Briton Gets 18 Years, Nine Months For Atm Fraud

[PeaceBlondie]

Two thousand pounds sterling. 18 years. How much did Thaksin steal, or Madoff, or the banking systems of the west? Other than Mr. Madoff, what banking or investment house chief has seen a day in jail for trillions of dollars of fraud?

[geriatrickid]

Two thousand pounds sterling. 18 years. How much did Thaksin steal, or Madoff, or the banking systems of the west? Other than Mr. Madoff, what banking or investment house chief has seen a day in jail for trillions of dollars of fraud?

I don't give a <deleted> about Madoff or Thaksin here. It has no relevance, The convicted man in this case was stealing from people that could least afford it. What is the accused's prior criminal record? Go on. What is it? Do you not think he was given enough chances to clean up his act. to go straight? Give him a year and when he comes out, he'll do it again. His track record in life confirms this. Taking him off the street protects the public for a few years.

As for Madoff, at the end of the day, he was caught. He's in jail and he won't be getting out anytime soon. What madoff did was wrong, but at least in his case, he never solicited the money. People came to give him the money and he often turned them down. People went to madoff because they wanted big returns. Professionals that were in the business whored themselves because of personal greed. That's a big difference from the ATM thief who doesn't give his victims a choice but steals indiscriminately. Madoff is scum no doubt, but many of his victims let their personal greed guide their decisions so don't even compare the people.

In respect to Thaksin,he was legally elected and illegally overthrown. It's a mess. The allegations you raise are part and parcel of Thai political life. I'm not justifying Mr. Thaksin's behaviour, but you are on shaky ground trying to bring him into this.

If anyone is so concerned about this piece of scum ATM thief, go and visit him in prison. Send him money, write to him. You won't will you, because at the end of the day you don't give a sh*t about him anymore than people like me that would toss him into the ocean. It's filth like this that bugger up the banking systems and that cause the banks to recoup their losses through higher interest rates and user fees. Hopefully, his son learns from the stupidity of this genius father.

[Tolley]

Two thousand pounds sterling. 18 years. How much did Thaksin steal, or Madoff, or the banking systems of the west? Other than Mr. Madoff, what banking or investment house chief has seen a day in jail for trillions of dollars of fraud?

I don't give a <deleted> about Madoff or Thaksin here. It has no relevance, The convicted man in this case was stealing from people that could least afford it. What is the accused's prior criminal record? Go on. What is it? Do you not think he was given enough chances to clean up his act. to go straight? Give him a year and when he comes out, he'll do it again. His track record in life confirms this. Taking him off the street protects the public for a few years.

As for Madoff, at the end of the day, he was caught. He's in jail and he won't be getting out anytime soon. What madoff did was wrong, but at least in his case, he never solicited the money. People came to give him the money and he often turned them down. People went to madoff because they wanted big returns. Professionals that were in the business whored themselves because of personal greed. That's a big difference from the ATM thief who doesn't give his victims a choice but steals indiscriminately. Madoff is scum no doubt, but many of his victims let their personal greed guide their decisions so don't even compare the people.

In respect to Thaksin,he was legally elected and illegally overthrown. It's a mess. The allegations you raise are part and parcel of Thai political life. I'm not justifying Mr. Thaksin's behaviour, but you are on shaky ground trying to bring him into this.

If anyone is so concerned about this piece of scum ATM thief, go and visit him in prison. Send him money, write to him. You won't will you, because at the end of the day you don't give a sh*t about him anymore than people like me that would toss him into the ocean. It's filth like this that bugger up the banking systems and that cause the banks to recoup their losses through higher interest rates and user fees. Hopefully, his son learns from the stupidity of this genius father.

Hope you feel better after that little rant

I think the point many are making is that the sentence is out of proportion to the crime.

If ATM fraud is 18 years what do you give someone for rape of murder or drug importation?

Probably 8 years would be more appropriate .....

[Miserere]

18 years?....disgusting!

In my opinion ATM fraud is up there with Paedophilia!...let the scum suffer!

Anyone caught gently touching and stroking the buttons of an ATM thats only 4 or 5 years old deserves everything they get, only the other day I saw a fallangy standing very close to a small ATM in a 7-11 just waiting for the opportunity to touch it and get something out of it, it made my stomach turn.

Good ridance, I hope they throw away the key.

[spongeman]

They did'nt offer enough tea money..............

[johna]

The law is designed primarily to protect private property, i.e. those who have from those who have not.

Hence the disproportionate sentences for crimes against private property, and crimes such as murder.

This crime was not viewed by the courts as a crime against individual customers, but as a crime against the Bank.

How helpful have banks ever been to customers who were victims of these crimes?

[jackspratt]

There seems to be a general theme amongst the hang 'em high brigade who infest this forum. Doesn't matter what the crime or misdemeanor, there is no sentence long enough, or prison tough enough, to satiate their barbaric desires for revenge.

Rather sad, really.

[brahmburgers]

A Thai women recently got sentenced to 10 years for MURDERING a Brit.

Would you say this crime is twice as bad as MURDER?

Agreed, just like the 40 year sentence that the man got for stealing 80 k from the Tollway authority. Money is more important than human life it would seem.

Justice is not blind in Thailand. It sees manifold differences between rich and poor suspects, between downtrodden and VIP.

One example: There are thieves dressed like cops who hang out at bus stations and steal from the most vulnerable - Laos/Burmese/Cambodian Immigrants and such. They demand to see ID, and when proper ID is not shown, the thieves shake down the immigrants for all the money they have on hand. Real cops are standing nearby, pretending not to hear or see anything awry.

Two thousand pounds sterling. 18 years. How much did Thaksin steal, or Madoff, or the banking systems of the west? Other than Mr. Madoff, what banking or investment house chief has seen a day in jail for trillions of dollars of fraud?

agreed. The ATM thief should get a sentence commensurate with his crime - 3 to 4 years in the slammer.

[loong]

As for Madoff, at the end of the day, he was caught. He's in jail and he won't be getting out anytime soon. What madoff did was wrong, but at least in his case, he never solicited the money. People came to give him the money and he often turned them down. People went to madoff because they wanted big returns. Professionals that were in the business whored themselves because of personal greed. That's a big difference from the ATM thief who doesn't give his victims a choice but steals indiscriminately. Madoff is scum no doubt, but many of his victims let their personal greed guide their decisions so don't even compare the people.

A lot of Madoffs victims were ordinary people who's pension funds invested with him. The funds managers did not personally suffer the loss, their clients did.

[taxexile]

a British man has been sentenced to 18 years and 9 months in prison for ATM fraud.

it might seem a bit harsh to those of you who have become used to the uk system of mostly non custodial sentencing , even for burglary and robbery, and the early release from prison of those actually sentenced , but the fact is these toerags wont be commiting crimes for the next 18 years and that is exactly how it should be.

nobody forced these two to go to prison , they made their own choices to commit crime in thailand.

if they had had any sense they would have gone thieving in the uk ..... they would have been out by christmas and free to do it all over again.

they should have got another 19 years for stupidity.

the public are really much better off with dumbfukc lowlives like this thrown into dungeons and forgotten about.

[McLovin]

Flame removed and member is warned to keep it civil- Mario2008

[jackr]

There seems to be a general theme amongst the hang 'em high brigade who infest this forum. Doesn't matter what the crime or misdemeanor, there is no sentence long enough, or prison tough enough, to satiate their barbaric desires for revenge.

Rather sad, really.

How about the pathetic babblings of the pc brigade who are not only content with screwing the West but feel the need to infest forums over here? Perhaps we should let them all go free for the sake of morality; then, with a bit of luck, said brigade can have their houses burgled, their bank accounts emptied, and ultimately their eyesight broadened.

I say make the 18 years solitary so they can have a proper think about it.

[jackr]

If anyone is so concerned about this piece of scum ATM thief, go and visit him in prison. Send him money, write to him. You won't will you, because at the end of the day you don't give a sh*t about him anymore than people like me that would toss him into the ocean. It's filth like this that bugger up the banking systems and that cause the banks to recoup their losses through higher interest rates and user fees. Hopefully, his son learns from the stupidity of this genius father.

Nice one

[jackspratt]

There seems to be a general theme amongst the hang 'em high brigade who infest this forum. Doesn't matter what the crime or misdemeanor, there is no sentence long enough, or prison tough enough, to satiate their barbaric desires for revenge.

Rather sad, really.

How about the pathetic babblings of the pc brigade who are not only content with screwing the West but feel the need to infest forums over here? Perhaps we should let them all go free for the sake of morality; then, with a bit of luck, said brigade can have their houses burgled, their bank accounts emptied, and ultimately their eyesight broadened.

I say make the 18 years solitary so they can have a proper think about it.

Obviously the hat fits you, jackr

[imaneggspurt]

18 years for petty fraud when politicians and businessmen do the same type of thing on a massive scale yet escape punishment or are given a slap on the wrist.

In no way am I condoning this man's actions but the punishment should fit the crime and in no way does this punishment fit this crime.

Who was the judge? Attila the Hun?

I agree and it confirms my belief that Thailand is obsessed with money,.Yes yes i know we are not back ome blah blah but jeez in any "normal " country this is a 3 year term max,..

[imaneggspurt]

Two thousand pounds sterling. 18 years. How much did Thaksin steal, or Madoff, or the banking systems of the west? Other than Mr. Madoff, what banking or investment house chief has seen a day in jail for trillions of dollars of fraud?

I don't give a <deleted> about Madoff or Thaksin here. It has no relevance, The convicted man in this case was stealing from people that could least afford it. What is the accused's prior criminal record? Go on. What is it? Do you not think he was given enough chances to clean up his act. to go straight? Give him a year and when he comes out, he'll do it again. His track record in life confirms this. Taking him off the street protects the public for a few years.

As for Madoff, at the end of the day, he was caught. He's in jail and he won't be getting out anytime soon. What madoff did was wrong, but at least in his case, he never solicited the money. People came to give him the money and he often turned them down. People went to madoff because they wanted big returns. Professionals that were in the business whored themselves because of personal greed. That's a big difference from the ATM thief who doesn't give his victims a choice but steals indiscriminately. Madoff is scum no doubt, but many of his victims let their personal greed guide their decisions so don't even compare the people.

In respect to Thaksin,he was legally elected and illegally overthrown. It's a mess. The allegations you raise are part and parcel of Thai political life. I'm not justifying Mr. Thaksin's behaviour, but you are on shaky ground trying to bring him into this.

If anyone is so concerned about this piece of scum ATM thief, go and visit him in prison. Send him money, write to him. You won't will you, because at the end of the day you don't give a sh*t about him anymore than people like me that would toss him into the ocean. It's filth like this that bugger up the banking systems and that cause the banks to recoup their losses through higher interest rates and user fees. Hopefully, his son learns from the stupidity of this genius father.

geriatrickid,

You are an ill-informed deranged fool.

As for stealing off people that can ill afford it id say thats true now "THE BANKS " ... as with almost all these thefts from atms the customer is refunded,.( glad hes not on my jury )

[neverdie]

Imagine having a son called sonny! I wonder when serving their time if they will get done over like a mother and daughter tag team?

Geriatrickid,

Your post

If anyone is so concerned about this piece of scum ATM thief, go and visit him in prison. Send him money, write to him. You won't will you, because at the end of the day you don't give a sh*t about him anymore than people like me that would toss him into the ocean. It's filth like this that bugger up the banking systems and that cause the banks to recoup their losses through higher interest rates and user fees. Hopefully, his son learns from the stupidity of this genius father.

was a good one, I'm not sure about the other one.

[neverdie]

There seems to be a general theme amongst the hang 'em high brigade who infest this forum. Doesn't matter what the crime or misdemeanor, there is no sentence long enough, or prison tough enough, to satiate their barbaric desires for revenge.

Rather sad, really.

How about the pathetic babblings of the pc brigade who are not only content with screwing the West but feel the need to infest forums over here? Perhaps we should let them all go free for the sake of morality; then, with a bit of luck, said brigade can have their houses burgled, their bank accounts emptied, and ultimately their eyesight broadened.

I say make the 18 years solitary so they can have a proper think about it.

Jacr,

You picked this person perfectly, it seems the only thing missing from the urbandictionary's description of you jackspratt is your picture.

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=dweeb

[Carmine6]

ATM fraud isn't quite the same as robbing a store. If there's a foreign bank involved, who takes the loss? The bank where the withdrawal occurred or the bank where the account is at? If Thailand were to get a reputation for lots of ATM fraud or not taking fraud seriously, foreign banks would eventually just not allow ATM withdrawals in Thailand.

The recent ATM security enhancements mentioned in another thread didn't just show up out of nowhere. It clearly got to be a big problem. This guy's mistake is he picked the time when they're cracking down and they're going to make a big example of anyone caught. They clearly want to send a message to the others out there to think twice about doing it in Thailand. Just a few year penalty someplace else? I'm betting more than a few of these guys are going to be thinking about moving on.

[spacefruit]

I have a feeling that his crime might have been compounded by LLI.

My Thai friends have often accused me of this and while quite offensive, there is not much I can do about it.

(Looking Like an Indian)

[loong]

From report Tuesday, February 19, 2008

PHUKET CITY: A father, mother and son from the UK have been charged with using fake electronic cards to withdraw more than 100,000 baht from ATMs while on holiday in Phuket.

Capt Supachai Petchkul of Phuket City Police Station today told the Gazette that police received an anonymous phone call at 1:40 am yesterday reporting that two foreign men were behaving strangely in front of the Kasikorn Bank branch on Chanacharoen Rd, near the Robinson department store.

Police arrived to find Mark Hubert Veerasawmy, 44, and his son Sonny, 19, withdrawing cash from the bank’s ATM. Both were wearing small white masks that covered the nose and mouth, Capt Supachai said.

The pair were found in possession of 15 withdrawal slips, 10,000 baht cash and 35 fake ATM cards with a magnetic strip on one side and a two-digit and a four-digit number handwritten on the other side, he said.

“We took them to the police station, but we forgot to take their mobile phone, which they used to call Jennifer Anne Chapman, 31, from England, to tell her that they had been arrested,” Capt Supachai explained.

After questioning the father and son, police moved to the Mukda hotel in the Phun Pol area of Phuket City to search the two rooms the family was staying in.

“We went to their hotel and found his wife and baby girl, about two to three years old, in front of the hotel. We searched their rooms and found more than 100,000 baht in bundles separated by rubber bands,” Capt Supachai said.

He alleged that the phone call gave Ms Chapman the chance to dispose of the machine used to encode the fake cards with bank account numbers and PIN numbers.

“It would be great if we could get the machine because it would be useful as evidence. However, a motorcycle taxi driver parked near the hotel told police that [before police arrived] he saw Ms Chapman walking along the road with a black bag, but she returned to the hotel without it,” Capt Supachai said.

The three were charged with cheating by using fake electronic cards. “The three today signed papers acknowledging the charges,” Capt Supachai said.

He added that they are now being held at Phuket Provincial Court.

The baby girl, who police did not name, has been handed over to the British embassy to be returned to the UK.

Source http://www.phuketgazette.net/news/printing.asp?Id=6285

[bungy007]

That's great that these shmucks are getting shafted for this as these ATM bandits are bastards. Now all they need to do is start offering up likewise stingers for those who intenionally mow people down and chop the arms off innocents

Amen to that!

[bungy007]

A Thai women recently got sentenced to 10 years for MURDERING a Brit.

Would you say this crime is twice as bad as MURDER?

Agreed, just like the 40 year sentence that the man got for stealing 80 k from the Tollway authority. Money is more important than human life it would seem.

Sadly this is the case out here. They will do anything to get money and anything to hang on to it. Witness the fact that the crazy kid Moo Ham is still driving around after having twice taken on a bus and killed and injured passengers. Shinawatra is still at large and yet to be brought to book over his mass murders of Thais during his tenure as PM. The list goes on...

Having said that. Looks like these two hapless idiots took the fall for Mr. Big with millions in his bank and only a five year sentence to face

[johnefallis]

Cheese & Rice!!!

That's more than bank robbery, drug trafficing, rape, or often even murder in the U.S.

Even worse because every 1 year in Thai prison is equal to 10 years in the U.S.

I do hate thieves, but how could they possibly imprison that much of the Gov't? If even for just a fraction of that amount of time.

[BigSnake]

Yes lot of ATM scammers out there, I hope they catch many many more of them and let them do some HARD time for try to get some EASY money UP

[photojourn]

Eighteen years for ATM fraud? Seem a bit steep compared to William Thomas Douglas getting two years for murdering Gary Poretsky in Chiang Mai last year.

Maybe they ripped off the judge's bank account.

[johnefallis]

If it was the bleeding hearts on this thread that had their money stolen they would be calling for a lynching

I'd like to think I was above such failings and I would continue to call for a fair and measured punishment to be meted out.

18 years 9 months is nothing short of barbarism.

Petty fraud????? What planet areyou from???

When it's your account that is emptied, you will feel different.

This may not have been their first time for this crime, they may have been at it for years.

Hang em I say, Brits or not, they deserve 18 years in the BKK Hilton. Let them rot.

My grandad's generation fought a war against people like you.

Exactly the logic of why victims don't get to sit on the jury.

No wonder why some of these people making comments come to Thailand,... they don't fit into their own country.

[johnefallis]

Two thousand pounds sterling. 18 years. How much did Thaksin steal, or Madoff, or the banking systems of the west? Other than Mr. Madoff, what banking or investment house chief has seen a day in jail for trillions of dollars of fraud?

Hallelujah

How long is that for each 100 baht of "tea money"? 100,000 divided by (18x365+275=6845)=14.6 baht per day. That's a week in jail for each 100 baht note the cops extort. Of course x2 for betraying the public trust. When do they start serving their time?

Get real people.

[johnefallis]

ATM fraud isn't quite the same as robbing a store. If there's a foreign bank involved, who takes the loss? The bank where the withdrawal occurred or the bank where the account is at? If Thailand were to get a reputation for lots of ATM fraud or not taking fraud seriously, foreign banks would eventually just not allow ATM withdrawals in Thailand.

The recent ATM security enhancements mentioned in another thread didn't just show up out of nowhere. It clearly got to be a big problem. This guy's mistake is he picked the time when they're cracking down and they're going to make a big example of anyone caught. They clearly want to send a message to the others out there to think twice about doing it in Thailand. Just a few year penalty someplace else? I'm betting more than a few of these guys are going to be thinking about moving on.

And even way more people than that will be thinking about not coming on vacation or to live, to a place that sends the message "we are retarded" from their courts, or from posts on Thai visa....

[cclub75]

A Thai women recently got sentenced to 10 years for MURDERING a Brit.

Would you say this crime is twice as bad as MURDER?

And a thai man took 100 years for 300 000 THB stolen (money he returned)...

Yes, go figure... It's the insane thai justice system... Where human blood costs less than human money...