British Teacher In A Coma After Brutal Assault In Pattaya

[Keesters]

This town has got to have the worst Thai and Farang people of anywhere in Thailand.

Yes I did live there.

Yes I was assaulted there.

It is an absolute cesspool of humanity.

Just look around.

Doc

So a bit of the cesspool is now elsewhere.....I'm sure the citizens of Pattaya are happy with that...I know I am....

[craigt3365]

OK. Enough Pattaya bashing. Back to the topic. Please....

[23962323]

OK. Enough Pattaya bashing. Back to the topic. Please....

Thanks Craig

[KeyserSoze01]

It would appear yet another case of a foreigner in Thailand with no health insurance. Makes my blood boil, and this guy is a teacher? Should know better.

I hope he has generous friends, and wealthy parents. All completely avoidable with a decent policy.

And yet again another clear demonstration to those clowns who say they can just get on a plane if they get sick. Can't get on a plane if you are in ICU in a coma.

That said, I hope he recovers for the sake of his family as much as himself.

Too bad you can't read. You might actually learn something.

[23962323]

It would appear yet another case of a foreigner in Thailand with no health insurance. Makes my blood boil, and this guy is a teacher? Should know better.

I hope he has generous friends, and wealthy parents. All completely avoidable with a decent policy.

And yet again another clear demonstration to those clowns who say they can just get on a plane if they get sick. Can't get on a plane if you are in ICU in a coma.

That said, I hope he recovers for the sake of his family as much as himself.

Too bad you can't read. You might actually learn something.

Christ All Mighty......the mod has stated stick to the subject...and off it wanders again

[23962323]

Why keep talking about whether patts is safe or not? That is irrelivent with this story as this is clearly not an unprovoked attack, no chance.

Some idiots just like to bash pattaya at every opp they get.

Agree with this,why this thread had to wander off course is nonsensical.

Middle of nowhere,middle on the night and he gets his brains bashed in,( road rage? don't make me laugh) not only that but what appears a massive cover up, no witnesses but police suspect another westerner,questions of what connection this guy has to any institution,that could cause any embarrassment,but not only a connection,but what went on in any particular institution that went to the root of this incident

Right that's how I see it...just me,now someone please put something up ABOUT THE SUBJECT MATTER and not about men from Mars or other bullshit

[marstons]

Thusday night pool league Nong prue area well that would suggest it would be a league game, may have been but it is league game that night. as a non pool player i avoid a bar when its a pool game. Its taken far to seriously and i have seen serious arguments over a game that can get quite heated. As a non player i was on the way back from the loo not bothering the table and some old boy came and pushed me in the chest and said no walking when shots being played. To say i was angry was putting it midly, i can only assume but should the police find it was a pool league game start by checking who he was palying against. If anybody was att the game was there a dispute with the victem and anybody else.

As for the insurance if the school or any other employer are not giving enough, simpley top it up, i assume a seperaste policy can be purchased, a must have service especially for a family man.

[Rimmer]

Off topic post about moderation has been removed, I suggest you re read the rules that you agreed to when you signed up to Thai Visa and in particular rule number 21..

[LucidLucifer]

As for the insurance if the school or any other employer are not giving enough, simpley top it up, i assume a seperaste policy can be purchased, a must have service especially for a family man.

I can't help feeling the school should be providing enough cover without the need to top up. It's already been pointed out, by me and another poster, that this guy wasn't a TEFL teacher working for a penny-pinching language school. He was a western certified teacher working for an international school that would like to think it is one of the better schools in Thailand.

It seems in this case they just pays lip service to the fact they provide health insurance. They charge extremely high fees for students to learn there, surely for them to pay a small amount more to provide decent insurance for their employees is not too much to ask? I think this reflects very badly on them as an organisation.

[LucidLucifer]

My apologies, looks like i've quoted the wrong person. I'll go and edit if I still can.

Done........

Edited May 28, 2012 by LucidLucifer

[janderton]

is my opinion pattaya press considered the case as hot potato, anyway you handle it can cause burns... better don't touch it at all

[LucidLucifer]

is my opinion pattaya press considered the case as hot potato, anyway you handle it can cause burns... better don't touch it at all

Please explain more. If you have some light based on hard facts to shed on the subject do so, otherwise it is pure speculation and slanderous to the poor guy that is laid in hospital in a coma.

[Wavefloater]

First of all, I certainly feel bad for the victim and offer the best of luck for him and his family.

This thread has certainly opened up a few ‘cans of worms’.

It’s not surprising that there are many comments about the safety of Pattaya. I’m sure it’s true that a good number of them can be completely discounted as the posters have never lived there and may criticize the place at any opportunity without really knowing the situation. Perhaps they visited before and had some problems. Others have rationally stated that all large tourist cities draw a number of unsavory characters, and Pattaya is no exception. I think that some foreigners stand out as vulnerable patsies and are fairly easy prey for the criminal element. It’s quickly apparent that they don’t know the lay of the land and are likely naive to the dangers around them. (Is this particularly true of the Russians, or is just a matter of their presence in large numbers making it appear that way?) Either way, people have a responsibility to themselves to get information before leaving to visit (or live in) a distant and exotic destination. This is something that a surprisingly small number of people seem to do. So, my opinion would be that Pattaya can be dangerous if you don’t take a bit a time to research before arriving and ask other local foreigners about where not to go and what not to do once you get there.

Health care with inflated hospital bills seem to be another hot issue. My question is this: For those of us who work here and are under the Thai Social Security plan, would it help in a dire situation like the one the victim has experienced? In other words, could we opt to be treated at a place like Queen Sirikit Hospital and be covered under social security? Queen Sirikit is the closest hospital to my home and I’ve used it a couple of times. I’ve never had an issue with the treatment I’ve received there – only with the long waiting time. However, I’ve received some scary and dangerous treatment from places like BPH and PIH. I feel that these high-profile hospitals that cater to westerners put too much priority on hiring pretty nurses and creating a glitzy appearance rather than hiring the best medical staff they can. So, can I get treated at a Thai government hospital in a serious situation if that’s my wish?

Finally, I’m a bit surprised that few have raised any questions about the speculation that the victim was attacked by another westerner. Does anybody know where that comment came from? Is it just a matter of the Thai police and media defending the Thai population by pointing the finger at a westerner without any solid evidence, or is there something substantial to back it up?

[edwinclapham]

i can only shake my head! some of you people are really disgusting. there's a poor chap in a coma, double poor because he has no health insurance, and you discuss whether he was drunk, asked for it, deserved it, was disguised as woman...

Aint that the truth!

[yesdavy]

Seen fights/violence in most every major city in Thailand. One thing in common involved was alcohol. Funny thing with some legless Thai(s) you slight them in this state they seriously want to harm you.

In Summary Pattaya isn't any different than anywhere in Thailand.

It's because being on alchohol is a justifiable excuse here for losing face and self control and those that do are socially, if not legally, exonerated.

[LucidLucifer]

Please explain more. If you have some light based on hard facts to shed on the subject do so, otherwise it is pure speculation and slanderous to the poor guy that is laid in hospital in a coma.

LucidLucifer, ask yourself this: why pattaya press (in english) editors do not bother to write a word about a briton victim of brutal assault in pattaya?

if you don't get it read the small line-> they're well aware of the out of work hobby, that's why none of them published an headline "british teacher in a coma after brutal assault in pattaya",

Excuse me, but when has anything like that ever stopped a newspaper editor publishing a story?

If it's news, and it sells, it gets published. In fact, it doesn't really need to be news, it just needs to sell.

I asked you earlier if you are insinuating that Regents has somehow pressured the papers to keep quiet? Now that is a possibility, given for example, advertising revenues they potentially give the papers. If that is the case, they could quite as easily ask the papers to publish with a very favourable editorial slant.

Other than that, I see absolutely no reason why they would keep quiet, unless I am missing something really obvious. Please tell. Maybe I am being a bit thick today, if I am, I apologise now.

[janderton]

i can only shake my head! some of you people are really disgusting. there's a poor chap in a coma, double poor because he has no health insurance, and you discuss whether he was drunk, asked for it, deserved it, was disguised as woman...

Aint that the truth!

Naam, it all comes because of the opinions about pattaya is safe/pattaya is dangerous

depends on where you go, when you go, how you behave, what you wear, what you speak

the soi i live in can be very safe at daytime if i walk in slippers and u-shirt, mouth shut:

can turn very dangerous nightime if i'd wear gold necklace, or yelling at people

pretend all the thinghs i mentioned above aren't important to save people's ass, stating would been better not to discuss them, this is disgusting to me

@LucidLucifer: no, i don't think regent school pressured the papers, to me is a self imposed censorship, they know all but, of course (and fortunately) there is no photo of him dressed as woman, so the article would have been only based on rumors, not enough to built a scandal article, but enough to destroy the "good teacher" article...

Edited May 28, 2012 by janderton

[Mobi]

Yes, 100,000 baht a day in hospital charges seems very high.

I guess he's on a life support machine, but the charge is well over the top. My wife was recently hospitalised and spent a week in a private room / intensive care in a hospital in Singapore for 140,000 baht.

I would guess it depends on surgery charges if any....my 3 days in Samitivej Sri Racha cost 450,000 including a stent procedure.....I'm lead to believe that BPH would have charged me over 600,000......

Somebody who knows told me over the weekend that ICU at BPH is 30,000 Baht per day - which sounds about right. That's long way from 100,000 Baht quoted in the press, but I guess there could be some extras, although 70K of extras per day seems unlikely. Maybe there is confusion with other charges like surgery etc.

More likely the press got the figure wrong - happens all the time here.

[Mobi]

Press censorship, voluntary or other wise, usually arises in this town when 'influential figures' are involved in the story.

This could mean 'business men' with good 'connections', or some kind of involvement by members of our esteemed constabulary, or combination of the two.

Whatever the reason, it is mighty strange that this story has not been taken up by at least one of the local rags and there is undoubtedly powerful influence at play.

Further speculation is useless without hard facts.

[rgs2001uk]

i can only shake my head! some of you people are really disgusting. there's a poor chap in a coma, double poor because he has no health insurance, and you discuss whether he was drunk, asked for it, deserved it, was disguised as woman...

One thing I have learned over the years, random acts of violence are a rare occurrence.

Usually if you are the victim of violence, you know who attacked you (or paid for you to be attacked) and the reason for the attack.

[23962323]

Press censorship, voluntary or other wise, usually arises in this town when 'influential figures' are involved in the story.

This could mean 'business men' with good 'connections', or some kind of involvement by members of our esteemed constabulary, or combination of the two.

Whatever the reason, it is mighty strange that this story has not been taken up by at least one of the local rags and there is undoubtedly powerful influence at play.

Further speculation is useless without hard facts.

Quite right, and who is shaking heads at anyone? it has nothing to do what he was or what he was doing,it was the cover up,nothing of this story was leaked for about one week,usually within a couple of hours something would be published of a story such as this Now i would say if someone ,or some organisation goes to such lengths there is something to hide.

Think the perpetrator to all this could be in for a financial thrashing also

Edited May 28, 2012 by Rimmer

[Rimmer]

A number of unfounded libelous posts have been removed also quoted replies. I would also caution you that relatives might be reading this topic so please have some respect,

[smedly]

I think we can all agree that Pattaya is no more unsafe than dodgy parts of big western cities, and less safe than other cities in Thailand.

Getting back to the subject now, I'd like to say that this attack of the teacher seems very mysterious to say the least.

No other information than:

- he got out of the car for unknown reasons

- was beaten using a metal bar

- the perp is supposedly a westerner

all this remains very very mysterious

I hope the victim recovers

my guess would be that they have a suspect that has already been questioned and has denied everything, without evidence or witness's they are most likely waiting for him to waken and identify the perp

[smedly]

As for pattaya being dangerous, i'd say anywhere that has an obvious prolific drug and gun problem (growing by the day) then with that comes crime, you just need to read the news every day and see the drug taking - drug dealing - guns crimes are all on the increase, jesus just recently they caught some drug dealing thais with an assault rifle

I hope this guy recovers and is able to identify the assailant

[morrobay]

As for pattaya being dangerous, i'd say anywhere that has an obvious prolific drug and gun problem (growing by the day) then with that comes crime, you just need to read the news every day and see the drug taking - drug dealing - guns crimes are all on the increase, jesus just recently they caught some drug dealing thais with an assault rifle

I hope this guy recovers and is able to identify the assailant

Good observations. Just last week at a drug checkpoint on Soi Kophai, 60% were positive for amphetamine.

Its not a coincidence that these major crime increases in the last several years corresponds with the major increase in the Thai population

in Pattaya. Both residents and visitors. As evidenced by the jammed up roads everyday and the graffetti on the stonework along the beach.

[Keesters]

Just last week at a drug checkpoint on Soi Kophai, 60% were positive for amphetamine.

Could you please provide your source for this figure.

[LennyW]

Just saw this on a Facebook page...... "Looks like they have arrested an Aussie soldier who was on leave for this crime. Apparently he was fighting with his missus and old mate has stopped to help. So the soldier belted him. Not nice and not good PR for Aussies or their Soldiers."

and this....... "Mate I heard it on the ABC last night. I wasnt critising my fellow Aussies at all. I was just saying that this bloke and blokes like him give us all a bad name."

Can't find anything in the Pattaya media regards this though??

[highchol]

True, the Regents school does not cover their teachers with proper medical insurance. You would think the high amount tuition these private schools charge, (Regents, St.Andrews, Garden, and ISE) , they could afford to offer their Western, certified, overseas teachers adequate medical care. After all, these are not retired farangs teaching English, but qualified, licensed, experienced teachers who teach specific subjects to the students attending these international schools. Let's hope this literature teacher at Regents pulls through.

the students medical cover is pretty basic too, much easier to get a drink out of scotsman than for the insurers to pay up.

hope the teacher manages to pull through.

Edited May 30, 2012 by highchol

[morrobay]

Just last week at a drug checkpoint on Soi Kophai, 60% were positive for amphetamine.

Could you please provide your source for this figure.

May 11 Pattaya One (news)

google : District officers catch 60 suspected drug users in South Pattaya.

note: they report checking about 100

Edited May 30, 2012 by morrobay

[Rimmer]

Please stay on the topic thank you.