Criminal Lawyer

[wedders]

(ie one specialising in that field, as opposed to a dishonest one, before the sarcastic comments start )

Having found myself in the middle of a bar fight with bottle-wielding girls from another bar who came to attack a girl sitting there minding her own business (as I was myself), I ended up down at Pattaya Beach Road police station on Friday night.

There was no one speaking decent English, I have no idea what was said, nothing was explained to me, and no idea of what's supposed to happen now. I wasn't asked to make a statement. For some obscure reason the police kept my passport.

I have to do a visa run early this coming week too.

I'm presuming someone will want to extort money from me at some point, so I want to find a good (and relatively honest ) lawyer with a bit of clout and influence who can help sort this mess out.

Thanks ...

[beachroadlover2]

I've been in a similar situation. As long as they have your passport, they have you over a barrel. It's all an attempt to scare you into paying. A Thai might not have the $$ to pay but the police are sure you do. A lawyer might help or might go into business for themselves with the police and you become the cash cow. Happened to me.

I know one foreigner who represented himself and just said "there's no way I will pay you that much." He had to pay but not the original demand.

At the end of the day, there's an argument that the bigger the case gets, the bigger the expense to you as it could go to court but there's also the slant that they are just toying with you and it won't go anywhere if you don't pay. The police know you are scared of jail and could probably get the money somehow. I had to pay and I was the one who was attacked! Ridiculous but the police know exactly how to turn up the pressure. I needed my passport for a big trip I had planned so I paid a total of 38,000 baht. I was attacked by a girl, I defended myself and she got a split lip for her troubles. It ended up costing me and me only.

[beachroadlover2]

I would contact Magna Carta law firm.

[Maestro]

Report to your local immigration office that a person claiming to be a police officer has taken your passport and ask immigration for advice what to do about it. Make the same report to your embassy, in writing.

Sent from my Nexus 7

[Maestro]

A genuine police officer knows that he has no right to withhold your passport without a court order and therefore it must be assumed that the person who took it from you is a fake, incompetent or dishonest police officer. You could also call 1111 for advice.

Sent from my Nexus 7

[beachroadlover2]

A genuine police officer knows that he has no right to withhold your passport without a court order and therefore it must be assumed that the person who took it from you is a fake, incompetent or dishonest police officer. You could also call 1111 for advice.

Sent from my Nexus 7

The passport is withheld with you in a room in the police station closer to the beach than the reception. I think the name Transnational is above the door. I was properly shaken down and my lawyer kept saying "pay them now, pay them now!" I don't know what would've happened if I had balked or reported my passport stolen. Maybe I could've saved 38,000 baht? Maybe not. You never know.

[jbrain]

Criminal lawyers? I know a lot of them, honest ones is another case.

As another poster said, Magna Carta will be a good choice but might not come cheap.

[plopmeister]

Call these..

www.htoosi.com

Links to the top and will frighten the shit out of a 2-bit Pattaya cop...

They dealt directly with Samak when I had a problem....When he was alive that is..

[simple1]

Report to your local immigration office that a person claiming to be a police officer has taken your passport and ask immigration for advice what to do about it. Make the same report to your embassy, in writing.

Sent from my Nexus 7

if needs be you can also call your Embassy, consular services, they can provide name & contact info on lawyers who work on police matters

[wedders]

Thanks for the replies.

I went into town (Beach Road police station) this afternoon, and although there was allegedly no one to explain to me in English what was going on, I eventually managed to retrieve my passport... although the guy seemed a bit reluctant. He checked that my visa was about to run out (I have to do a run before the 15th).

I used the respectful, softly softly approach, and also had my 4 yo daughter with me, which seemed to smooth the process. It all counts.

From the little I understood today, the police are waiting for hospital reports to come back, before it goes to court. Some of the girls had cut themselves with the bottles they were wielding, as well as my minor injuries (cuts from flying glass, and bruised ribs from a heavy hit from a bottle).

I'm still not sure what role I have in all this, other than that I am expected to attend in some capacity.

Forgot to mention when this happened, I was threatened by one of the aggressor girls' friends (works at her bar) that I should expect trouble, and that it would cost me. Trouble is the bar owner has three biggish places and some influence.

Which is another reason why I'm trying to cover myself as far as it's possible to do so, as a farang in Thailand.

[wedders]

I've been in a similar situation. As long as they have your passport, they have you over a barrel. It's all an attempt to scare you into paying. A Thai might not have the $$ to pay but the police are sure you do. A lawyer might help or might go into business for themselves with the police and you become the cash cow. Happened to me.

I know one foreigner who represented himself and just said "there's no way I will pay you that much." He had to pay but not the original demand.

At the end of the day, there's an argument that the bigger the case gets, the bigger the expense to you as it could go to court but there's also the slant that they are just toying with you and it won't go anywhere if you don't pay. The police know you are scared of jail and could probably get the money somehow. I had to pay and I was the one who was attacked! Ridiculous but the police know exactly how to turn up the pressure. I needed my passport for a big trip I had planned so I paid a total of 38,000 baht. I was attacked by a girl, I defended myself and she got a split lip for her troubles. It ended up costing me and me only.

Hmm sounds ominous. And similar in some respects.

I'm not the sort to be walked over, and threats don't phase me. Jail for the single parent of a 4 year old girl, who was defending himself from attack? I doubt even in Pattaya that would happen ... but who knows.

I'll drop by Magna Carta tomorrow anyway.

[beachroadlover2]

Is there any way the police can contact you other than by showing up at your home presuming you've given your address. Do you think it's over? Can you simply move to another part of town?

[4.real]

You will get a fair and honest lawyer at Magna Carta.

'Khun Nop' is a good defense lawyer and speaks excellent English.

[wedders]

Is there any way the police can contact you other than by showing up at your home presuming you've given your address. Do you think it's over? Can you simply move to another part of town?

No idea whether it's over, yesterday I got the impression that it was going to court. Who knows, once again the police present spoke hardly any English. At least he was reasonable enough to return my passport.

The police have my mobile number, yes. No, I can't move anywhere else.

4.real - I'm going to Magna Carta this morning, they should at least be able to establish what's going on with the police.

[jasonsteve91]

You should contact your embassy and let them know about the whole situation. If it is necessary then do contact any criminal lawyer, he/she will guide you properly what you need to do.

[lovetotravel]

A genuine police officer knows that he has no right to withhold your passport without a court order and therefore it must be assumed that the person who took it from you is a fake, incompetent or dishonest police officer. You could also call 1111 for advice.

Sent from my Nexus 7

Sorry Maestro, but this does happen here. Real police officers, but as you say, dishonest. And many of the lawyers work hand in hand with the police. It's a real racket.

[blackman]

as this topic is over 8 months old, and he last Posted 2012-12-10 08:44:58

one assumes he is all sorted by now....

[Rimmer]

Pretty old topic but had a request to leave it open as it might still be pending or be useful for other members so have re opened it.

[wedders]

Just to conclude things, yes after I recovered my passport the day after the incident, I heard nothing more for 6 weeks.

Then I got a phone call from one of the girls involved, who was at soi 9 police station at the time. Or so she said.

She told me that the police wanted me to go to soi 9 right away. I replied that if they wanted to see me they had my number. She then passed the phone to someone who claimed he was a police officer. I said that I wasn't in Pattaya and couldn't come in. After some vague threats, he gave up.

I found out later that he was a police officer, and the girls - all six of them - were indeed at soi 9. They were there to try and get their ID cards back. They didn't know I'd got my passport back six weeks before. They thought they could con me into paying a backhander for all of them. So I had the last laugh...

[Gsxrnz]

The OP was a mug for having his passport on him.

[wedders]

The OP was a mug for having his passport on him.

I didn't have my passport on me, I never do. I was asked to get it, then make my way to soi 9.

My mistake was not having a copy at home, and not making a copy to give them at the police station, before going there.