Big Trouble In Tourist Thailand

[BTITmaker]

whistleblower - the whole TV business thing ... not sure there is one anymore. ITV in the UK can't find anyone to run it and is in a financial mess, Channel 4's got no money and I don't think the BBC's ever been so unpopular. In the UK, at least, TV's in dire straits. Without the BBC, though, where would TV in the UK be? You can't trust Channel 4's 'Dispatches' - a supposedly serious Current Affairs/documentary strand - because Vera Productions which makes it - as well as BTIT - is given to invention and getting its facts wrong, and British commercial telly is dominated by the likes of 'The X Factor' and 'Come Dine With Me'. Dumbed down? Dumb and dumber more like. So, the BBC is fast becoming the only viable game in town - its once formidable commercial rivals have handed over the UK audience to the BBC on a plate. Yep, thank God for 'Strictly Come Dancing' (I'm being ironic). I was in Iraq once, a few days after the American invasion, and an Iraqi man showed me a banknote with Saddam Hussein on it. "Israeli" he said. "He's Israeli." "He's Israeli?" I asked incredulously. "Saddam Hussein? An Israeli? You're joking." "No," replied the man. "He must be Israeli. Why else would he hand our country to the Americans?"

whistleblower - don't get me started on the - avoidable - demise of British commercial TV ..!

Edited October 20, 2009 by BTITmaker

[whistleblower]

i dont know the whole tv business thing. But i would be frustrated if a concept like yours was retitled/rewritten/twisted etc. But whatever it was called i think it has achieved the the views i stated in my last post to you.

So are you working on something new now?

I only understand the first and last sentence of this post, please explain what you are on about!

Sorry this was for BTITT maker

[Stephen Cleary]

It seems that the following video has been uploaded on to Thailand's biggest website with more than a 1,000 hits since this afternoon. Can't blame so many hits when it's ranked in the world's top 500 websites (source: Alexa)

JJ Video at Sanook.com

Sources tell me that other leading Thai websites such as Mthai and Manager also got hold of the vid too.

And other sources go on to say that the Big Trouble in Thailand 'Fake Rape' video maybe uploaded too...

Let's see how long it's gonna take Vera Productions to get these vids offline and off Google Search....

Edited October 20, 2009 by Stephen Cleary

[whistleblower]

So BTITT maker, what are you working on now? I agree with you on the tv thing, the uk press is bad enough. Pages and pages of what reality "star' did this week etc. Is it safe for u now in thailand?

[BTITmaker]

And in the U.S. reality TV is implicated in the case of a man who sent emergency services on a 50 mile wild goose chase after reporting his son had climbed into the baloon that got away.

[taffylee]

It seems that the following video has been uploaded on to Thailand's biggest website with more than a 1,000 hits since this afternoon. Can blame so many hits when it's ranked in the world's top 500 websites (source: Alexa)

JJ Video at Sanook.com

I'd like to see VERA try and get that one taken off :-)

Sanook is huge in Thailand, my wife/her sisters are on it all the time and is the site that I see most as homepages in internet cafes.

The plot thickens...

[hm1973]

Sorry howard you posted your reply as i was writing mine.

Ok so thanx for the background but what about the questions i posed about the show.

Where did the mobile go? Stolen, I advised the man to go to the Police Station and get a Police Report for his insurance

Why 1500bht for the toilet seat?

Why do you get the foreigners to pay up instead of assisting them with the thai police? (in this i mean why didnt you tell the hooker that she was being completely unreasonable in asking 1500bht for the toilet seat)

and the bit where you got the western woman to wai a hooker was pitiful!

In the show you were always very polite (even when faced with pissed <deleted>) which is very commendable. But when your being f@*ked over by a hooker or scammer nice manners dont cut it. Help is whats needed. It seems all you achieved was facilitating the scammers in getting money, when you could have assisted the tourists at the police station.

As i said the pissed guy (who i now know was bailed out by BTITT maker) was gonna get arrested for not paying a bar chit, but you were quite happy for the hooker who nicked 2 computers etc to walk by herself to the local nick. Why didnt you attend the nick and assist this guy? What happened in this case? did she do a runner? We have to had criminal cases over to Pattaya Police Station and we are obliged to let the Foreign Police Volunteers based at Pattaya Police Station take over cases when we are either light on numbers or feel they can adequately assist.

The case about the Toilet is from April 2008 and was filmed for the Pilot so I am not 100% sure about the case but I do remember that the guy broke the toilet itself and not the toilet seat. In an ideal situation we would have gone to the room and inspected the damage but the woman was adamant that the next place they were going to go was the Police Station which could have got very messy. The guy admitted to breaking the toilet and a figure of 1,500 Baht to repair the damage was accepted by the man who was more than happy to settle the case on the street in front of a Thai Tourist Police Officer.

In non-serious cases we do our best to settle the matter without it going to the Police Station as things can get very tricky for tourists, even for minor problems, if the case reaches the station.

[BTITmaker]

So BTITT maker, what are you working on now? I agree with you on the tv thing, the uk press is bad enough. Pages and pages of what reality "star' did this week etc. Is it safe for u now in thailand?

whistleblower - I'm working on bringing standards, integrity and ethics back into morally bereft British TV. Seriously. I'm trying to make the world a better place for TV viewers - one where mentally ill people aren't figures of fun and ridicule (Cowell's Idol series), where we can trust - at least to some reasonable extent - what we see.

As to Thailand, I think it's as safe for me there as anyone else. The Thais have been watching this situation very closely - the Thai ambassador to the UK has even been involved. They know where the truth lies. I would, however, make a very convenient scapegoat. But faced with where to put my faith and trust - Richard Branson's Virgin Media or Rory Bremner's Vera productions? The Thai authorities would be my choice. Every time.

[Stephen Cleary]

It seems that the following video has been uploaded on to Thailand's biggest website with more than a 1,000 hits since this afternoon. Can blame so many hits when it's ranked in the world's top 500 websites (source: Alexa)

JJ Video at Sanook.com

I'd like to see VERA try and get that one taken off :-)

Sanook is huge in Thailand, my wife/her sisters are on it all the time and is the site that I see most as homepages in internet cafes.

The plot thickens...

Hi Taffy:

Besides Sanook.com, it seems that this Thai guy has just uploaded the Fake Rape video (Big Trouble in Thailand) on to Thailands' 2nd biggest website Mthai.com (Alexa: World's top 1,000)

Fake Rape Video link below:

คลิป วิดีโอ : Big Trouble in Thailand TV แฟก้สาวทูกข่มขืน (Edit) ดัดต่อ

Edited October 20, 2009 by Stephen Cleary

[taffylee]

The case about the Toilet is from April 2008 and was filmed for the Pilot so I am not 100% sure about the case but I do remember that the guy broke the toilet itself and not the toilet seat. In an ideal situation we would have gone to the room and inspected the damage but the woman was adamant that the next place they were going to go was the Police Station which could have got very messy. The guy admitted to breaking the toilet and a figure of 1,500 Baht to repair the damage was accepted by the man who was more than happy to settle the case on the street in front of a Thai Tourist Police Officer.

Fair enough if the guy was willing to shell out cash to avoid the hassle.

Still intrigues me how he could have broke the toilet without as much as a sledge hammer.. Although with this being Thailand, I once broke a glass in a bar and got charged 20 baht, thank god the TPV's weren't around otherwise it would have been tenfold.

Edited October 20, 2009 by taffylee

[phuketrex]

There are profiles of some of the "Thai Cops" as Bravo calls them on their website>>>

http://www.bravo.co.uk/shows/big-trouble-i...ops-gallery.php

[whistleblower]

Sorry howard you posted your reply as i was writing mine.

Ok so thanx for the background but what about the questions i posed about the show.

Where did the mobile go? Stolen, I advised the man to go to the Police Station and get a Police Report for his insurance

Why 1500bht for the toilet seat?

Why do you get the foreigners to pay up instead of assisting them with the thai police? (in this i mean why didnt you tell the hooker that she was being completely unreasonable in asking 1500bht for the toilet seat)

and the bit where you got the western woman to wai a hooker was pitiful!

In the show you were always very polite (even when faced with pissed <deleted>) which is very commendable. But when your being f@*ked over by a hooker or scammer nice manners dont cut it. Help is whats needed. It seems all you achieved was facilitating the scammers in getting money, when you could have assisted the tourists at the police station.

As i said the pissed guy (who i now know was bailed out by BTITT maker) was gonna get arrested for not paying a bar chit, but you were quite happy for the hooker who nicked 2 computers etc to walk by herself to the local nick. Why didnt you attend the nick and assist this guy? What happened in this case? did she do a runner? We have to had criminal cases over to Pattaya Police Station and we are obliged to let the Foreign Police Volunteers based at Pattaya Police Station take over cases when we are either light on numbers or feel they can adequately assist.

The case about the Toilet is from April 2008 and was filmed for the Pilot so I am not 100% sure about the case but I do remember that the guy broke the toilet itself and not the toilet seat. In an ideal situation we would have gone to the room and inspected the damage but the woman was adamant that the next place they were going to go was the Police Station which could have got very messy. The guy admitted to breaking the toilet and a figure of 1,500 Baht to repair the damage was accepted by the man who was more than happy to settle the case on the street in front of a Thai Tourist Police Officer.

In non-serious cases we do our best to settle the matter without it going to the Police Station as things can get very tricky for tourists, even for minor problems, if the case reaches the station.

OK thanx for that but a few more (i swear im not picking on you) I understand that you have to hand over criminal cases to the police, what im asking is when its a foreigner, hes escorted to the police station. In the case of the computer thief she was just told to go to the police station. (or was this tightly edited too?) she could have done a runner or lied again in the police station. A volunteer at the police station might calm the tourist and get the police to make a balanced view. (A volunteer who dealt with it initially i mean)

You say that things can get tricky for tourists if they go to the police, but if the guy is right, why would it be tricky for them. with your help it should be unbiased and fair surely?

Where did the phone go?????????????? it was in full view on cctv so who took it?? were they caught?

The Wai??? that was cringeworthy mate

And why did the police (and you) let the brit bar owner keep that couples cameras?? I know they broke the bars rules, but they did not commit a crime by thai law. The bar owner did!! what was that about??

[taffylee]

Just seen the fake rape video... typical Thai (evaluation copy)... but talk about bending the truth!!

I think I should apologise to the TPV's for my bad comments in this thread..

I now realise the error of my ways and I think that VERA productons may have deliberately made you out to be totally incompetant useless amateurs.

I'll treat you all to a free meal from a food cart of your choosing on walking street on Saturday.

[whistleblower]

There are profiles of some of the "Thai Cops" as Bravo calls them on their website>>>

http://www.bravo.co.uk/shows/big-trouble-i...ops-gallery.php

So thats 3 out of 3 'volunteers' who have businesses in the area they volunteer!!! the cynic in me was correct then

[hm1973]

Sorry howard you posted your reply as i was writing mine.

Ok so thanx for the background but what about the questions i posed about the show.

Where did the mobile go? Stolen, I advised the man to go to the Police Station and get a Police Report for his insurance

Why 1500bht for the toilet seat?

Why do you get the foreigners to pay up instead of assisting them with the thai police? (in this i mean why didnt you tell the hooker that she was being completely unreasonable in asking 1500bht for the toilet seat)

and the bit where you got the western woman to wai a hooker was pitiful!

In the show you were always very polite (even when faced with pissed <deleted>) which is very commendable. But when your being f@*ked over by a hooker or scammer nice manners dont cut it. Help is whats needed. It seems all you achieved was facilitating the scammers in getting money, when you could have assisted the tourists at the police station.

As i said the pissed guy (who i now know was bailed out by BTITT maker) was gonna get arrested for not paying a bar chit, but you were quite happy for the hooker who nicked 2 computers etc to walk by herself to the local nick. Why didnt you attend the nick and assist this guy? What happened in this case? did she do a runner? We have to had criminal cases over to Pattaya Police Station and we are obliged to let the Foreign Police Volunteers based at Pattaya Police Station take over cases when we are either light on numbers or feel they can adequately assist.

The case about the Toilet is from April 2008 and was filmed for the Pilot so I am not 100% sure about the case but I do remember that the guy broke the toilet itself and not the toilet seat. In an ideal situation we would have gone to the room and inspected the damage but the woman was adamant that the next place they were going to go was the Police Station which could have got very messy. The guy admitted to breaking the toilet and a figure of 1,500 Baht to repair the damage was accepted by the man who was more than happy to settle the case on the street in front of a Thai Tourist Police Officer.

In non-serious cases we do our best to settle the matter without it going to the Police Station as things can get very tricky for tourists, even for minor problems, if the case reaches the station.

OK thanx for that but a few more (i swear im not picking on you) I understand that you have to hand over criminal cases to the police, what im asking is when its a foreigner, hes escorted to the police station. In the case of the computer thief she was just told to go to the police station. (or was this tightly edited too?) she could have done a runner or lied again in the police station. A volunteer at the police station might calm the tourist and get the police to make a balanced view. (A volunteer who dealt with it initially i mean)

You say that things can get tricky for tourists if they go to the police, but if the guy is right, why would it be tricky for them. with your help it should be unbiased and fair surely?

Where did the phone go?????????????? it was in full view on cctv so who took it?? were they caught?

The Wai??? that was cringeworthy mate

And why did the police (and you) let the brit bar owner keep that couples cameras?? I know they broke the bars rules, but they did not commit a crime by thai law. The bar owner did!! what was that about??

The man who had his computer stolen did not make a Police report as soon as the alleged crime took place. Therefore Police had only his word that the crime took place and a confession from the girl that she took it. The Police Officer on duty was probably at fault as a report should have been made at the Mobile Unit formally arresting the girl for theft, by her own admission. No report was made and the officer decided to order both parties to continue the case at Pattaya Police Station which was not really the correct way of doing it. However, it comes down to the fact that we are not Police Officers and are guided by the Thai Police and must sometimes accept their decisions on a case even if we do not accept them. With no report made prior to the visit to the Police Station, there was no authority in place to "detain" the woman first. Luckly she did comply and went to the Police Station.

In answer to your other questions, we will often come to compromises on the street, to pacify a situation and "eventually" come to a satisfactory conclusion. The hidden camera case is an example of this. I had no right to enter the bar and take the camera and I did advise the couple at the time that they can make a report that the camera has been held by the bar. However, they would have to prove ownership of the camera (receipts) which they were unable to do. This is why I advised them to accept the bar owners compromise of picking up the camera the next day, which they did. Sometimes we have to come to a good conclusion to a case in unusual ways, this is one of them.

[hm1973]

There are profiles of some of the "Thai Cops" as Bravo calls them on their website>>>

http://www.bravo.co.uk/shows/big-trouble-i...ops-gallery.php

So thats 3 out of 3 'volunteers' who have businesses in the area they volunteer!!! the cynic in me was correct then

What a silly comment. I am hardly going to volunteer in Phuket while living in Pattaya am I. Unless you are willing to pay my travel expenses from Pattaya to Phuket. Also it is essential for the volunteer to have good working knowlege of the area they work in. Living in the area normally helps

[whistleblower]

It seems that the following video has been uploaded on to Thailand's biggest website with more than a 1,000 hits since this afternoon. Can blame so many hits when it's ranked in the world's top 500 websites (source: Alexa)

JJ Video at Sanook.com

I'd like to see VERA try and get that one taken off :-)

Sanook is huge in Thailand, my wife/her sisters are on it all the time and is the site that I see most as homepages in internet cafes.

The plot thickens...

Hi Taffy:

Besides Sanook.com, it seems that this Thai guy has just uploaded the Fake Rape video (Big Trouble in Thailand) on to Thailands' 2nd biggest website Mthai.com (Alexa: World's top 1,000)

Fake Rape Video link below:

คลิป วิดีโอ : Big Trouble in Thailand TV แฟก้สาวทูกข่มขืน (Edit) ดัดต่อ

Can someone explain this to me?? the supposed rape footage is the same as the series. who put the typed 'not true' messages over the screen???

[hm1973]

It seems that the following video has been uploaded on to Thailand's biggest website with more than a 1,000 hits since this afternoon. Can blame so many hits when it's ranked in the world's top 500 websites (source: Alexa)

JJ Video at Sanook.com

I'd like to see VERA try and get that one taken off :-)

Sanook is huge in Thailand, my wife/her sisters are on it all the time and is the site that I see most as homepages in internet cafes.

The plot thickens...

Hi Taffy:

Besides Sanook.com, it seems that this Thai guy has just uploaded the Fake Rape video (Big Trouble in Thailand) on to Thailands' 2nd biggest website Mthai.com (Alexa: World's top 1,000)

Fake Rape Video link below:

คลิป วิดีโอ : Big Trouble in Thailand TV แฟก้สาวทูกข่มขืน (Edit) ดัดต่อ

Can someone explain this to me?? the supposed rape footage is the same as the series. who put the typed 'not true' messages over the screen???

I'll give you a clue......he is a member of the board and a top bloke with morals unlike the Production Company he worked with to produce BTIT

[whistleblower]

There are profiles of some of the "Thai Cops" as Bravo calls them on their website>>>

http://www.bravo.co.uk/shows/big-trouble-i...ops-gallery.php

So thats 3 out of 3 'volunteers' who have businesses in the area they volunteer!!! the cynic in me was correct then

What a silly comment. I am hardly going to volunteer in Phuket while living in Pattaya am I. Unless you are willing to pay my travel expenses from Pattaya to Phuket. Also it is essential for the volunteer to have good working knowlege of the area they work in. Living in the area normally helps

not that silly really. What i was getting at is that isnt there anyone on 'the force' who are retired with no business interests available to volunteer? And isnt having a best mate with a bar in walking street a conflict of interest?? Thats why thai politicians are banned from having business interests whilst they are mps.

[whistleblower]

So BTITT maker, what are you working on now? I agree with you on the tv thing, the uk press is bad enough. Pages and pages of what reality "star' did this week etc. Is it safe for u now in thailand?

whistleblower - I'm working on bringing standards, integrity and ethics back into morally bereft British TV. Seriously. I'm trying to make the world a better place for TV viewers - one where mentally ill people aren't figures of fun and ridicule (Cowell's Idol series), where we can trust - at least to some reasonable extent - what we see.

As to Thailand, I think it's as safe for me there as anyone else. The Thais have been watching this situation very closely - the Thai ambassador to the UK has even been involved. They know where the truth lies. I would, however, make a very convenient scapegoat. But faced with where to put my faith and trust - Richard Branson's Virgin Media or Rory Bremner's Vera productions? The Thai authorities would be my choice. Every time.

Good luck with that mate!! hope you can improve the standard. look forward to your next production.

[hm1973]

There are profiles of some of the "Thai Cops" as Bravo calls them on their website>>>

http://www.bravo.co.uk/shows/big-trouble-i...ops-gallery.php

So thats 3 out of 3 'volunteers' who have businesses in the area they volunteer!!! the cynic in me was correct then

What a silly comment. I am hardly going to volunteer in Phuket while living in Pattaya am I. Unless you are willing to pay my travel expenses from Pattaya to Phuket. Also it is essential for the volunteer to have good working knowlege of the area they work in. Living in the area normally helps

not that silly really. What i was getting at is that isnt there anyone on 'the force' who are retired with no business interests available to volunteer? And isnt having a best mate with a bar in walking street a conflict of interest?? Thats why thai politicians are banned from having business interests whilst they are mps.

There are plenty of retirees in my group. Don't think you can really compare an MP with a Foreign Police Assistant/Volunteer. Actually friendship with Bar Owners has often led to quick resolutions to problems which would have otherwise dragged on. I see this as a big help to me rather than a conflict of interest!

[whistleblower]

Sorry howard you posted your reply as i was writing mine.

Ok so thanx for the background but what about the questions i posed about the show.

Where did the mobile go? Stolen, I advised the man to go to the Police Station and get a Police Report for his insurance

Why 1500bht for the toilet seat?

Why do you get the foreigners to pay up instead of assisting them with the thai police? (in this i mean why didnt you tell the hooker that she was being completely unreasonable in asking 1500bht for the toilet seat)

and the bit where you got the western woman to wai a hooker was pitiful!

In the show you were always very polite (even when faced with pissed <deleted>) which is very commendable. But when your being f@*ked over by a hooker or scammer nice manners dont cut it. Help is whats needed. It seems all you achieved was facilitating the scammers in getting money, when you could have assisted the tourists at the police station.

As i said the pissed guy (who i now know was bailed out by BTITT maker) was gonna get arrested for not paying a bar chit, but you were quite happy for the hooker who nicked 2 computers etc to walk by herself to the local nick. Why didnt you attend the nick and assist this guy? What happened in this case? did she do a runner? We have to had criminal cases over to Pattaya Police Station and we are obliged to let the Foreign Police Volunteers based at Pattaya Police Station take over cases when we are either light on numbers or feel they can adequately assist.

The case about the Toilet is from April 2008 and was filmed for the Pilot so I am not 100% sure about the case but I do remember that the guy broke the toilet itself and not the toilet seat. In an ideal situation we would have gone to the room and inspected the damage but the woman was adamant that the next place they were going to go was the Police Station which could have got very messy. The guy admitted to breaking the toilet and a figure of 1,500 Baht to repair the damage was accepted by the man who was more than happy to settle the case on the street in front of a Thai Tourist Police Officer.

In non-serious cases we do our best to settle the matter without it going to the Police Station as things can get very tricky for tourists, even for minor problems, if the case reaches the station.

OK thanx for that but a few more (i swear im not picking on you) I understand that you have to hand over criminal cases to the police, what im asking is when its a foreigner, hes escorted to the police station. In the case of the computer thief she was just told to go to the police station. (or was this tightly edited too?) she could have done a runner or lied again in the police station. A volunteer at the police station might calm the tourist and get the police to make a balanced view. (A volunteer who dealt with it initially i mean)

You say that things can get tricky for tourists if they go to the police, but if the guy is right, why would it be tricky for them. with your help it should be unbiased and fair surely?

Where did the phone go?????????????? it was in full view on cctv so who took it?? were they caught?

The Wai??? that was cringeworthy mate

And why did the police (and you) let the brit bar owner keep that couples cameras?? I know they broke the bars rules, but they did not commit a crime by thai law. The bar owner did!! what was that about??

The man who had his computer stolen did not make a Police report as soon as the alleged crime took place. Therefore Police had only his word that the crime took place and a confession from the girl that she took it. The Police Officer on duty was probably at fault as a report should have been made at the Mobile Unit formally arresting the girl for theft, by her own admission. No report was made and the officer decided to order both parties to continue the case at Pattaya Police Station which was not really the correct way of doing it. However, it comes down to the fact that we are not Police Officers and are guided by the Thai Police and must sometimes accept their decisions on a case even if we do not accept them. With no report made prior to the visit to the Police Station, there was no authority in place to "detain" the woman first. Luckly she did comply and went to the Police Station.

In answer to your other questions, we will often come to compromises on the street, to pacify a situation and "eventually" come to a satisfactory conclusion. The hidden camera case is an example of this. I had no right to enter the bar and take the camera and I did advise the couple at the time that they can make a report that the camera has been held by the bar. However, they would have to prove ownership of the camera (receipts) which they were unable to do. This is why I advised them to accept the bar owners compromise of picking up the camera the next day, which they did. Sometimes we have to come to a good conclusion to a case in unusual ways, this is one of them.

Couldnt you have asked the thai cops to intervene? strangers in thailand have their cameras confiscated (i know they broke the bars rules) they ask for assistance from thai police volunteers, the guy admits hes taken the cameras (no receipts required then) and they are told to come back next day? if i was a tourist i would be wondering how this could happen and fretting whether i would get the cameras back.

Not blaming you, put its a bit confusing that tourists think the TPVs are their for assistance but really they seem to be there to tell tourists what we who live here already know 'pay you'll never win'

Extremely polite fellow you are though howard.

But PLEASE PLEASE did you see who took the phone?????

[BTITmaker]

The rape video shows an attempt by Vera Productions to FABRICATE a rape at the Full Moon Party.

The girl in question - an Australian doctor as it happens, her face has been blurred - had fallen off a balcony. At no time did this girl complain of being raped.

The video says 'Evaluation Copy' because I'm waiting for the original software I bought to arrive! So, apologies for that.

But that is a 'final' cut of Ep. 5 that the Series Producer was asked to sign off on. He didn't - he wanted nothing to do with Vera Productions' attempts to invent content, especially when it concerns rape - and he hit the roof.

Vera productions were forced to back down, but evidence of their attempted deception is in the episode broadcast, and available on You Tube. The commentary (on the video it is the "guidetrack" laid by the Edit Producer - the narrator puts his voice on right at the end) states that the girl did NOT press charges. The girl TPV Louise Rawlings is talking about is another Australian girl and she DID press charges. She testified in court the week after the attack - her attacker, who was Thai, was caught. And eventually he was given a ten-year jail sentence, reduced to five because at the last minute he pleaded guilty. So, Vera got this wrong too. Inexcusable considering BTIT's Executive Producer, Dean Palmer, even met the father of the real rape victim who was back in Samui to see justice done for his daughter. And the REAL rape happened on Samui - not Phangan. Notice that Louise is NOT walking on the Full Moon Party beach as the commentary suggests, but at Bophut on Samui.

This was a deliberate attempt by Vera Productions to contrive a rape storyline from an actual rape victim's horrific experience. What beats me is how they thought they'd get away from it if the Series Producer had let them? Too many people in the know: the girls concerned, the father of the actual rape victim, the tourist policewomen volunteers, Vera's Assistant Producer who was there, the Bangkok hospital staff at the FMP who attended - would they all perjure themselves when this came to court? It beggars belief. Vera Productions' excuse for this was an "over creative edit" - that was Executive Producer Dean Palmer's explanation. David Clarke, the Managing Director of Virgin Media, has refused to comment. But Virgin Media Commissioning Editor Lucy Pilkington who commissioned 'Thai Cops' aka 'BTIT' left her job a few days ago.

Edited October 20, 2009 by BTITmaker

[whistleblower]

The rape video shows an attempt by Vera Productions to FABRICATE a rape at the Full Moon Party.

The girl in question - an Australian doctor as it happens, her face has been blurred - had fallen off a balcony. At no time did this girl complain of being raped.

The video says 'Evaluation Copy' because I'm waiting for the original software I bought to arrive! So, apologies for that.

But that is a 'final' cut of Ep. 5 that the Series Producer was asked to sign off on. He didn't - he wanted nothing to do with Vera Productions' attempts to invent content, especially when it concerns rape - and he hit the roof.

Vera productions were forced to back down, but evidence of their attempted deception is in the episode broadcast, and available on You Tube. The commentary (on the video it is the "guidetrack" laid by the Edit Producer - the narrator puts his voice on right at the end) states that the girl did NOT press charges. The girl TPV Louise Rawlings is talking about is another Australian girl and she DID press charges. She testified in court the week after the attack - her attacker, who was Thai, was caught. And eventually he was given a ten-year jail sentence, reduced to five because at the last minute he pleaded guilty. So, Vera got this wrong too. Inexcusable considering BTIT's Executive Producer, Dean Palmer, even met the father of the real rape victim who was back in Samui to see justice done for his daughter. And the REAL rape happened on Samui - not Phangan. Notice that Louise is NOT walking on the Full Moon Party beach as the commentary suggests, but at Bophut on Samui.

This was a deliberate attempt by Vera Productions to contrive a rape storyline from an actual rape victim's horrific experience. What beats me is how they thought they'd get away from it if the Series Producer had let them? Too many people in the know: the girls concerned, the father of the actual rape victim, the tourist policewomen volunteers, Vera's Assistant Producer who was there, the Bangkok hospital staff at the FMP who attended - would they all perjure themselves when this came to court? It beggars belief. Vera Productions' excuse for this was an "over creative edit" - that was Executive Producer Dean Palmer's explanation. David Clarke, the Managing Director of Virgin Media, has refused to comment. But Virgin Media Commissioning Editor Lucy Pilkington who commissioned 'Thai Cops' aka 'BTIT' left her job a few days ago.

thanks for the explanation. Looks like a right mess. bunch of amateurs. bet your glad your out of it. with your honesty about all this on this and other sites, have you been shunned in the business?

[hm1973]

Couldnt you have asked the thai cops to intervene? strangers in thailand have their cameras confiscated (i know they broke the bars rules) they ask for assistance from thai police volunteers, the guy admits hes taken the cameras (no receipts required then) and they are told to come back next day? if i was a tourist i would be wondering how this could happen and fretting whether i would get the cameras back.

Not blaming you, put its a bit confusing that tourists think the TPVs are their for assistance but really they seem to be there to tell tourists what we who live here already know 'pay you'll never win'

Extremely polite fellow you are though howard.

But PLEASE PLEASE did you see who took the phone?????

I didn't see who took the phone. The case was actually being dealt with by the local Police who were called before us and unless they ask for us to join them, we always back off and let them do their job and direct our attentions towards the foreigner who may or may not need advice on how to proceed.

As I said before the only course of action open to the couple to get back their camera quickly would have been to file a Police Report which would have required documentary proof the camera was theirs. They were not carrying any receipts which would have meant that the camera could have been anyones. Another option could have been to call out the local Police to the scene, however they would have asked for similar proof and knowing the "special relationship" local Police have with bars it would have been a waste of time.

[whistleblower]

Quote " it comes down to the fact that we are not police officers, and are guided by the Thai police"

Episode 6 part 2 6 mins 59 secs:

"Trust me, trust me, trust me i'm thai tourist police, tourist police"

Tut tut Howard, a bit misleading dont you think???

[Stephen Cleary]

In the meantime, it will be interesting whether or or not, Vera Productions are gonna try and take the evidence offline from Thailand's top Video Sharing websites...

Edited October 20, 2009 by Stephen Cleary

[hm1973]

Quote " it comes down to the fact that we are not police officers, and are guided by the Thai police"

Episode 6 part 2 6 mins 59 secs:

"Trust me, trust me, trust me i'm thai tourist police, tourist police"

Tut tut Howard, a bit misleading dont you think???

Nice try. I actually said "I am WITH the Tourist Police, the Tourist Police, I want to help you"

Please stop misquoting me.

[whistleblower]

noo you didnt. watch it again

[hm1973]

noo you didnt. watch it again

I just did watch it, to make sure before I posted. Maybe another poster would like to verify this.