Farangs Scamming Farangs

[ozzydom]

We have heard all about the beggars pulling scams ,but have any of you been conned by fellow ex-pats ??

[impossible_me]

farangs swindle farangs

[ray23]

farangs swindle farangs

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Farrangs cause more problem to farrangs then any Thia can, I have personal experience with the swindle and know many more who have been had. One thing I have definetly came to a conclusion on is I would rather deal with the Thais. At least as norm if you careful the Thai's only take litle bites, fellow farrangs can get you to the big numbers.

Farrang do not support one another from my experience here, when it comes to push to shove, they like to watch your trouble, makes for good converation over thier beer. Lets them brag how smart they are since they are not in the mess. That more then likely they led you to in the first place.

Thats just my humble opinnion baed on my personal experience, I don't consider it to be a Thailand problem but a farrang problem. Simple solution is spend more time with Thais. I live in all Thai neighbors and never have problems. I know guys who live in farrang neighborhoods and they are always fighting.

[Totster]

There's always somebody waiting for the opportunity to take advantage/scam another fellow human being... whether they be Thai or Farang, we're all humans, and that's human nature.

totster

Edited June 11, 2005 by Totster

[JimsKnight]

There's always somebody waiting for the opportunity to take advantage/scam another fellow human being... whether they be Thai or Farang, we're all humans, and that's human nature.

totster 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I've know a semi-expat dutchman who charges his friends to stay in his wifes house in a boring village in Phitsanoluk Province! You get there from the airport and when your getting driven to the village he's like "500 baht please per night!!!" Despite previously being told its for free! He claims that his wifes family put him up to it but its all bs. Kind of like a falang/thai hybrid scam! Anyway all the villagers are like "Yayy! Another falang to get booze and fags from!" And let me tell you boys the village is nothing to write home about; ugly women, rough terrain and drunk thai men wanting cigarettes and booze from you. Never again!

The thai scams normally fool the niave, over trusting or thick falangs. When we see a fellow white face in town in Thailand its like a sign of being back home. We tend to drop our guard more than we would in Europe/America and get talking. Finding a good, solid expat who actually is what he says he is can be quite rare at times and in Thailand you need all the allies you can get! Remember that many falangs have ended up spending/losing/frittered away all their money and are eking a living on scams and desperate ploys!

The falang scams can be nasty, not withstanding that many seem to forget that criminals go on holiday too! And these gimps tend to be the worst. Watch yourself out there.

Edited June 11, 2005 by JimsKnight

[Kringle]

I don't agree, you'll get scammed by the Thais more than any farang. This I say as my own experience and in no way says that all Thais are scammers. I did work for some Thais and never saw a baht for my efforts. Got the product here and there was no more calls. Not even a thank you. Oh well, I just don't do that anymore. I don't care as I make enough and don't have to depend on it but it does piss you off when you do things and they promise , promise promise and you never see Crappe.

[Totster]

I don't agree, you'll get scammed by the Thais more than any farang.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

But is that because there are more Thai's than farang here ?..... IMO it takes all types equally...

totster

[daleyboy]

I don't agree, you'll get scammed by the Thais more than any farang.

But is that because there are more Thai's than farang here ?..... IMO it takes all types equally...

totster

I agree with Totster of course you will get scammed by more Thais because you are in THAILAND just like if you were in the U.K you would get scammed by more Brits than you would Thais.

Edited June 11, 2005 by daleyboy

[Nam Kao]

I found that the sooner Thais or falangs "think" you dont have money or

your a "Dry Well" so to speak - the better. Stay off the scammers radars.

I live looking like i am poor as much as possible. When i want to go spend bucks

and live it up I go to a different part of Thailand other than my hometown while

not telling anyone what i am up to.

At first some locals would hound me to buy them this, buy them that. I would

be invited to parties and later asked to supply the booze etc. Each time I didnt

budge. I just said humbly "sorry me no have baht and looked down kind of sad".

Then magically Chang and Mekong bottles pop out of nowhere and i am getting

loaded for free.

My other rule is NEVER NEVER lend anyone money. Its not that you might

not get the money back - the problem is word will get out very quickly and you'll

have vultures circling you like your a stumbling half dead carcass in the desert.

When you first show up you'll be studied and tested by the scammers, let the tests

come back negative.

[xyz]

We have heard all about the beggars pulling scams ,but have any of you been conned by fellow ex-pats ??

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

There was a story going around a few years ago about some expat who had convinced his farang buddies to invest in an non-existant boat racing business in Australia, then walked off w/ the money. He was later captured in Cambodia, I think. Some of you probably Know about this.

[kayo]

I´ve not been scammed, as such.

Have heard lots of tales though.

Personally, I have been robbed only three times since living in Thailand. Each and every time has been a young tourist female (western) I´ve taken home. The first time C.D.´s, the second time was just some books, and - get this - a bottle of shampoo!

The third time was C.D.´s again and minidisks.

Note: Never been scammed (aside from standard rip off practices in place where they don´t know me) by a thai.

Needless to say, I now take the girls back to their hotels.

Edited June 11, 2005 by kayo

[mr bilko]

Good ferrangs i've come across.

I stayed on koh samui Nov 03. One night i went out for a walk, went past a couple of bars with no intention of going in, but the girls shouting hello handsome man come in got the better of me.

I only had about 500bt in my pocket so thought i would go for a quick beer, when my money was spent i was about to go home, an 'old' (55years) man asked why i was going home, i explained he then reached into his pocket an loaned my 3000bt so i could stay out for the night. I had only met the man that night!!! He was not connected to the bar in any way.

I have since become friends with this man and gone back to samui and stayed at his place. He charged me of course but only at half the rate of the place i stayed last time.

So i belive there are good and bad out there, the problem is it only takes one bad of anything to make you not trust the same anything again.

But i try to avoid ferrangs while on holiday in thailand as ive spent £500 and nearly 24 hours travelling and want to enjoy the thai experience. Maybe this will change when i live in Isan.

[daleyboy]

Good ferrangs i've come across.

I stayed on koh samui Nov 03. One night i went out for a walk, went past a couple of bars with no intention of going in, but the girls shouting hello handsome man come in got the better of me.

I only had about 500bt in my pocket so thought i would go for a quick beer, when my money was spent i was about to go home, an 'old' (55years) man asked why i was going home, i explained he then reached into his pocket an loaned my 3000bt so i could stay out for the night. I had only met the man that night!!! He was not connected to the bar in any way.

I have since become friends with this man and gone back to samui and stayed at his place. He charged me of course but only at half the rate of the place i stayed last time.

So i belive there are good and bad out there, the problem is it only takes one bad of anything to make you not trust the same anything again.

But i try to avoid ferrangs while on holiday in thailand as ive spent £500 and nearly 24 hours travelling and want to enjoy the thai experience. Maybe this will change when i live in Isan.

Didnt your mother tell you never accept gifts off of strange men? Only joking nice to see there are some good people left in this world. He didnt ask if you wanted to go and see his puppies did he?

Edited June 11, 2005 by daleyboy

[opothai]

it's a bit like playing three card bragg with your 'friends' you win a lot then lend some money to the person over the table he then starts to win pays what he owes you, then leaves the table winning, why do we do this.

We are ferangs sometimes not the cleverest people

[ozzydom]

Probably the worst aspect of being ripped off is the mental anquish you go through, the feelings of despair,anger,frustration,depression mean the cash becomes irrelovent and revenge gains importance above all else. It is even worse when the perpetrator is a so-called mate,

My own faith in human nature took a nose-dive here in C/M at the hands of a fellow oz to the tune of 150K invested in a non-existant business deal , not big bikkies I know but I,d rather have lost it to a thai who might have put it to good use than a fat fraudster to blow in the bars and golf clubs of Chiang Mai.

[Tornado]

I have lent money to people a few times in Phuket and 9/10 have never paid me back.

I lent a guy 100k not so long ago, he used the money to refuel his boat and sail off to Singapore

anyway, when ever I lend, I dont expect to get it back , that way Im never dissapointed.

[siamesekitty]

Torny dahling, I'm a few baht short, could I borrow 200K or so?

[bdenner]

Like a &lt;deleted&gt; I was conned at the entry to immigration at Don Muang. An Aussie woman mid twenties tells me a sob story about spending all her money forgetting about the 500 Baht departure tax, she showed me her (or a) passport and I noted her name she gave me an address, I gave her a business card she promised to send the money first thing.

TW (more street wise than I) insisted I didn’t give her any money so I went over and bought the tax coupon. She turned cold and if it was not for the fact we were running late I would have followed her around for a while. TW earbashed me for the most of the 6 hour flight to Perth. Needless to say I never saw the money and a letter I sent went unanswered.

500 Baht – Not much, just the principle, pity help the next farang who asks me for a handout!!

[Kerryd]

Like a &lt;deleted&gt; I was conned at the entry to immigration at Don Muang. An Aussie woman mid twenties tells me a sob story about spending all her money forgetting about the 500 Baht departure tax, she showed me her (or a) passport and I noted her name she gave me an address, I gave her a business card she promised to send the money first thing.

TW (more street wise than I) insisted I didn’t give her any money so I went over and bought the tax coupon. She turned cold and if it was not for the fact we were running late I would have followed her around for a while. TW earbashed me for the most of the 6 hour flight to Perth. Needless to say I never saw the money and a letter I sent went unanswered.

500 Baht – Not much, just the principle, pity help the next farang who asks me for a handout!!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

My very first rip to LOS back in '93. On my way back, got to the airport early. Ended up spending most of my remaining money before checking in for my flight.

Back then, you paid the departure tax at the check-in counter. I didn't know there was a tax. All I had was some Hungarian and Croatian currency left. No exchange booth would take it, no ATM machine, nothing.

While I was talking to the girl at the check-in, trying to find a solution, the guy behind me asked what the problem was. He then asked how much the tax was (250 baht then) and paid for both of us.

I thanked him and offered to pay him back when we arrived in Frankfurt. He told me not to worry about it. When we did arrive, I immediately cash in some Hungarian for Deutschemarks, but the guy was long gone.

3 lessons learned. Not everyone is a bad guy, check every airport to see if they have a departure tax ($1.00 US in Kabul !), and always keep some extra money in reserve (preferably in currencies that can be used or exchanged).

[Tornado]

Torny dahling, I'm a few baht short, could I borrow 200K or so?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

you wish

[camerata]

At first some locals would hound me to buy them this, buy them that. I would

be invited to parties and later asked to supply the booze etc.  Each time I didnt

budge. I just said humbly "sorry me no have baht and looked down kind of sad".

Then magically Chang and Mekong bottles pop out of nowhere and i am getting

loaded for free. 

This is a sad corruption of the time-honoured custom of the most senior and respected person footing the bill. It's fine when everyone understands the situation, but you aren't supposed to invite someone to an occasion simply to get them to pay for it.

[camerata]

I know a guy who was ripped off by a real pro some years ago. The scammer was a Dutchman living in Thailand for several months. His story, built up skillfully over the months, was that he had a lot of money in a savings account in Jakarta that he couldn't get his hands on and he needed help to get back there. He had an apparently genuine bank book with a lot of money in the account, and portrayed himself as a high roller who would pay generously for help in getting back to Jakarta.

My friend took a copy of his passport and ID and agreed to help for a chunk of money and on condition that he also went to Jakarta, all expenses paid. The scammer immediately bought two heavy gold chains and gave one to my friend. They flew first class to Jakarta on a Friday, but discovered it was a public holiday. Naturally, they stayed at a 5-star hotel and lived like there was no tomorrow. At some time on the Sunday my friend blinked and lost the guy in the corridors of the hotel. Never saw him again and had about US$5000 charged to his credit cards already.

Needless to say, the Dutch Embassy knew this con artist by reputation but couldn't do much as no one could ever find him.

It seems an obvious scam with hindsight, but apparently this scammer was very clever at building up his story over a period of months without being too pushy about it.

[aviador88]

I know a guy who was ripped off by a real pro some years ago. The scammer was a Dutchman living in Thailand for several months. His story, built up skillfully over the months, was that he had a lot of money in a savings account in Jakarta that he couldn't get his hands on and he needed help to get back there. He had an apparently genuine bank book with a lot of money in the account, and portrayed himself as a high roller who would pay generously for help in getting back to Jakarta.

My friend took a copy of his passport and ID and agreed to help for a chunk of money and on condition that he also went to Jakarta, all expenses paid. The scammer immediately bought two heavy gold chains and gave one to my friend. They flew first class to Jakarta on a Friday, but discovered it was a public holiday. Naturally, they stayed at a 5-star hotel and lived like there was no tomorrow. At some time on the Sunday my friend blinked and lost the guy in the corridors of the hotel. Never saw him again and had about US$5000 charged to his credit cards already.

Needless to say, the Dutch Embassy knew this con artist by reputation but couldn't do much as no one could ever find him.

It seems an obvious scam with hindsight, but apparently this scammer was very clever at building up his story over a period of months without being too pushy about it.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I read your reply to my post about being ripped off by Thais. Whatever you live near that you use doesn't work here at the edge of the jungle. I do need a car.

Anyway, I first arrived here as a tourist in November 2003 ostensibly just a 2 week vacation. Well this turned into an almost 8 week vacation because I liked it and intended to retire here. During that time I met a swiss fellow who worked for a diving company. Nice guy but poor as a church mouse. Since I intended to return with the possibility of obtaining a non O retirement visa which involved showing a minimum 800,000 baht balance in an account which had to come from outside Thailand. This guy was 52 at the time wanting to do the same. he proposed for me to use his bank account since I did not have an account here as yet. So far so good.

I returned to the US, sold my home and transferred 2 million baht to his account. I returned to Thailand and still everything was on the up and up. I opened an account in my name and transferred 1 million baht to it.

As time went on and when I had the accident in Phuket I needed money. Since my "friend" never did apply for a visa, I asked him to just put all the money into my account.

Here is what happened. It was manna from heaven for him. He started using it frome day one, as if it were his own account.

The following was gleaned from @@@@@@@@@@'s personal Bank Account.

To be used only as proof of funds on hand from USA for retirement visa.

Balance as of March 10th, 2004 3.83BHT

Deposit (wire)March 15th, 2004 1,968,980.oo BHT

Withdrawal March 20th, 2004 (Fred) 1,000,000.oo BHT

Balance: 968,983.83 BHT

Unauthorized withdrawals:

24/03/04 10,023.oo

24/03/04 3,460.oo

27/03/04 2,000.oo

29/03/04 10,020.oo

30/03/04 150,000.oo

28/08/04 769,359.oo

04/10/04 100.oo

Total unauthorized withdrawals: 969,985.oo

Total amount in account: as of 08/20/05 173.17 BHT

I wondered why he suddenly had a new refrigerator, computer, TV etc. He told me that his father had died in Brazil and left him money.

I suppose I was stupid, but it was only money. I escaped the tsunami. I am still healthy enough to enjoy my retirement. I hope he enjoyed it.

Greetings, the ol' Captain.

[~G~]

Farrangs cause more problem to farrangs then any Thia can, I have personal experience with the swindle and know many more who have been had. One thing I have definetly came to a conclusion on is I would rather deal with the Thais. At least as norm if you careful the Thai's only take litle bites, fellow farrangs can get you to the big numbers.

Farrang do not support one another from my experience here, when it comes to push to shove, they like to watch your trouble, makes for good converation over thier beer. Lets them brag how smart they are since they are not in the mess. That more then likely they led you to in the first place.

Thats just my humble opinnion baed on my personal experience, I don't consider it to be a Thailand problem but a farrang problem. Simple solution is spend more time with Thais. I live in all Thai neighbors and never have problems. I know guys who live in farrang neighborhoods and they are always fighting.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Just check how many innocent threads here turn into bloody flame wars... Some of this verbal violence then goes outside the virutal world into the "real" world.

It is really sad - it seems like some farangs in Thailand see other farangs as legitimate targets for their frustration - they wouldn't mess with thais - but farangs, who are legally more vulnerable - make an easier hit.

[Thomas_Merton]

Is not one of the biggest scams, all those time-share con artists who inhabit Pattaya and Jomtien?

All failed use car salesmen and redundant debt collectors to a man.

Wouldn't trust any of them with the time of day.

[Bilko]

60,000 Baht ripped off by a so called friend, Farang, 3,000 from another, countless 500's from other farangs.

Thais, never.

[Bilko]

Is not one of the biggest scams, all those time-share con artists who inhabit Pattaya and Jomtien?

All failed use car salesmen and redundant debt collectors to a man.

Wouldn't trust any of them with the time of day.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Agree with you on that one, a right Sad bunch they are.

[silk123]

Never trust an indian or thai or crackhead old hippy type.

Once had a german old hippy type ask me for 500 for depature tax at airport. Thinking it a bit odd I said I'd trade him for an old book or something for fairess in case he was a small time con-man and he went in a real huff calling me a vulture and preying. He acted like he was on crack or smack.

Another time lent a indian guy here I workd with who told me "my only inspiration is the bible". Well I figured jesus freaks aren't supposed to rob people. He disappeared after tricking a gang of us.

Got robbed good also for 65k from thai mother in law.

Amazing the extent of setup they go to to rob one. sad fucers them people who rob people. kinda sad really they feel so poor to rob people like that. Stupid really cause I about to buy her daughter a beautiful house.

[camerata]

I wondered why he suddenly had a new refrigerator, computer, TV etc. He told me that his father had died in Brazil and left him money.

I suppose I was stupid, but it was only money. I escaped the tsunami. I am still healthy enough to enjoy my retirement. I hope he enjoyed it.

Jeez. Reminds me of that story about a Mexican boxer from some dirt-poor area. He was a big-hearted guy and once he became famous he'd help out anyone in need. One day his manager said to him, "Champ, that woman you gave money to yesterday didn't really need it." "Thank goodness," the champ replied, "that's the best news I've heard all day!"

[ThaiPauly]

I found that the sooner Thais or falangs "think" you dont have money or

your a "Dry Well" so to speak - the better.  Stay off the scammers radars.

I live looking like i am poor as much as possible. When i want to go spend bucks

and live it up I go to a different part of Thailand other than my hometown while

not telling anyone what i am up to.

At first some locals would hound me to buy them this, buy them that. I would

be invited to parties and later asked to supply the booze etc.  Each time I didnt

budge. I just said humbly "sorry me no have baht and looked down kind of sad".

Then magically Chang and Mekong bottles pop out of nowhere and i am getting

loaded for free. 

My other rule is  NEVER NEVER lend anyone money.  Its not that you might

not get the money back - the problem is word will get out very quickly and you'll

have vultures circling you like your a stumbling half dead carcass in the desert. 

When you first show up you'll be studied and tested by the scammers, let the tests

come back negative.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I reckon you are paranoid Buddy. I am surprised you ever go out at all!

I lent a Farang 100.000 and a Thai 20,000 baht, got paid back with interest.

Lighten up not everyone out there is a scammer