Any Data On Crimes Against Farangs?

[Robroy]

Since I arrived in Thailand 7 years ago, there have been regular reports of crimes against farangs not being seriously investigated. These include murders by Thai wives.

How representative are these stories of the whole picture?

Is there any data on these crimes, & especially on clear-up rates by police & conviction rates by courts?

In one mid-2000s crime I remember - the rape & murder of a British girl on the beach at Koh Samui by fishermen - the perps were arrested. Then-PM Thaksin called for the death penalty. But I never saw follow-up stories on trials, convictions and jail sentences. What happened here & in other similar cases?

I guess I'm trying to establish whether the media & personal reports I have heard/seen represent the true picture, or are a case of the anomalies getting all the publicity. For all I know, for every uninvestigated murder there are 30 in which the perps are brought to justice - an event which is probably less newsworthy. Anyone have some facts on this?

[saintofsilence]

Good luck in finding this info but I don't think the media are encouraged to do follow ups on crimes against falang.

[ableguy]

The perps in this case were found guilty and immediatly put to death I believe at Thaksins insistance, just another of his crazy acrions. The whole case stank. As for myself I had an explosive device tossed onto my bedroom balcony second floor, it totally blew out the windows sliding doors and the frame also shredded my bed, this was in Bangkok. Long story I know who did it, Lucky for me I was out of town when it happned but the perps did not know that,

I should add I have never done anything illegal here and am just a regular retiree ti was done by a mates wifes boyfriend ? Police did absolutly nothing and would not answer anything on the phone, I was later told they did nothing because they cannot eaen money solving crimes and 20,000 baht from me would have seen the perps in Jail, figure it out for yourself/

[slapout]

When you have a well known police official killed, a suspect is fingered and arrest warrant issued, suspect is also suspected in 100 +_ other murders over the past decade or so, suspect is found within a week, Suspect is cleared of this murder due to alibi, but has pleaded guilty to other murders, for which he had been released on bail and absconded. Follow up just on this individual would require a special edition of the newspaper, with next to zero data as there does not apply that any of the cases have come to a final conclusion.

[Beetlejuice]

The perps in this case were found guilty and immediatly put to death I believe at Thaksins insistance, just another of his crazy acrions. The whole case stank. As for myself I had an explosive device tossed onto my bedroom balcony second floor, it totally blew out the windows sliding doors and the frame also shredded my bed, this was in Bangkok. Long story I know who did it, Lucky for me I was out of town when it happned but the perps did not know that,

I should add I have never done anything illegal here and am just a regular retiree ti was done by a mates wifes boyfriend ? Police did absolutly nothing and would not answer anything on the phone, I was later told they did nothing because they cannot eaen money solving crimes and 20,000 baht from me would have seen the perps in Jail, figure it out for yourself/

This is almost right but the facts here are becoming a wee bit distorted. In actuality the police in Thailand are insufficiently financed, underfunded by the government and do not have the resources to proficiently investigate crimes.

If an investigation becomes straight forward, such as perp confesses, gives himself up, tip off, criminal caught on the scene or clues lead directly to the culprit and he/she is easily apprehended, then action will be taken.

But in many cases that involve complicated expensive investigations, the investigations can run out of steam because most often they do not have the technical training, and the money is not there for it to proceed.

The facilities on hand to the police here are minuscule compared to what's available to the police forces in first world countries.

As a rule the Thai police do a fine job considering their situation, which is not as straightforward as many of the public believe.

Edited April 30, 2011 by Beetlejuice

[zzaa09]

Good luck in finding this info but I don't think the media are encouraged to do follow ups on crimes against falang.

They couldn't be bothered, as Farang doesn't count for much and has little value.

[Beetlejuice]

Good luck in finding this info but I don't think the media are encouraged to do follow ups on crimes against falang.

They couldn't be bothered, as Farang doesn't count for much and has little value.

Some facts to keep in mind:

This is Thailand.

Do not become involved in anything shady or with the wrong group of people. . Life is cheap here.

Law enforcement is underfunded and low on crime solving resources.

Police here do not have technical training.

If you want some sort of justice, palms have to be greased otherwise don`t expect too much. In other words victims of crime in many cases have to subsidised their own investigation and give incentives for the police to give a case, time, effort and priority.

This goes for foreigners and Thais alike.

Edited April 30, 2011 by Beetlejuice

[carmine]

The perps in this case were found guilty and immediatly put to death I believe at Thaksins insistance, just another of his crazy acrions. The whole case stank. As for myself I had an explosive device tossed onto my bedroom balcony second floor, it totally blew out the windows sliding doors and the frame also shredded my bed, this was in Bangkok. Long story I know who did it, Lucky for me I was out of town when it happned but the perps did not know that,

I should add I have never done anything illegal here and am just a regular retiree ti was done by a mates wifes boyfriend ? Police did absolutly nothing and would not answer anything on the phone, I was later told they did nothing because they cannot eaen money solving crimes and 20,000 baht from me would have seen the perps in Jail, figure it out for yourself/

This is almost right but the facts here are becoming a wee bit distorted. In actuality the police in Thailand are insufficiently financed, underfunded by the government and do not have the resources to proficiently investigate crimes.

If an investigation becomes straight forward, such as perp confesses, gives himself up, tip off, criminal caught on the scene or clues lead directly to the culprit and he/she is easily apprehended, then action will be taken.

But in many cases that involve complicated expensive investigations, the investigations can run out of steam because most often they do not have the technical training, and the money is not there for it to proceed.

The facilities on hand to the police here are minuscule compared to what's available to the police forces in first world countries.

As a rule the Thai police do a fine job considering their situation, which is not as straightforward as many of the public believe.

This is a very good post although i think you've gone a little too far in describing them as doing a fine job even under their difficult circumstances. . Saying that i am talking from a Samui perspective. As to the rest of your post i think you've hit the nail on the head. If indeed they were financed/funded and given greater rsource i'm sure they would do a much better job.