Welcome to Bangkok, the capital of forgery

"Anything that can be made by man is being copied"

BANGKOK: -- The fringes of Bangkok's Little Arabia district offer more than coffee shops, shoe wholesalers and exotic cuisine.

The alleys where Middle Eastern families stroll with their womenfolk veiled are the hub of the world's fake passport trade, the authorities say. The most expensive items are genuine passports stolen and flown in from around the world, as well as those sold locally by their owners and customised for new users.

The alterations can be invisible to the naked eye, a western expert said.

Prices vary by nationality, length of validity and the visas contained in the document, as well as quality.

Southern European passports fetch about £900, said Col Chote Kuldiloke, the police officer in charge of fake passport investigations in Bangkok. The most sought-after - British, American and Australian passports - can fetch almost £2,000, he said.

They are popular because many of their would-be users speak English, he said. "If you have a French passport you have to speak French, right?"

This month an Algerian-born Briton, Mahieddine Daikh, was stopped at Bangkok airport on his way to Glasgow, via Amsterdam, allegedly with 138 fake passports in his hand luggage and another 314 in his checked-in backpack. It was one of the biggest such seizures ever.

The Spanish, French, Portuguese and Belgian documents, all false, were medium quality - good enough to open bank accounts but not to travel. They would sell for about £150 in the Thai capital.

Fake passports are linked with terrorism and money-laundering, although illegal immigration is the biggest driver of demand. The four countries whose papers Daikh carried are the most popular for fakers, according to Anthony Davis, a Bangkok-based security analyst with Jane's Information Group.

Their older versions have less sophisticated security features than northern European documents, and their likely users are ethnically similar, he said. "If you come from the Middle East and have a Spanish passport, you don't stand out as much as if you have a Norwegian one."

Fake passports are only one aspect of a huge international counterfeiting trade. Bangkok's position at the centre of the market is the result of good transport links and skilled craftsmen, according to Edward Kelly, a partner in the intellectual property division of Tilleke and Gibbins, the city's oldest law firm.

"Thais have a historically recognised ability to do handiwork," he said. "They are very skilled labour. Until recently the labour has been relatively cheap, and crime syndicates take advantage of what Thailand has to offer."

He specialises in commercial anti-counterfeiting work, and showed off two apparently identical Honda engines.

Only one was genuine. The other was a Chinese-made copy selling for about half the price of the real thing to buyers who get a low-quality product while Honda loses sales. "Anything that can be made by man is being copied," Mr Kelly said.

--The Telegraph UK 2005-08-26

BANGKOK: -- The fringes of Bangkok's Little Arabia district offer more than coffee shops, shoe wholesalers and exotic cuisine.

The alleys where Middle Eastern families stroll with their womenfolk veiled are the hub of the world's fake passport trade, the authorities say.

Another hub that the Thai government is none-too-keen to promote.

Nice to see a report like this get out so that people who live here can be aware of what is going on here.

Based on posts on other counterfeiting threads, it's become apparent that many posters are unaware of this long-standing tradition...

and yes, ovenman..... yet another hub..

I thought Bangkok is only SEX Capital of the world ?.

I thought Bangkok is only SEX Capital of the world ?. 

One learns something new each and every day on ThaiVisa.com.

Time for a Crackdown.

I thought Bangkok is only SEX Capital of the world ?. 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Bangkok (and TH) have many things than you think..we have tradition ,culture,nice place to visit...etc

well for SEX , i think every place in this world has ..dont you think so?

and about ATTITUDE methinks it depends on who look at and look for..

nice people can see the good stuff in BKK (and TH)

sex-mania ofcourse ,just see it as "SEX Capital"

well..for now i know what's the group that you stand for ....

Bambi

Edited August 26, 200520 yr by BambinA

I thought Bangkok is only SEX Capital of the world ?. 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Thailand is the uncontested SEX Capital for sure. 20% of the Thai GDP is selling sex!

It is good to know Thais have some other "skills." For pirated goods, China has to be the #1 COPY capital.

Time for a Crackdown.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Maybe they'll start off with a clampdown and see how that goes first.

jb

I thought Bangkok is only SEX Capital of the world ?. 

Looking to the number of katoeys it's definately the capital of counterfeit sex.

Time for a Crackdown.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Maybe they'll start off with a clampdown and see how that goes first.

jb

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Chai leo ~

Seems like time for a

clamped down katoey counterfeit crackdown

TIT

dseawarrior

Katoey:

Look at me, Look at me.

I'm a man and I cut of my dick.

Look at me.

fags who have gone insane.

Katoey:

Look at me, Look at me.

I'm a man and I cut of my dick.

Look at me.

fags who have gone insane.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Why don't you do some research before making puerile remarks!

With the quality of laser printers now its much easier for forgers.

However, whilst imitation is flattery, it does not always work....just look at those flops who have tried to copy, say Thai visa dot com.

However, whilst imitation is flattery, it does not always work....just look at those flops who have tried to copy, say Thai visa dot com.