I think there is some addition stuff the " blogger " is not telling.

Maybe he has a red shirt on when his stopped. .

I live up issan me....and i dont go any where with out my red shirt me

leaving mae sai with wife, and her parents in the truck was pulled up at a massive vehicle checkpoint run by the army not the police, lovely lads, all laughs and smiles, seems we got "nailed", because the car had udon number plates, and most of the army boys were from udon, father in law knew one of the soldiers uncles, so our check took about 10 minutes longer than other small vehicles.

on the same trip coming down through a more scenic back road through petchabun, i pulled over and stopped, and asked the father in law to drive due to fatigue and wanting to enjoy the sceneary, we did not know there was a police spotter hidden from view (my father in law was later told) , and so when we went about 500 metres and 2 corners further, we were pulled up at police road block, the police were wearing bullet proof vests, and carrying M-16, it resembled a road block nearer border areas than a country back road vehicle check, mia noi money did not seem to be on the agenda.

most people from a military background would have noticed the positioning and spacing of the policemen at the checkpoint, no senior sgt jumping from the bushes.

wife, myself and father in law, were "invited" to sit at a long table, positioned well away from the road block itself, with the officer in charge, licence checks, my passport number recorded, vehicle was searched, suitcases opened, address taken, all of this after he had smiled and saluted the father in law (retired a higher rank than the man running the checkpoint), the key players sat well away from the wife and i, the wife only joining them for filling in the farang details for them.

about 35 minutes of process, off we went, upon discussion it was guns and drugs they were looking for.

thankfully, i had the "key tribe" members with me, and i had not been doing the trip with a farang mate (no thais) as previously planned, as it could have been far more time consuming.

of course i have been pulled over, for licence checks, seat belt checks, "because i am a farang check", but i have never been asked for money.

In the two years since I bought my car I have been waved though police checkpoints many times. In fact, my wife's upcountry relatives said that they were more likely to be pulled over than I was!

I have driven all over Thailand, from Huahin to Chiang Mai to Ratchaburi to Trat & have only been stopped by a policeman once, when I accidentally turned into a bus - only lane.