this is what's claimed by the police) or whether the police were just holding him for the sake of it and the British Consulate going along with the Thai police. It seems daft and terrible that the British Consulate did not raise the alarms about this and work for his release after verifying the passport.

I've heard of several incidences when the British Consulate support the Thai police rather than that of the British citizen, especially during the pre-trial period when the suspect should still be considered innocent. In fact, sometimes they will even try to ensure that a citizen will receive more punishment than what Thai police are prepared to give.

[Boater]

when i lost my passport, it took the embassey 25 seconds to tap my passport number in and all the information came up !

[marquess]

If the Thai authorities had any common sense (which is about as remote as Pluto), then they would drop the charges apologise pay for a flight back home and compensate him. I can only hope that the story gets bigger and bigger as also the embarassment that it brings to them. They never learn anything hear unless it involves loss of face. The guy has probably spent more time in jail than that Benz murderer!

[grantbkk]

This will be a "Banged Up Abroad" episode absolutely.

Hopefully everyone involved will learn something. Perhaps the UK can put all of their passport numbers in their computer database. Seems like common sense. The British official who wanted to take off for an uninterrupted weekend could have called the agents from the "Spooks" (no pun intended) television show, MI-5, as they have access to all things on their mobile telephones in seconds.

Maybe both the traveler and immigration officers could have defused the confrontation at some point an avoided this overblown "international incident". It seems that both sides didn't want to lose face during critical moments of the confrontation. Most here on TV would agree that lessons have been learned here and Mr. Burrows has done his time and should be released from further prosecution. Having worked for the government in the past I know a phone call could be made and Mr. Burrows would be flown back to his home country for free to write his book and become a role model for at risk children.

I would still like to see the damage done by the leather strap Mr. Burrows was beaten with.

[sriracha john]

in Phuket actually working with and training a Bristish Champion

and just where was this supposed "Champion" during Mr. Burrowes missed flight, bail hearing, subsequent incarceration, UK apartment loss, etc. etc. ???

[zehner]

This will be a "Banged Up Abroad" episode absolutely.

Hopefully everyone involved will learn something. Perhaps the UK can put all of their passport numbers in their computer database. Seems like common sense. The British official who wanted to take off for an uninterrupted weekend could have called the agents from the "Spooks" (no pun intended) television show, MI-5, as they have access to all things on their mobile telephones in seconds.

Maybe both the traveler and immigration officers could have defused the confrontation at some point an avoided this overblown "international incident". It seems that both sides didn't want to lose face during critical moments of the confrontation. Most here on TV would agree that lessons have been learned here and Mr. Burrows has done his time and should be released from further prosecution. Having worked for the government in the past I know a phone call could be made and Mr. Burrows would be flown back to his home country for free to write his book and become a role model for at risk children.

I would still like to see the damage done by the leather strap Mr. Burrows was beaten with.

"a role model for risk children" ???????????

HUH?

So you think a foul mouthed Brit is a fine role-model for kids?

I'd love to see him edumacate your kids......

"now little grant, if an immigration official gives you shit what do you do? "

"I tell them to fuc_k off!!"

[grantbkk]

This will be a "Banged Up Abroad" episode absolutely.

Hopefully everyone involved will learn something. Perhaps the UK can put all of their passport numbers in their computer database. Seems like common sense. The British official who wanted to take off for an uninterrupted weekend could have called the agents from the "Spooks" (no pun intended) television show, MI-5, as they have access to all things on their mobile telephones in seconds.

Maybe both the traveler and immigration officers could have defused the confrontation at some point an avoided this overblown "international incident". It seems that both sides didn't want to lose face during critical moments of the confrontation. Most here on TV would agree that lessons have been learned here and Mr. Burrows has done his time and should be released from further prosecution. Having worked for the government in the past I know a phone call could be made and Mr. Burrows would be flown back to his home country for free to write his book and become a role model for at risk children.

I would still like to see the damage done by the leather strap Mr. Burrows was beaten with.

"a role model for risk children" ???????????

HUH?

So you think a foul mouthed Brit is a fine role-model for kids?

I'd love to see him edumacate your kids......

"now little grant, if an immigration official gives you shit what do you do? "

"I tell them to fuc_k off!!"

Hopefully he will be able to learn from his experience and mistakes. He will write one of those "poor me" books on his mishap. After looking at his Facebook page I could not resist humorously mentioning him mentoring at risk children. In reality he shouldn't be around any kids until he gets a grip on his emotions. Sorry for the poor stab at humor. I read there are openings for meatball vendors in Phuket

if he need a job until his trial.

[TAWP]

The immigration officer should be fired>?????????

<deleted>?

You think you have the right to swear at an immigration official? Do me a favour and try it in your own home country internet warrior. Please report back.

Do they have the right to be rude? That is sooooo unprofessional, ergo ... fired because one is not conducting oneself as a professional, since you are not behaving as a professional! Case closed!

* BTW, I did not indicate that they should go to jail. I was being nice!

* BTW, true story! A person asks a custom officers to use words like "please" and "thank you" and the officer mazes him! This was a US custom officer, BTW! The case is going to court!

(Some of these custom officers/police officers are sooooo dysfunctional! Have you heard of the 4 Canadian police officers using the taser on one Polish tourist? taser and taser2

Not only did they tazer him, but while these rent-a-cops had him down on the floor right afterwards one of them put his knee on the mans throat in some failed attempt to imitate what trained professionals do and ended up crushing his windpipe. The polish man died on the scene. The full clip is on youtube and liveleak.

[zehner]

^^apologies grant. all the earnest "farangs are always right" types on here have clouded my sarcasm meter

[grantbkk]

^^apologies grant. all the earnest "farangs are always right" types on here have clouded my sarcasm meter

Accepted of course.

[sriracha john]

Simon's friend Natalie looks nice

http://www.facebook.com/people/Simon-Burro...helle/618062438

she does look very nice

Does anyone here have access to his Facebook Page, as he may tell a different version of events through there

Does anyone here have access to his Facebook Page, as he may tell a different version of events through there

He has to approve you as a "friend" in order to see his page... I've asked... Just hope he doesn't shout "<deleted>*K You!" and snatch back my "friend request" out of my hand.

I'm still waiting for Simon to accept as a "friend"... but in the meantime and on a positive note, Simon's friend Natalie DID accept me as a friend.

If you think her available-to-the-public photo on the above link is something, you should see what she makes available exclusively to her "friends"

[TAWP]

If you think her available-to-the-public photo on the above link is something, you should see what she makes available exclusively to her "friends"

Holy...only downside, seeing her friends list, sure you wanna 'hit that'? She seems to like a special breed of guys...

[Jingthing]

To those who think this is some kind of joke for Simon, consider:

-- he already spent three weeks in prison in nightmarish conditions

-- he already missed his flight home

-- he already has people insulting him and calling him a threat to children on this very forum

-- he already has lost his housing in the UK as he is not a rich man and is not there to pay the rent

-- he already had his own government fall down on the job by not correctly validating his passport at the critical time

-- he already is stuck in Phuket against his will, whether the initial trial is indeed late April or a year from now

(Be clear in Thai legal matters there may be continuous stops and starts that may drag on for months and years)

-- he already is in a position where he can't afford to stay in Phuket even till late April and he is not legal to work in Thailand

-- he already is at risk for being sent back to prison to wait for trial, whether the final trial is actually sooner or later, because he cannot afford to stay in Phuket

-- he already will be implictly forced to plead guilty whether he is indeed guilty or not, because that is indeed his best hope for a more lenient result; yes technically he can plead innocent but in his situation that would be an act of insanity

-- he already has no control about his ultimate sentence, being let free without further prison time is not guaranteed

That is the bad news.

The good news is if this had not hit the press his situation would be MUCH WORSE.

All this publicity probably does increase the chance this will be settled sooner than later and that the result will be more lenient. Not guaranteed of course.

But even if by some miracle he is on a plane today back the UK, he has already been through a very rough time, basically for a human response that if people were being honest with themselves they can imagine reacting in a similar way to a severe injustice.

Edited March 12, 2009 by Jingthing

[colibra]

I have a spare room in Chiag Mai and bus money to get hereshould anyone have a connection to Simon.

[sriracha john]

If you think her available-to-the-public photo on the above link is something, you should see what she makes available exclusively to her "friends"

Holy...only downside, seeing her friends list, sure you wanna 'hit that'? She seems to like a special breed of guys...

You're probably right about that... her membership in the Facebook group, Who Loves Big Black Cock?, probably isn't about chicken farmers, but then again, who knows.

Edited March 12, 2009 by sriracha john

[Texpat]

Bet he's wishing about now that he had kept his big gob shut.

[Patsycat]

Poor man must be going through hel_l and back.

But as another poster said - he was in Thailand training some guy - so where are the people he just spent 3/4 weeks with?

I, even a rather polite female, would have exploded if i saw the big bird flying off with out me. Just had a great holiday, spent all my money, got the tan and boom in prison for saying f off.

Also, you are all putting down the Embassy in Bangkok, what about the Embassy in Australia that issued the passport in the first place? Does show that this was not his first time abroad.

[kennkate]

When You arrive, Do they not Log your Passport details onto the Imigration Computer ?

If they do, Was it a case of Garbage in Garbage out (person booking him in made the mistake)

If that is the case it will never be admited.

They Certainly take your Picture, And look at your Passport.

How long was He in Thailand British Passports last 10 Years

Official said he looked younger

Well suprise suprise. If his Passport was 9 years old I am sure he would.

However that would involve using the Gray matter.

Not something the Thai Race are Renown for Degree or no Degree

It would appear His apperance or Colour let him down

I am in my 60s and I think I would have got a tad upset.

Maybe in the heat of the moment <deleted>-king H-ll. And they are a miserable bunch

Talk about the Thai Smile. You would need to Fart to get them to change the face.

Best Of Luck to Him There but for the grace of god and all that

[Briggsy]

The more I read this story, the more I tend to suspect he was "tagged" for some reason. There would have been a TM card record on the computer. Why did they pull this bloke? Was it just a coincidence that either the Embassy were unable to immediately confirm the validity of his passport or did Phuket Immigration deliberately give slightly incorrect details?

Perhaps he upset somebody important during his time in Phuket. Perhaps he is on a Home Office watch list for some reason. Perhaps he badmouthed immigration on the way in and Immigration themselves tagged him. Or perhaps he is a very unfortunate innocent victim.

Whatever is the case, it appears to have taken a life of its own now in the wacky time warp of the Thai judicial system and may sadly not be resolved for a while.

P.s. Did you know it's still against the law in Thailand to portray a government official acting in an illegal or unethical way in films or TV?

[dumball]

I have a spare room in Chiag Mai and bus money to get hereshould anyone have a connection to Simon.

A true humanitarian on TV , thank you kindly sir on behalf of Simon , hope some-one can get this good news to him ASAP , think he desrves a break at this point in time .

[yaketyak]

I think this childish man deserves to be locked up for a very long time to make an example of him.

And i think people like you are a danger to society. So he was childish... that means he goes to jail? So many posters here are so keen to throw people into jail.. do they just not think before they post? Or perhaps part of our education system should be that every child has to spend a day in jail. That way when they grow up they might avoid making stupid posts like pimframs.

[neverdie]

I think this childish man deserves to be locked up for a very long time to make an example of him.

And i think people like you are a danger to society. So he was childish... that means he goes to jail? So many posters here are so keen to throw people into jail.. do they just not think before they post? Or perhaps part of our education system should be that every child has to spend a day in jail. That way when they grow up they might avoid making stupid posts like pimframs.

Perhaps while the children are spending their day in Jail, the could also be taught not to using offensive language in a public place OR towards officials.

Save the gutter talk for your gutter friends

[Jingthing]

Who will triumph in the eternal battle of the black shirts vs. the purple shirts?