Ambush Brit Fights For Life In Hua Hin

[midas]

This story involves someone who did not pay.

But I witnessed at first hand what happens when someone paid a Pattaya real estate developer upfront

but then received seriously shoddy work and then tried to sue the developer to recover the money.

My neighbour asked me to accompany him to the court just for some moral support for one of the numerous court appearances he was required

to make which just seemed to go on and on. I have to say he had been incredibly methodical with his paperwork so

he was able to provide accurate times and dates of meetings with the developers,what was said and he had all supporting

paperwork. It could be very hard for anyone to say he had anything other than a watertight case.

But I was knocked sideways when on the day I accompanied him the judge called the lawyers for both parties

together with my neighbor ( as well is myself and his Thai wife) into a small annex next to the main court room.

The defendant ( the developers ) were not there themselves in person-only their lawyers.

The judge then spoke principally to my neighbours lawyers who later told us in English what he had said.

He advised my neighbour to settle the matter because the developers were known to be violent if they were angry!

This is the judge mind you.

That moment will remain on my mind forever and as far as I'm concerned there is not one ounce of Justice for the

farang in Thailand in these disputes with developers.

[bigbamboo]

Puzzled as to why a carpenter would hire a Thai do do carpentry work in his own home? Why did he wait till the work was complete before raising the issue - shoddy work to the trained eye is well visible before work is complete. Seems a lot more to this stpry than is being reported.

The old saying still rings true....'if you want something doing properly do it yourself', unless you don't have the ability in which case another saying rings equally true.... 'you get what you pay for'. If you hire Thai workers then accept that the work may not be up to Western standards but then again neither are the prices they charge. It's a compromise, that's part of life when you live here. Accept it, be fair, and in my experience everything can be worked out.

Edited February 1, 2012 by bigbamboo

[NCFC]

This Brit family seem an unusual bunch IMO. Firstly, the guy is a kitchen fitter and yet can afford a 400k+ home in Thailand and send his kid to private school. Well, he must have put in some amazingly long shifts to become so wealthy in a manual labour occupation. OK, maybe it is doable, but then we learn that his brother is in Thailand and working as a builder. So do they have a registered company here and are they in possession of work permits? I think these are some issues that Mr. Drummond should be investigating because lifting up some stones may lead to a bigger story than just a 400 pound disputed bill.

And another unusual aspect is that there is no Thai involved on the Brit family's side. So the parents come to Thailand to retire is plausible, but then the two sons follow and looks like they get engaged in the building business. But most people doing this have a Thai wife or girlfriend or business partner who can at the very least guide them through some of the cultural pitfalls of doing business here. Drummond doesn't mention anybody, so are we to assume this is an extended family that just decided to up sticks and settle in Thailand for the beaches and balmy weather.

In my opinion there's a whole lot of unanswered questions, though of course one feels sorry for the family and especially the son who may lose a father through these tragic events.

[andrew55]

Why should the police bother, use their time and resources to seek revenge on behalf of people like these?

I wonder why you would choose the word 'revenge' rather than the more appropriate word 'justice'.

The police should bother because that's what they're there for.

Yes?

[IAMHERE]

Excellent article from AD, very important in letting people know the pitfalls and potential consequences of crossing the wrong type of people in Thailand,

The problem is: everyone in Thailand seems to by this type of person.

[joseph49]

Sadly Hua Hin is no longer the place to consider far too many murders there now as with all Thai towns that grow with foreigners the crime follows..anyone who puts almost half a million pounds into a house here must be delusional or just crazy

Hope this story turns out positive but sadly it looks like it wont; like many I would be surprised if they leave with any of the 430,000 GBP

Thailand is no game and it gets very serious if you cant handle it

Sadly Hua Hin is no longer the place to consider far too many murders there now as with all Thai towns that grow with foreigners the crime follows..anyone who puts almost half a million pounds into a house here must be delusional or just crazy

Hope this story turns out positive but sadly it looks like it wont; like many I would be surprised if they leave with any of the 430,000 GBP

Thailand is no game and it gets very serious if you cant handle it

just cancelled trip to Thailand.....

[SabaiBKK]

March 2 2012

strange date on the article itself...

if you read the article thoroughly, as I did, it it is clear that drummond had one too many when writing it ... its written awfully, with mixing up in names and basic grammar mistakes .... and english is not my mother tongue. first i thought it was written by a thai from TAN and then realized it was drummond.

[Beetlejuice]

The more I read about Thailand the more it looks like a lawless cesspit.

When I went to Phuket over ten years ago for my honeymoon I thought it would be the perfect place to retire to, and we visited several times a year.

Three years ago when the tuk tuk mafia took control of the transport situation, and foreigners seemed to have no rights whatoever, we havnt been back, and and I doubt we ever will. There simply seems to be no place that could be considered safe anymore, Chaing Mai, Hua Hin, Phuket etc.

We live in Chiang Mai for 2 years and we still alive and very happy :-)

I have lived on Koh Samui for seven years and even built six houses and bought two more, then turned them over to "my Thai her indoors". She (and her Family) think I am the best thing since sliced bread, despite me being a grumpy old Brit Git. Two years ago she said should we expand out her business, to which I said yep, but what is your game plan. She said I will get a job and we will save the money from that for 5 years and then we can develop it further. I also know of many Foreigners living and working on Koh Samui who are more than happy with their lot and many have Thai Families and Friends whom they value a great deal. My point - there are hundreds, if not thousands of lovely Thai people, includng those who are married to Foreigners, who are not representative of the 0.01% mafia. Just wanted to bring a positive view to balance the many negative views that have been expressed on the forum. I would also say that I am extremely sorry for those who have been victims of violence, but there again, I do not know the full story behind each case.

Sounds great, but I would have to challenge your methods of purchasing these properties and whether or not these purchases of land and real estate fall under the legalities under Thai law?

Many Thais take exception to foreigners muscling in on their industries, such as the building trade for example and dealings in real estate, which contravenes Thai law.

It`s all fine until it all goes pear shaped then the farang owners complain that the Thai authorities are unhelpful and no one what’s to know. Then I would ask, well, what do they expect?

Any businesses or purchases made by farangs by not following the correct procedures strictly as prescribed by Thai law have virtually no statutory rights if they become cheated, assaulted or even murdered.

My point is that; good luck to you, but if the worst happens you will be on your own and whatever dealing farangs get involved with here in Thailand is at their own risk and discretion.

[Beetlejuice]

This Brit family seem an unusual bunch IMO. Firstly, the guy is a kitchen fitter and yet can afford a 400k+ home in Thailand and send his kid to private school. Well, he must have put in some amazingly long shifts to become so wealthy in a manual labour occupation. OK, maybe it is doable, but then we learn that his brother is in Thailand and working as a builder. So do they have a registered company here and are they in possession of work permits? I think these are some issues that Mr. Drummond should be investigating because lifting up some stones may lead to a bigger story than just a 400 pound disputed bill.

And another unusual aspect is that there is no Thai involved on the Brit family's side. So the parents come to Thailand to retire is plausible, but then the two sons follow and looks like they get engaged in the building business. But most people doing this have a Thai wife or girlfriend or business partner who can at the very least guide them through some of the cultural pitfalls of doing business here. Drummond doesn't mention anybody, so are we to assume this is an extended family that just decided to up sticks and settle in Thailand for the beaches and balmy weather.

In my opinion there's a whole lot of unanswered questions, though of course one feels sorry for the family and especially the son who may lose a father through these tragic events.

Exactly.

You have explained this much better than I could.

[elektrified]

What a horrible thing to happen. My heart goes out to this man and the family.

How foolish they were to flaunt 1/2 million GBP in this country. They were even more foolish not to pay the bill. 400 Pounds? This terrible thing would not have happened had they paid the bill.

[twix38]

Agree with sabaiBKK - Drummond's reports are often poorly constructed and full of spelling, grammer and factual errors. It is sometimes like reading a poorly written Sunday Sport article with spelling errors - As well as the few mistakes already pointed out, the video clip states " Thorpe Bay in Kent" it is in Essex!!

The problem is that time and time again we find we cannot rely on Drummond's story as being completely correct and the numerous issues relating to presentation, language and grammar is really quite a key indicator of the general standard employed. I appreciate the effort of publishing the news and bringing it to our attention, but do we have a reporter out there who can write clear, well constructed, spell-checked and factually correct news stories.

finally I read this comment from a poster"...not wearing a helmet is both against the law and stupid - so even if he doesn't pull through (and I really hope he does) the police will quite probably consider his death as a self inflicted accident."

The police may charge him for not wearing his helmet, but to describe being attacked and clubbed as self inflicted!! well, <deleted>. LMAO

Edited February 1, 2012 by twix38

[TheWalkingMan]

Any businesses or purchases made by farangs by not following the correct procedures strictly as prescribed by Thai law have virtually no statutory rights if they become cheated, assaulted or even murdered.

A little harsh, especially the murder quote.

What about the ones who have followed the rules to the letter and their business is going along, increasing its market share and making money. The comes along some high powered individual who says, I like this business, you have 5 days to leave town or we can make arrangements for your body to be flown home. Who you gonna call? You would call the airlines to make a booking or you would call around looking for a place to stay far from where the business you built.

[Beetlejuice]

Any businesses or purchases made by farangs by not following the correct procedures strictly as prescribed by Thai law have virtually no statutory rights if they become cheated, assaulted or even murdered.

A little harsh, especially the murder quote.

What about the ones who have followed the rules to the letter and their business is going along, increasing its market share and making money. The comes along some high powered individual who says, I like this business, you have 5 days to leave town or we can make arrangements for your body to be flown home. Who you gonna call? You would call the airlines to make a booking or you would call around looking for a place to stay far from where the business you built.

Good point.

So as this is the case, than why bother starting any sorts of business in Thailand and go through all the hassle?

I stand by what I said, they do it at their own risk and descretion.

[sirchai]

God what a shame.I do hope he recovers fully.

But this is Thailand and NOTHING will be done.

Ex-pats beware especially in Hua Hin.

Thailand was once a great place to retire but after 15 months I left.It holds nothing for me.

This is old news and inaccurate. According to Paul's mother Anita, the attack took place on 21 November, not in December.

Of course, and very unfortunately, Paul wasn't wearing a helmet and it was hitting his head on the concrete road as a result of the attack that fractured his skull, not a blow to the head by his assailant who reportedly was armed with a tree branch, not a club per se.

Thailand still is a great place to live. If it's true that he wasn't wearing a helmet and crushed his skull on concrete, it would be a very different story. I'm living here for ten years, able to communicate in their language and I doubt that this could happen to me.

Receiving such a warning should make everybody understand that there's somebody very unhappy. Sad for this guy and his family, hope he'll recover fully.

A friend of mine has made a statement that you'll have to understand Thai soap operas to understand this country. I guess he was right.

If money sharks in this country don't get their money back, they'll break bones first. If that didn't work they'll tell them what will happen next. Some choose to kil themselves before they are doing it. There are many things people shouldn't do. And that's not just here in Thailand.

People in other countries also get killed robbed, raped etc..... So how can you make such a statement after being here for only 15 months?

Some crack heads in the States or other countries would kill for a little stone......

Edited February 1, 2012 by sirchai

[stoneyboy]

Appears to be a whole load of shady goings on involving a whole load of shady characters, both farangs and Thais.

Dubious property companies and dubious dealings, involving farangs of dubious character.

The guy held £400 because he believed the work wasn’t up to standard. These people move to Thailand expecting the same standards as in the West, but for a cheaper rate. They shouldn’t be here in the first place; there is no way they are able to adapt.

Why should the police bother, use their time and resources to seek revenge on behalf of people like these?

I am afraid everyone has the right to be here if they can afford to do so,as to what they choose to do when they get here is for another topic.

I don't know what passport you hold but in the front page of mine it states.

Her Britannic Majesty's Secretary of State Requests and requires in the Name of Her Majesty all those whom it may concern to allow the bearer to pass freely without let or hindrance, and to afford the bearer such assistance and protection as may be necessary.

Therefore one would expect some assistance with a case such as this,to state that the police shouldn't waste their time and resources is downright heartless.

They have as much right to be here as you old cock.

[connda]

This is unfortunate, but it probably was avoidable. Getting into a dust-up with Thais over 20K baht worth of work on a 21M baht home? Hummm...

Break it down from a farang perspective: Hard-working construction worker with a quality work ethic contracts to have home build, but work is not up to his personal standards. Directly tells the Thai workers that their work is inferior in a verbally abusive manner. Under similar circumstance in his home country, he would have done the same thing and then taken the contractor to court.

Break it down from a Thai perspective: Rich, stingy farang verbally insults Thai workers who lose face. General contractor take care to warn farang in a carefully written, explicitly well-worded letter written in excellent English. The rest is history.

Who's at fault: All parties? Only the Thais? Only the farang? It depends on your cultural perspective and what country you are currently in? I'm thinking the latter, imho.

Now, the farang family (and community) probably wants justice, which to farang means litigation -- both criminal and/or civil. But due to the fact they they are non-Thais living in Thailand, well, they are probably not going to get that type of justice*. (*caveat: unless they have enough money to sway the system to their advantage and are willing to spend it).

The Thais involved probably are ok with the current outcome and will do what they can to make the issue disappear. From their perpective, the issue has been settled.

As an expat who has lived here 5 years, my advice to my fellow expats is: If you plan on living in this country, toss your own idealized, cultural values, learn as much Thai culture as possible, and attempt to assimilate. I truly believe that the vast majority of expats that live here eventually learn to blend in and harmonize with the surrounding culture. If you can't do that then live in a gated community and limit you contact to fellow farang. But that sort of defeats the purpose of moving here in the first place.

I feel sorry for Mr. Ayling and his family, and I hope for his eventual recovery, but -- there is an object lesson here for other expats who have chosen to move to this country.

According to the linked article, Mrs. Ayling said, “It’s hard to take this in. It was so senseless. Life is so cheap here yet in the brochures this is described as one of the friendliest places in the world.”

I'm not sure how long the Ayling's lived in Thailand, but I would believe they lived here long enough not to be that "blissfully ignorant" of the Thai culture. But obviously they were.

So the object lesson here is very easy: Stay "blissfully ignorant" of the Thai culture at your own peril. That attitude can get you seriously injured or killed. Blunt? Yeah! But I am a farang, and I will be direct and blunt with fellow farang, especially if I can help someone else from putting themselves in a similar situation.

Edited February 1, 2012 by connda

[misterfloppy]

Does the British Consul have anything to say about this?

[rotary]

Makes a guy wanna be a DIY person.

[Soboringtochooseaname]

So sorry.

But next time think twice, "the equivalent of £400" is a lot here, and you are nothing here but an easy target.

[elektrified]

And another unusual aspect is that there is no Thai involved on the Brit family's side. So the parents come to Thailand to retire is plausible, but then the two sons follow and looks like they get engaged in the building business. But most people doing this have a Thai wife or girlfriend or business partner who can at the very least guide them through some of the cultural pitfalls of doing business here. Drummond doesn't mention anybody, so are we to assume this is an extended family that just decided to up sticks and settle in Thailand for the beaches and balmy weather.

In my opinion there's a whole lot of unanswered questions, though of course one feels sorry for the family and especially the son who may lose a father through these tragic events.

That does not seem at all unusual to me.

There are a lot of foreigners here in Thailand without Thai g/f's, wives, husbands, sister or brother in laws, etc. doing all kinds of business. The ones I have met are usually middle-aged couples doing business with others from their home country. I would go so far as to say that some of them don't really have any Thai friends but only casual acquaintances.

Edit: I might add that some of them speak Thai fluently.

Edited February 1, 2012 by elektrified

[Payboy]

Of course, and very unfortunately, Paul wasn't wearing a helmet and it was hitting his head on the concrete road as a result of the attack that fractured his skull, not a blow to the head by his assailant who reportedly was armed with a tree branch, not a club per se.

So, its not actually murder if you got pushed off a cliff.

First, no oné has died as yet - so no murder as yet.

Second, not wearing a helmet is both against the law and stupid - so even if he doesn't pull through (and I really hope he does) the police will quite probably consider his death as a self inflicted accident.

I know that this particular victim has survived.

But really, have you thought through your logic about police considering his wounds as being self-inflicted?

[connda]

The more I read about Thailand the more it looks like a lawless cesspit.

When I went to Phuket over ten years ago for my honeymoon I thought it would be the perfect place to retire to, and we visited several times a year.

Three years ago when the tuk tuk mafia took control of the transport situation, and foreigners seemed to have no rights whatoever, we havnt been back, and and I doubt we ever will. There simply seems to be no place that could be considered safe anymore, Chaing Mai, Hua Hin, Phuket etc.

Why was Chiang Mai on your list? Not exactly buzzing with mafia tuk tuk drivers up here! Worse you get is a 200 baht uplift on the 20b songtaew fee after midnight when obviously drunk. Can't remember the last time I saw a news report of foreigners being beaten by Thais up here - certainly not, to my memory, in the same context as the Op. Phuket, yes - Pattaya, perhaps (some parts), Bangkok even (again some parts).

These are the stories I don't really inderstand. I can understand, not approve of or accept - but understand, why police avoid mafia and connected crooks, but a couple of thugs beating holiday makers to near death?

Wasn't Chiang Mai the place where 6, 7 or 8 farangs (I forget the exact number) mysteriously died in the same hotel? Put down to coincidence, I seem to remember. Hotel owned by relative of local police chief?

They didn't mysteriously die. They died from exposure to insecticide that was used to fumigate the hotel. No foul play -- just negligence.

[maccaroni man]

interesting article many updates on past events as well. when i read that he was a carpenter that took pride in his work i could only imagine what he was thinking when he saw the cowboys showed up.

[elektrified]

The more I read about Thailand the more it looks like a lawless cesspit.

When I went to Phuket over ten years ago for my honeymoon I thought it would be the perfect place to retire to, and we visited several times a year.

Three years ago when the tuk tuk mafia took control of the transport situation, and foreigners seemed to have no rights whatoever, we havnt been back, and and I doubt we ever will. There simply seems to be no place that could be considered safe anymore, Chaing Mai, Hua Hin, Phuket etc.

Why was Chiang Mai on your list? Not exactly buzzing with mafia tuk tuk drivers up here! Worse you get is a 200 baht uplift on the 20b songtaew fee after midnight when obviously drunk. Can't remember the last time I saw a news report of foreigners being beaten by Thais up here - certainly not, to my memory, in the same context as the Op. Phuket, yes - Pattaya, perhaps (some parts), Bangkok even (again some parts).

These are the stories I don't really inderstand. I can understand, not approve of or accept - but understand, why police avoid mafia and connected crooks, but a couple of thugs beating holiday makers to near death?

Wasn't Chiang Mai the place where 6, 7 or 8 farangs (I forget the exact number) mysteriously died in the same hotel? Put down to coincidence, I seem to remember. Hotel owned by relative of local police chief?

They didn't mysteriously die. They died from exposure to insecticide that was used to fumigate the hotel. No foul play -- just negligence.

Wrong... That is not what happened. That is what the Australian? news organization said happened. Do your research.

[connda]

Excellent article from AD, very important in letting people know the pitfalls and potential consequences of crossing the wrong type of people in Thailand,

The problem is: everyone in Thailand seems to by this type of person.

I'm assuming you never leave Khao San Road. That's just a disturbing and inaccurate comment.

[ronniec]

does anybody know what his condition is now,hopefully getting better

[z12]

what is the point of posting just a piece of a story than forced to redirect to another website ?

We are only allowed to publish parts of articles from this publisher.

Sorry, but after reading the link about the newspaper not allowed to report crimes. How is it ThaiVisa can?

[george]

what is the point of posting just a piece of a story than forced to redirect to another website ?

We are only allowed to publish parts of articles from this publisher.

Sorry, but after reading the link about the newspaper not allowed to report crimes. How is it ThaiVisa can?

Because we don't write our own domestic news, we link to or quote other news sources and discuss the topics. Our legal and moderating team is quite busy sometimes I can assure you

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

They didn't mysteriously die. They died from exposure to insecticide that was used to fumigate the hotel. No foul play -- just negligence.

Wrong... That is not what happened. That is what the Australian? news organization said happened. Do your research.

Actually, re the CM hotel deaths, as I recollect the final report, the findings did pretty much indicate some kind of insecticide/rodenticide exposure. The conclusions/findings were different and differently worded in the cases of several different of the victims. But for those where the final report did identify a clear or suspected cause, that was it.

The Australian TV report talked about a particular chemical used to kill bed bugs that's been banned in some other countries. The final investigation report didn't identify that particular chemical as being involved. Overall, though, the final report wasn't particularly specific or clear in many regards, leaving a lot of unknowns, as probably was to be expected here...

We can all assume some version of what actually happened to those victims... But the Thai authorities weren't about to hand over a document that spelled it all out in sufficient detail that, let's say, would provide evidence for a court case against the VIP family that owned/owns the hotel.

http://www.thaivisa....nesses-update-5

Edited February 1, 2012 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[daddyo1]

My heart goes out to the family and friends of this man who was the victim of a horrible incident. I've had a similar encounter just recently. In which my attacker succumbed to my defensive moves. But as it were I (being Farlang) am, of course it seems, liable for this mans unfortunate demise. Even though this man attacked me (with a 18" hunting knife) out of the blue. Not to mention the 20-40 eye witnesses who have stated to the authorities that I was the "victim" and defended myself. Now I believe I'm involved in another fight for my life. In retrospect it would be prudent of the local authorities the to step up the fight against "thugism". As we (farlangs) are part and parcel of our local communities. Like it or not. We should be afforded the luxury of police and judicial protection the same as our Thai counterparts. Without prejudice. If the authorities can't or won't provide adequate protetion, where does that leave us (the expats)?

Edited February 1, 2012 by daddyo1