Phuket Hotel Ponies Up Bt200.000 To Robbed Aussie Tourists

[webfact]

Phuket hotel ponies up B200k to robbed Aussie tourists

Phuket Gazette

Aussie tourists Jim Nagi and Sharyna Wong, who were reimbursed AUS$7,500 by the Andaman Beach Suites Hotel after they reported their room safe was robbed. Photo: Atchaa Khamlo

PHUKET: -- The management of a Phuket hotel agreed to pay more than 200,000 baht in compensation to an Australian couple who claimed their room safe was robbed of 387,000 baht.

Australian tourist Jim Nagi, 44, said he first noticed cash missing from the safe in his hotel room at the Andaman Beach Suites Hotel in Patong on December 8.

“At first, I thought I lost about 700 Australian dollars from the $A12,000 that was in the safe, but I wasn’t sure so I did not report it to the hotel,” he told the Phuket Gazette.

“Later, on Monday [December 12], I tried to open the safe with the combination code. I tried twice, but I couldn’t open it, so I went down to inform the receptionist, who used the master key to open the safe. That’s when we found that $A7,500 had gone,” he said.

He reported to theft to Patong Police that day, but had heard nothing since, he told the Gazette yesterday.

The couple, who checked in to the hotel on December 4, moved into another room the next day.

The hotel owner agreed to pay the Aussie tourists the $A7,500 after meeting the couple yesterday morning.

Mr Nagi’s partner, Sharyna Wong, 30, said, “We first met the hotel manager on Saturday [December 10], and he implied that we made up the story so we could claim the money back on insurance. I explained to him that if we claimed this on insurance, we would get only $A250 back.

“Besides, we came here for a holiday. We don’t want to spend time making reports to the police and having discussions about this. It’s a waste of our time,” she said.

At yesterday’s meeting, Thuwanan Peanawan, director of rooms at the hotel, told Mr Nagi that the hotel management was "still not comfortable" with the incident and were questioning all staff, including maids and receptionists on duty around the time the money was reported stolen.

“It seems nobody knows anything about this,” he said.

However, one of the hotel receptionists told the Gazette, “Mr Nagi brought people from outside to stay in the room without our permission and we are not sure whether one of them stole his money.”

During the meeting, it was discovered that the hotel CCTV security camera installed on the floor where the couple was staying was “misaligned”.

“The CCTV camera was pointing too high. It could show the elevator doors opening and closing, but we couldn’t even see if any people were inside. Besides, the CCTV camera showed just a part of that floor. We could not see who was using the staircase,” Ms Wong told the Gazette.

As part of the agreement made yesterday, Mr Nagi, who paid for the hotel room in advance as part of a tour package, will pay only half of his room service charges and only half of all other extraordinary expenses added to his bill.

Mr Nagi told the hotel owner that although he was dispirited by the incident, he would be back to stay at the hotel next year. Ms Wong asked for the CCTV camera to be repositioned for better security.

The couple departed Phuket for Australia aboard a 6pm flight yesterday.

Source: http://www.phuketgazette.net/archives/articles/2011/article11752.html

-- Phuket Gazette 2011-12-20

[KarenBravo]

I never use hotel room safes. There is a scam used world-wide that lets hotel workers open your safe if it has numbered buttons.

They first clean all the buttons, touch their finger to the side of their nose and then rub all the buttons with this light "grease".

When the safe is used, they can see which four numbers have been used. With only four numbers, it doesn't take long for them to find the combination using trial and error.

[LivinginKata]

Agreed, I never use hotel safes. Carry my valuables about (passport & tabloid PC) and use ATM when I need a small cash top-up.

[jayceenik]

I never use hotel room safes. There is a scam used world-wide that lets hotel workers open your safe if it has numbered buttons.

They first clean all the buttons, touch their finger to the side of their nose and then rub all the buttons with this light "grease".

When the safe is used, they can see which four numbers have been used. With only four numbers, it doesn't take long for them to find the combination using trial and error.

Yes. It must be an old scam. Long time ago I remember reading in the Pattaya Mail about the nose snot (it was not not light "grease"!) on the buttons played on a Pattaya hotel guest's safe.

They even had a picture of the young robber who looked pretty smug about his brilliant idea. He was an employee of that hotel.

[auserb]

lucky, lucky they got the reinbusement... I didn't get anything, nothing at all....

[laurentbkk]

That's a lot of cash on my opinion .. usually tourists use credit cards for withdraw cash from ATM or pay bills around ..... when I go on holidays I will never have that amount in cash ....too risky ...

[KamnanT]

Why would anyone travel with A$12,000 in cash anyway, in Thailand or in any country? I guess they don't believe in credit or debit cards.

[Suradit69]

Why would anyone travel with A$12,000 in cash anyway, in Thailand or in any country? I guess they don't believe in credit or debit cards.

It's a bit like "tourists" who rather frequently in the past claimed they were walking on Beach Road in Pattaya at 2:00 in the morning and that they were robbed of 4 mobile phones, $10,000 in bearer bonds , two 10 baht gold necklaces, B 250,000 cash, a Faberge egg and a diamond tiara while being attacked by a deranged Khatoey.

Entirely believable.

I suppose this will be the next trend. Tourists claiming their hotel safe was burgled, with grainy newspaper photos showing them pointing out the nose "grease" on the keyboard of their room safe.

Farangs, eh? You gotta love 'em.

Edited December 20, 2011 by Suradit69

[martinhuahin]

Since the ATM's started charging 150 THB for withdrawals, and most western banks add another £4 (200 THB) on top and then a lousy exchange rate. I guess tourists are returning to carrying cash to avoid these charges.

Maybe old fashioned travellers cheques will start to make a come back?

[glenfaux]

Its illegal by Australian law to travel with more than 10,000 aud without declaring it.

sounds fishy to me.

[newermonkey]

I never use hotel room safes. There is a scam used world-wide that lets hotel workers open your safe if it has numbered buttons.

They first clean all the buttons, touch their finger to the side of their nose and then rub all the buttons with this light "grease".

When the safe is used, they can see which four numbers have been used. With only four numbers, it doesn't take long for them to find the combination using trial and error.

You are incorrect... there are 10,000 possible combinations when using a 4 digit code !!!!!!!

[LivinginKata]

I never use hotel room safes. There is a scam used world-wide that lets hotel workers open your safe if it has numbered buttons.

They first clean all the buttons, touch their finger to the side of their nose and then rub all the buttons with this light "grease".

When the safe is used, they can see which four numbers have been used. With only four numbers, it doesn't take long for them to find the combination using trial and error.

You are incorrect... there are 10,000 possible combinations when using a 4 digit code !!!!!!!

Not if you know the 4 numbers, then its factorial 4, or 24 possible combinations.

[Shot]

I never use hotel room safes. There is a scam used world-wide that lets hotel workers open your safe if it has numbered buttons.

They first clean all the buttons, touch their finger to the side of their nose and then rub all the buttons with this light "grease".

When the safe is used, they can see which four numbers have been used. With only four numbers, it doesn't take long for them to find the combination using trial and error.

You are incorrect... there are 10,000 possible combinations when using a 4 digit code !!!!!!!

Not if you know the 4 numbers, then its factorial 4, or 24 possible combinations.

240 if you repeat numbers

Correction, then you would only use 3 numbers......hmmm, I think I just hurt my brain.

Edited December 20, 2011 by LivinginKata

[crazygreg44]

Its illegal by Australian law to travel with more than 10,000 aud without declaring it.

sounds fishy to me.

They were 2 persons, that makes 10K each = 20,000

[frank2611]

I always take $10,000.00 in cash to Thailand. If you think hotel safes are unsafe, what do you think happens with your cards. I left 30000 baht in hotel safe this year and the hotel sent me email. I picked it up on next visit to Bangkok. Never stayed at hotel before. Cape House near Chitlom.

[wprime]

Its illegal by Australian law to travel with more than 10,000 aud without declaring it.

sounds fishy to me.

$10,000 per person, so they wouldn't have needed to declare.

[whybother]

I never use hotel room safes. There is a scam used world-wide that lets hotel workers open your safe if it has numbered buttons.

They first clean all the buttons, touch their finger to the side of their nose and then rub all the buttons with this light "grease".

When the safe is used, they can see which four numbers have been used. With only four numbers, it doesn't take long for them to find the combination using trial and error.

You are incorrect... there are 10,000 possible combinations when using a 4 digit code !!!!!!!

Not if you know the 4 numbers, then its factorial 4, or 24 possible combinations.

All you need to do is touch every number, not just the 4 in your combination.

[whybother]

Its illegal by Australian law to travel with more than 10,000 aud without declaring it.

sounds fishy to me.

Who said it wasn't declared?

[Suradit69]

I never use hotel room safes. There is a scam used world-wide that lets hotel workers open your safe if it has numbered buttons.

They first clean all the buttons, touch their finger to the side of their nose and then rub all the buttons with this light "grease".

When the safe is used, they can see which four numbers have been used. With only four numbers, it doesn't take long for them to find the combination using trial and error.

You are incorrect... there are 10,000 possible combinations when using a 4 digit code !!!!!!!

Not if you know the 4 numbers, then its factorial 4, or 24 possible combinations.

If the 4 greasy numbers were 2,5,6,7, for example and you allowed things like 2-2-2-2 ( which implies the finger hit three additional numbers that were not actually used), then it would by 4X4X4X4 possibilities or 256. If the finger prints were found on 4 separate numbers and none was used twice it would be 4! =4X3X2X1 = 24

[gamini]

Why would anyone travel with A$12,000 in cash anyway, in Thailand or in any country? I guess they don't believe in credit or debit cards.

It's a bit like "tourists" who rather frequently in the past claimed they were walking on Beach Road in Pattaya at 2:00 in the morning and that they were robbed of 4 mobile phones, $10,000 in bearer bonds , two 10 baht gold necklaces, B 250,000 cash, a Faberge egg and a diamond tiara while being attacked by a deranged Khatoey.

Entirely believable.

I suppose this will be the next trend. Tourists claiming their hotel safe was burgled, with grainy newspaper photos showing them pointing out the nose "grease" on the keyboard of their room safe.

Farangs, eh? You gotta love 'em.

The Aussie looked like the sort of person who would scam the hotel. He may have had nothing in the safe!

[Reasonableman]

Its illegal by Australian law to travel with more than 10,000 aud without declaring it.

sounds fishy to me.

It's illegal for an individual to take more than AUD10,000 cash out of Australia without declaring it. It appears this was a couple, so they could take a total of $20k Oz cash between them.

If you declare it, it can be more than $10k, provided you get permission.

If you have the equivalent of > AU$10k in a mix of currencies, with not more than AUD10,000 cash, the rule does not apply. It only applies to Oz dollars cash. Furthermore, if you have access to credit/debit card accounts overseas, the amount of Australian cash you could amass would be even greater.

I agree, it does sound a bit suss, but it is possible and possibly legitimate.

Edited December 20, 2011 by Reasonableman

[Nignoy]

Why would anyone travel with A$12,000 in cash anyway, in Thailand or in any country? I guess they don't believe in credit or debit cards.

When you have been caught out with 10000$australian worth of travellers cheques that nobody will touch or have had your credit card details cloned , then you tend to carry cash in somewhat large amounts, its common knowledge mrs nig and I are disabled a nd we travel 3 to 6months at atime,so we are extra careful, credit cards good, cash better

[chooka]

Why would anyone travel with A$12,000 in cash anyway, in Thailand or in any country? I guess they don't believe in credit or debit cards.

You can only leave aust with 10K AUD on your person but I guess they carried some each.

[chooka]

What is the good of CCTV cameras if they are pointing up high and you can't see anyone moving around? Surely the security personell monitoring them at some stage would have noticed that the cameras were pointing high and would have gone to investigate and adjust them. This seems to be a very common occurence in Thailand, oh we have CCTV but they are pointing at the cieling as we have a gheko problem.

[sausageandmash]

Then surely the best thing to do is wipe your fingerprints off the safe buttons every time you use them. Or just don't use the safe.

I never use hotel room safes. There is a scam used world-wide that lets hotel workers open your safe if it has numbered buttons.

They first clean all the buttons, touch their finger to the side of their nose and then rub all the buttons with this light "grease".

When the safe is used, they can see which four numbers have been used. With only four numbers, it doesn't take long for them to find the combination using trial and error.

Yes. It must be an old scam. Long time ago I remember reading in the Pattaya Mail about the nose snot (it was not not light "grease"!) on the buttons played on a Pattaya hotel guest's safe.

They even had a picture of the young robber who looked pretty smug about his brilliant idea. He was an employee of that hotel.

[sausageandmash]

Only allowed to leave with 10K. Wow, it really IS a convict colony.

Why would anyone travel with A$12,000 in cash anyway, in Thailand or in any country? I guess they don't believe in credit or debit cards.

You can only leave aust with 10K AUD on your person but I guess they carried some each.

[chooka]

Only allowed to leave with 10K. Wow, it really IS a convict colony.

Why would anyone travel with A$12,000 in cash anyway, in Thailand or in any country? I guess they don't believe in credit or debit cards.

You can only leave aust with 10K AUD on your person but I guess they carried some each.

What is it in Thailand, 200K baht? 6,700 AUD and you have to declare it.

[sausageandmash]

Oh ok, it's the Farangs fault for being robbed is it. Wake up and grow up will you. Even if they did scam the hotel, it doesn't even come close to pay-back for all those people scammed by Thais whilst on holiday.

It's a bit like "tourists" who rather frequently in the past claimed they were walking on Beach Road in Pattaya at 2:00 in the morning and that they were robbed of 4 mobile phones, $10,000 in bearer bonds , two 10 baht gold necklaces, B 250,000 cash, a Faberge egg and a diamond tiara while being attacked by a deranged Khatoey.

Entirely believable.

I suppose this will be the next trend. Tourists claiming their hotel safe was burgled, with grainy newspaper photos showing them pointing out the nose "grease" on the keyboard of their room safe.

Farangs, eh? You gotta love 'em.

[thaikahuna]

That's a lot of cash on my opinion .. usually tourists use credit cards for withdraw cash from ATM or pay bills around ..... when I go on holidays I will never have that amount in cash ....too risky ...

Agreed! It's absolutely stupid to have that much cash on hand...especially in Thailand. While a vast majority of the people are honest and hard working, why put the temptation there for them to steal and you to have your holiday ruined....

[chrisinth]

What is the good of CCTV cameras if they are pointing up high and you can't see anyone moving around? Surely the security personell monitoring them at some stage would have noticed that the cameras were pointing high and would have gone to investigate and adjust them. This seems to be a very common occurence in Thailand, oh we have CCTV but they are pointing at the cieling as we have a gheko problem.

The cameras aren't usually monitred and are only used in follow up; this is not preventitive security. Bit naughty not t have them pointing where they should though.

Wonder when the last time they were checked?