Police tear down illegal cottages on Koh Lan

KOH LAN: -- More than 200 police and officials yesterday dismantled eight cottages of a beach resort illegally built on public land and operating without a licence on Koh Lan, near Pattaya.

The operation was led by the inspector-general of the Royal Thai Police, General Seripisuth Temiyavej, who acted on a complaint from Muang Pattaya Municipality.

The complaint said the owner of the Beach Club Resort on Koh Lan, Niroj Chua-kaew, had ignored a court order that his cottages be demolished.

During yesterday’s operation, Niroj and his lawyer confronted the police and officials and asked for more time to act on the court order.

But their request was rejected and the demolition team immediately moved things out of the cottages before hammering the buildings down.

Police also detained Niroj and said they would press an additional charge against him for operating a resort without a licence. He was found to have advertised the resort on the Internet, and was charging customers on a nightly basis.

Niroj was already charged with encroaching on public land, illegally clearing forest and constructing the properties without prior permission.

Seripisuth said there were 30 more resorts to be demolished on beaches in Chon Buri province. Some of them allegedly held land-right documents issued “through manipulation”.

He warned illegal property owners that they must demolish their properties within deadlines set by court orders or face legal action.

Mr Niroj ignored a Pattaya court order to dismantle the bungalows as they were built without permission, a violation of the Building Control Act of 1978, and also encroached on public land.

Pol Gen Seripisuth said the city had attempted once before to carry out the demolition but was prevented from doing so, and that was why he had to step in.

Mr Niroj would have to foot the bill for the demolition, put at 140,000 baht, the city manager said.

Mr Niroj protested, denying he encroached on public land and saying he had long occupied the land in question and had applied for a title deed.

He said he had invested more than four million baht in the bungalows, not knowing that he had to seek permission.

--The Nation 2005-05-25

He tried to explain he was renting the land from a "cousin" . Not a single member of this guy's family could come up with deeds to the land.

Hammer time!

They should also make him pay for the costs of the officials and the police time wasted here.

Mr Niroj would have to foot the bill for the demolition, put at 140,000 baht, the city manager said.

Oddly enough he tried to sell them 2 years ago for 7 million baht.