Any Recourse When Bribes Are Exacted?

[frogmo1]

Please consider these facts. Recently, a friend of mine from Laos (female, age 21) was here visiting. She had a valid Lao passport, Lao exit visa, and Thai 60 day tourist visa. After taking a friend to Don Muang Airport, she returned late at night by taxi. At Din Daeng, the police stopped all taxis and asked the occupants for identification. She had left her Lao passport in Bangkok with her sister, who is married to a Thai and resides in Thailand. Upon being asked for her ID by the police, she produced a fake Thai ID. The police took her into custody and demanded that she pay them 100,000 baht. She called a Thai friend of hers who came to the police station, spoke to the police, after which the police reduced their demand to 50,000 baht, provided that it was paid within an hour. Ultimately, her friend scraped up 35,000 baht, but the police said that that wasn't enough. My friend then spent the night in confinement. The next morning the police decided to release her, keeping the 35,000 baht and her gold necklace worth approximately 5,000 baht. My friend says she never disclosed to the police that she was in Thailand legally (although in fact I have verified that she indeed does hold a valid Lao passport with a valid Thai visa issued by the Thai embassy in Vientiane last week). Under these facts, does she have any recourse against the police or otherwise, or should she just write the experience off as "This is Thailand" and pen 'STUPID' on her forehead and sell enough buffalos on her Savannakhet farm to repay her friend?

[dr_Pat_Pong]

It'll be a lose lose situation I think. Get the felt pen going, and fatten the buffalo's

T i T <_<

[The_Moog]

No right of appeal here.

That fake Thai visa was the problem.

If a receipt for the fine had been received, and you knew a local Chief Policeman, then ...possibly.....but producing forged documentation - oops......chalk it up to experience, although it is an expensive price for experience.

[frogmo1]

Mooq - thanks for the reply.

Contrary to your comment, her Thai visa was valid. It was the Thai ID (which she produced when she realized she had not taken her Lao passport with her) that was fake. Her Lao passport has a valid Thai visa in it. However, I don't think your misstatement of that particular fact would change your advice.

The apparent absence of recourse for bribe-taking by Thai police has always caused me to strictly comply with ALL Thai laws, no matter how much of a pain in the posterior that may be (and having to carry a passport and work permit around all the time is annoying, but I was happy to have these documents when the police checked everyone's IDs one night on a bus I was on enroute to Nong Khai!). I wonder if the bribe-taking culture will ever be checked, especially when the PM has condoned it given that police salaries are low? I don't imagine that receipts are routinely given to frightened 21-year old Lao females, and I don't imagine the cops will pay income tax on the 35,000 they extorted or gift tax on the gold necklace/pendant they stole.

[The_Moog]

No, receipts are not standard-issue for bribes alas!

Notwithstanding the presence of a valid visa, pulling a fake ID was meat for the beast.

When I lived in Indonesia, I carried a photo of me having dinner with the President. That worked wonders when confronted with some gouging prole.

[Axel]

This would be interesting to request a receipt for a bribe.

Btw: You don't need to carry your WP around. It is sufficient to have it readily available at your work place during office hours.

[singa-traz]

This would be interesting to request a receipt for a bribe. 

One of my friend told me about this comment from someone in Power, to the journalists asking him about a corruption case:

"What corruption ? Show me the receipt."

[Khun ?]

Something sounds a bit odd here. Why carry a fake ID and not the valid visa.

Plenty of fake visa stamps around now days. Wrong with a wrong = right ?

I am sure she would of showed up on the computer as having valid visa if it was the case or at least we would think so. Either way carrying fake government documents is not a wise thing to do and why have it in the first place if she had a valid visa. You may want to add working illegal to the charges.

[rabkk]

You may want to add working illegal to the charges.

It's exactly what I thought! This girl is hiding something, she is not a victim!

[Nam Kao]

Handing over fake documents?

She got off light