Pirates raid pleasure boat in pattaya

[OzzieMan]

A poor hard working Thai buisness man was on a short holiday in Pattaya last night with a few friend having a small party when 100 Thai commandoes attacked them,on there little boat early this morning.

“Pirates” every one screemed and young Thai girls enjoying a sweet cruise ran and locked them selves in their cabins

Now the cook must have had fish and chips on the menu because thai police confiscated all there chips

So if you thinking of a short cruise in Pattaya don’t eat chips ,and don’t carry your money on you its a big gamble.

And I’m told he was just a hard working thai who just happens to have a small property in the Cambodian border town of Poipet.

gee what happens when you don’t have a video camera with you

But you can get a copy courtosy of the local Thai police I’m told.

[george]

Commandos storm floating casino off Pattaya; Foreginers arrested

[dr_Pat_Pong]

George....does this mean that all sinning is now banned in Thailand ? Dubya and John Howard might have enjoyed a mid APEC flutter.    

[george]

No it's simply means that now is prostitution, gambling, a-go-go hunting and night partying allwed again as usual. Mai mee bpan haa!  :laugh:

[bangkokblue]

In this interim i think it wise not using one's personal transport to avoid (as is the norm)  the reaching out of that all too familiar hand for the 100bht on the spot (illegal) fine, don't want to be caught in a trap of bribing the guy's in brown. Also i'll refuse to carry on my person anything that resembles a syndicate of 2-3 numbers(upstairs or down) or even a copy of back home football fixtures even if that does mean breaking away from cultured thai routine.......or just delay my return  another month, should all be back to normal by then. Anyone know the punishment for such idiotic and should have known better crimes, for just an humble farang without privilege card.

[george]

FLOATING CASINO: PM sends in the taxman

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra yesterday instructed the Revenue Department and the Anti-Money Laundering Office to hunt down the organisers of an illegal floating casino that was raided last week.

He ordered the authorities to severely punish the organisers, using tax measures and anti-money laundering laws.

Police raided the Olvia cruise ship on Thursday, arresting more than 50 gamblers. The arrests led to prison terms for the ship's manager and 13 personnel, along with suspended sentences for 44 gamblers.

The ship set off last Tuesday from Samut Prakan, with 300 passengers, 100 of whom are thought to be gamblers.

Thaksin declined to say whether or not he suspected politicians of backing the illegal casino.

"We can't say anything without evidence. We sometimes know who's involved even though we don't have evidence. If we do anything against them or accuse them, we can be sued," he said.

Thaksin admitted that he was thinking of legalising casinos in Thailand with certain restrictions, so the money could be used to help poor and needy children.

"The government will try to make all underground activities transparent. The government does not need the money because it collects taxes from legal businesses. This money can be used to help tackle poverty and help poor children get education," the PM said.

He admitted that he had visited casinos in Las Vegas to try out gambling, and had seen many Thais engaged in gambling there.

"Those gamblers are not rich. They are the type of people who make a living by gambling," he added.

Thai gamblers waste a lot of money in casinos in Poi Pet, Hong Kong, Macao, Australia and on cruise ships, he said.

But he also said many people liked to gamble just for the fun of it.

--The Nation 2003-10-30

[bangkokblue]

Well there you go, not even a month and it looks like going legal....woopee.

[dr_Pat_Pong]

They worked out that they can tax it  

[george]

They worked out that they can tax it  

Might be,  now they want to legalize it according to the Post:

Casinos may be legalised

PM to take public opinion into account

Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said yesterday the government would consider legalising casinos, but it was not the time to think about it yet.

Mr Thaksin also promised the government would take public opinion into account. ``I haven't thought about it. Give me some time. Right now the government is trying to bring underground activities up above ground,'' he said.

Mr Thaksin, however, was said to be against total legalisation of gambling, saying it was dangerous if gambling was accessible to all. ``Buying tickets to get into a casino is way too dangerous. Casinos would be found everywhere,'' he said.

Controlled gambling was one of the proposed forms of gambling legalisation, but he did not have time to think about it. Mr Thaksin said that the government did not need revenue from gambling, but the money would be used to help solve problems for the underprivileged.

Thais had lost a lot in casinos in Cambodia, Macau and Australia.

Commenting on last week's raid on Ukrainian-registered casino ship Olvia, Mr Thaksin said authorities would go for harsh punishment against organisers.

``The revenue law will be used against the organisers and if possible, the anti-money laundering law too,'' he said.

Mr Thaksin said the Crime Suppression Division and Central Investigation Bureau would continue with their crackdown on cruise ships providing gambling services.

While acknowledging it was not possible for authorities to raid cruise ships in international waters, he said that they must take action before the ships leave Thai waters.uEditorial page 10

--Bangkok Post 2003-10-30