American Cheated By Late Thai Wife Of 20 Million Baht Wants His Assets Back

[marcusd]

Welcome to the club dude, my ex took much more than that and my 3 kids, tried to have me killed 3 times, had me arrested on false charges twice.... this is thailand, a Thai lie is much whiter than any farang truth..

I am GAY. I just dont understand all the crying foul i see here about wives cheating money.. caring for families... losing heaps.

Are yiu guys thinking with only with your cock?

In our own countries we seek legal advice and do things properly to protect ourselves. We register companies. We PAY THE FEES TO DO THIS.

Yet i read everyday where people marry in villages.. skip legal advice do it the "thai way" then cry foul when they lose money.

I set up a business bought a house have a partner paid 2 different solicitors 3 accountants got opinions which gave me several choices but all advised to go a certsin way to be LEGAL AND PROTECTED opened a thai and a BOI company and the advices and comoanies cost me a total of 200,000 baht to protect $2million.

Now if i only had $100,000 the advice and stuff to protect me wiukd be 45000 baht. I got a registeted first motgage over tge assets tge same as in the UK USA GERMANY AUSTRALIA MAYASIA SINGAPORE INDIA FRANCE AND THAILAND.

So if you think with your dick and stary eyes when you do your business and 5 mins of f7n 8s over of course you will lose.

Same as any other country boy ir girl as a partner. SAME SAME NOT DIFFERENT. Stop whinging and get offya fat arse and protect yourself legally. You csn do it but like anywhere.. if you go down a back alley.. you will find trouble

Sent from my GT-N7000B using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[frankold]

A fine one to be taking about going down back alleys.

[Unkomoncents]

@ BradinAsia

Your opinion. I was responding to the implied clain that whenever a foreigner is cheated in Thailand, it's somehow unreasonable to assume the culprit was Thai. Just like if you were to suggest that if someone is a victim of a crime in China, it's unreasonable to assume the perpetrator was Chinese. In my opinion, that's the most ridiculous thing I've heard in a while. Suradit's investigative instincts are as finely tuned as a bag of bricks'. If someone is a victim of a crime, you start looking at the people closest to the victim. Criminal investigations 101. You can figure that out from a TV show. Suradit69 seems to think it's unfair for people to assume the Thai girlfriend of a farang victim might have anything to do with the crime. That's just stupid, contrarian logic.

Oh shut up. For every one farang criminal in Thailand, there are 10,000 Thai crooks. Wake up you deluded, flower-power fruit. It's THAILAND. Are you really going to try to assert that it would unwise to assume that a criminal in Thailand is of Thai nationality? Would you apply the same logic elsewhere (i.e. if someone is shot in the US, we best assume a foreign national was the shooter to be fair to Americans?!). Thanks for flat-out the dumbest post I've read in few months. Cheers, mate!

Would you care to elaborate as to why you feel he got what he deserved? Do you really know enough about this man to make an informed opinion of him as a person or are you just an ignorant buffoon who thinks it's clever to kick a man when he's down?

What a bloody fool! Some people deserve, what they get! First cheated by the wife and then leave it to MIL to sell the remaining assets. And share with him.

Can't see that's much different than all the people on TV who know nothing about the Thai women who marry farang but always blame them without any proof for murders and theft of assets. Any time anything happens to a farang, no matter the evidence or lack thereof, a Thai is to blame in the TV kangaroo court. So I guess it can work both ways ... "or are you just an ignorant buffoon" should be asked whenever that happens too.

This may be flat-out most ignorant narrow-minded post ever.

Suradit69's post was quite reasonable.

Edited June 1, 2013 by Unkomoncents

[VETO72]

“Before I came here, I had 25 million baht for investment in Thailand.With no knowledge of the Thai language, I was at a disadvantage," said Mr Harpel",

Silly man, not much more can be said except I hope he finds a way out.

How he was able to acquire 25M THB we can only wonder with mouths agape. It must have been an inheritance or some such.

Some people know how to make money. Others help those people make money. People fit into one of those categories.

>Thais play the game a lot harder than we do or we can even imagine.

Thais look for easy targets. Guys who don't protect themselves are dropping their drawers and asking for a good ramming, and they usually get it.

My rule has always been, don't invest more in Thailand than you're willing to lose. Be it from a woman or if the idiots in charge change the laws on you. And never, ever invest 100% of what you have, especially in a cheating crap hole like this.

i couldnt have said that any better....spot on

[simple1]

Maybe all you fine people who disparaged Su would like to see a picture of her. She's dead, so go ahead and continue all the comments you had before about her.

I'll just wait

Leave here and never come back.

I agree. Either make a point with clear statements, or stop this veiled nonsense. Slander and libel laws are meant to protect corrupt politicians from being exposed in public media, I suspect they would have little bearing on any farang versus farang battles. So make your point, or just go away.

Wrong. Libel/slander laws are used in disputes between foreigners and dealt with by the Thai Courts

[stuck]

How utterly amazing that out of the 11 pages of comments from all you smart ex pats, you all have decided that Nattiyanee is the guilty party. I know Roger. He was my neighbor for 3 years. Did any of you even think twice about the statement that she died while they were quote "negotiating?"

Earth 666? A euphemism for the devil. Very clever. No one noticed that either. Funny the article doesn't mention his daughter with a bar girl - she must be 18 by now. She is an American by naturalization. The daughter that the article references as 11 must be his biological daughter Sara with Nattiyanee - she was 6 or 7 when I lived near him. God help her if he should get custody. I do not remember her being a naturalized United States Citizen. So one article gets printed all around Thailand based on what Roger told a reporter and you all take it as gospel.

By the way, if a mod wants proof of what I am saying, I can prove it beyond a doubt.

Nattiyanee was a good mother who tried to protect her children and to also protect Roger's oldest daughter who was not her daughter. She's dead and cannot defend these accusations and all the barbs thrown by you well meaning expats.

You all should think before you write nonsense. What if you are all wrong?

I commend you, Sir. Of all the self-righteous indignation and vile hatred on this thread, you stand out as about the only credible source about this case.

Hang in there, Mr. Stuck. A lot of these guys have an axe to grind. And they will absolutely not let facts get in the way of a good public lynching!

Seriously?You think this lunatic doesn't have an axe to grind?

This must be a wind-up surely,he's as mad as a March hare!

Regardless whether I have an axe to grind or not, I know this man personally. Do you?

[Lennox7]

For anyone out there feeling sorry for this sociopath. . .don't. He really did get what was coming to him and this article should be titled: "American, who abandoned his family in 1989 and embezzled his mother's retirement funds, discovers what that Karma thing is all about". See, I know this guy . .Roger Harpel is from Washington state and 27 years ago he abandoned his kids and as executor of his deceased father's estate, absconded with funds, leaving his mother high and dry. His mother died years ago and his brother (James Harpel, Graham, Washington) died in January of 2013. A sister still survives, but I doubt that matters to him since he only cares for himself. Did anyone with sympathy for this guy ever wonder why he would want to disperse 1 million American dollars into the sketchy Thai landscape? Because it wasn't his his! He stole it! If Roger is living in temples because he's been left destitute by his Thai family, he should consider himself lucky to have a roof over his head. What goes around, comes around. . . .

[Lennox7]

Let's just speak hypothetically: A thai corporation is an entity in law just as you or your Thai wife are entities. Let's just say you're an American Expat on the run for more than 25 years and you want to hide your money from not only the US Feds but also from the Thais and your Thai wife. What do you do?

Make a baby.

That's what you do, and as soon as you have that baby, you naturalize that baby into an American. Then you make that little Thai/American baby the majority shareholder in the company, 51 percent. You take the next largest share. Of course as an American you could have created a Corporation under the still valid Treaty of Amity that America has with Thailand and you could 100 percent owner of the Thai Corporation but then the US Feds would know about your corp and expect your taxes on said corporation.

And let's keep speaking hypothetically assuming the child is not the child of your present wife, but the child of a bar girl in Phuket whom you pay off so that she signs over custody 100 percent to you.

Now you control a Thai Corporation 100 percent because you control the majority shareholder. Ah, but there is a problem. Who will be the managing director? You don't want your name on the documents so you name your present Thai wife married in the village but not at the Ampur. And still speaking hypothetically, let's assume that you are a swindler. The money that you brought a quarter century ago from the United States is gone you have become a full fledged con man fleecing expats out of the life savings by say ... well still speaking hypothetically ... by using condemnation by easement.

Now it gets very interesting as the empty heads hear a new word - hypothetically of course. What that is, is simple. You find a hotel that is profitable or a business that uses an easement across its neighbors properties because they don't have access directly to the roads. Then you buy the properties around them.

Hypothetically of course.

Now you tell the poor foreigner that his clients can no longer drive across your property to get to the hotel or business. You're the new owner so you can do what you want. When the business starves because a cancer has surrounded it, you then make the business an offer and buy the business too. Now you open the roads to the business and you have a profitable business sold to you buy a foreigner who invested his life savings but you don't care because hypothetically you are a pathological person who could care less if you bankrupt the man or the business. And in a rude twist, you name your company hypothetically of course, EVIL THAI CORPORATION.

And the company grows. Your daughter can own 51 percent because she is Thai and you are her guardian. You buy yourself a nice car - say hypothetically a Blue Toyota Camry and you drive the streets of your new country looking for properties to buy. You're a predator for sure, like a shark going down Sukumvhit but you laugh as you think of how many people you've ruined and in your own way you know they deserved it.

All this is hypothetical for sure, but it does make the point that you don't need to marry a Thai women to achieve this level of dishonesty.

There are plenty of reasons for marrying a Thai woman. This is not one of them. Hypothetically speaking of course.

Ok so you had a business,didn't run it very well and subsequently had to sell it at a knockdown price.So you lash out and blame others for your shortcomings as a business owner and lack of financial nous by using obscure by-laws like 'easement'?

Does that about cover it?

Mr. Stuck. . . you are right on! I just happened across Harpel's story on the internet. Just browsing and thought I'd type in his name, as he had dropped of the radar years before and well, you never know, something just might pop up. And there it was! Unbelievable! People on this side of the planet assumed he was dead and lo and behold he's been up to all sorts of shenanigans! You see, I knew Roger years ago. We went to high school together. I know his family - or what's left of it. He abandoned them in 1989 and as executor of his father's estate (his father raised mink), managed to embezzle funds which would otherwise have provided his mother a comfortable retirement. The man is without conscience, a sociopath. He cares for nobody more than his own self. He disappeared from his American children's lives 27 years ago without a care, and wants people to believe he wants his Thai daughter back. . . because? It doesn't take a genius to figure that out. Yes, the man by the name of Roger Harpel, from Graham, Washington USA (I believe he was living in Onalaska, WA. at the time of his departure), graduated from Bethel High School, Spanaway, WA. in 1968. I believe he was part owner of a software company (Cosmos) for several years. Who knows what he might have taken when he left them?

[hyperdimension]

That's quite a twist in the story. What will the sister do?

[Lennox7]

That's quite a twist in the story. What will the sister do?

She probably wants nothing to do with him.

[Eesat]

Let's just speak hypothetically: A thai corporation is an entity in law just as you or your Thai wife are entities. Let's just say you're an American Expat on the run for more than 25 years and you want to hide your money from not only the US Feds but also from the Thais and your Thai wife. What do you do?

Make a baby.

That's what you do, and as soon as you have that baby, you naturalize that baby into an American. Then you make that little Thai/American baby the majority shareholder in the company, 51 percent. You take the next largest share. Of course as an American you could have created a Corporation under the still valid Treaty of Amity that America has with Thailand and you could 100 percent owner of the Thai Corporation but then the US Feds would know about your corp and expect your taxes on said corporation.

And let's keep speaking hypothetically assuming the child is not the child of your present wife, but the child of a bar girl in Phuket whom you pay off so that she signs over custody 100 percent to you.

Now you control a Thai Corporation 100 percent because you control the majority shareholder. Ah, but there is a problem. Who will be the managing director? You don't want your name on the documents so you name your present Thai wife married in the village but not at the Ampur. And still speaking hypothetically, let's assume that you are a swindler. The money that you brought a quarter century ago from the United States is gone you have become a full fledged con man fleecing expats out of the life savings by say ... well still speaking hypothetically ... by using condemnation by easement.

Now it gets very interesting as the empty heads hear a new word - hypothetically of course. What that is, is simple. You find a hotel that is profitable or a business that uses an easement across its neighbors properties because they don't have access directly to the roads. Then you buy the properties around them.

Hypothetically of course.

Now you tell the poor foreigner that his clients can no longer drive across your property to get to the hotel or business. You're the new owner so you can do what you want. When the business starves because a cancer has surrounded it, you then make the business an offer and buy the business too. Now you open the roads to the business and you have a profitable business sold to you buy a foreigner who invested his life savings but you don't care because hypothetically you are a pathological person who could care less if you bankrupt the man or the business. And in a rude twist, you name your company hypothetically of course, EVIL THAI CORPORATION.

And the company grows. Your daughter can own 51 percent because she is Thai and you are her guardian. You buy yourself a nice car - say hypothetically a Blue Toyota Camry and you drive the streets of your new country looking for properties to buy. You're a predator for sure, like a shark going down Sukumvhit but you laugh as you think of how many people you've ruined and in your own way you know they deserved it.

All this is hypothetical for sure, but it does make the point that you don't need to marry a Thai women to achieve this level of dishonesty.

There are plenty of reasons for marrying a Thai woman. This is not one of them. Hypothetically speaking of course.

Ok so you had a business,didn't run it very well and subsequently had to sell it at a knockdown price.So you lash out and blame others for your shortcomings as a business owner and lack of financial nous by using obscure by-laws like 'easement'?

Does that about cover it?

Mr. Stuck. . . you are right on! I just happened across Harpel's story on the internet. Just browsing and thought I'd type in his name, as he had dropped of the radar years before and well, you never know, something just might pop up. And there it was! Unbelievable! People on this side of the planet assumed he was dead and lo and behold he's been up to all sorts of shenanigans! You see, I knew Roger years ago. We went to high school together. I know his family - or what's left of it. He abandoned them in 1989 and as executor of his father's estate (his father raised mink), managed to embezzle funds which would otherwise have provided his mother a comfortable retirement. The man is without conscience, a sociopath. He cares for nobody more than his own self. He disappeared from his American children's lives 27 years ago without a care, and wants people to believe he wants his Thai daughter back. . . because? It doesn't take a genius to figure that out. Yes, the man by the name of Roger Harpel, from Graham, Washington USA (I believe he was living in Onalaska, WA. at the time of his departure), graduated from Bethel High School, Spanaway, WA. in 1968. I believe he was part owner of a software company (Cosmos) for several years. Who knows what he might have taken when he left them?

Amazing coincidence that knowing him all those years ago,from High School no less,that you should be in Thailand and perusing this forum,nay this very thread at the time!

What are the chances of that?

[Lennox7]

Let's just speak hypothetically: A thai corporation is an entity in law just as you or your Thai wife are entities. Let's just say you're an American Expat on the run for more than 25 years and you want to hide your money from not only the US Feds but also from the Thais and your Thai wife. What do you do?

Make a baby.

That's what you do, and as soon as you have that baby, you naturalize that baby into an American. Then you make that little Thai/American baby the majority shareholder in the company, 51 percent. You take the next largest share. Of course as an American you could have created a Corporation under the still valid Treaty of Amity that America has with Thailand and you could 100 percent owner of the Thai Corporation but then the US Feds would know about your corp and expect your taxes on said corporation.

And let's keep speaking hypothetically assuming the child is not the child of your present wife, but the child of a bar girl in Phuket whom you pay off so that she signs over custody 100 percent to you.

Now you control a Thai Corporation 100 percent because you control the majority shareholder. Ah, but there is a problem. Who will be the managing director? You don't want your name on the documents so you name your present Thai wife married in the village but not at the Ampur. And still speaking hypothetically, let's assume that you are a swindler. The money that you brought a quarter century ago from the United States is gone you have become a full fledged con man fleecing expats out of the life savings by say ... well still speaking hypothetically ... by using condemnation by easement.

Now it gets very interesting as the empty heads hear a new word - hypothetically of course. What that is, is simple. You find a hotel that is profitable or a business that uses an easement across its neighbors properties because they don't have access directly to the roads. Then you buy the properties around them.

Hypothetically of course.

Now you tell the poor foreigner that his clients can no longer drive across your property to get to the hotel or business. You're the new owner so you can do what you want. When the business starves because a cancer has surrounded it, you then make the business an offer and buy the business too. Now you open the roads to the business and you have a profitable business sold to you buy a foreigner who invested his life savings but you don't care because hypothetically you are a pathological person who could care less if you bankrupt the man or the business. And in a rude twist, you name your company hypothetically of course, EVIL THAI CORPORATION.

And the company grows. Your daughter can own 51 percent because she is Thai and you are her guardian. You buy yourself a nice car - say hypothetically a Blue Toyota Camry and you drive the streets of your new country looking for properties to buy. You're a predator for sure, like a shark going down Sukumvhit but you laugh as you think of how many people you've ruined and in your own way you know they deserved it.

All this is hypothetical for sure, but it does make the point that you don't need to marry a Thai women to achieve this level of dishonesty.

There are plenty of reasons for marrying a Thai woman. This is not one of them. Hypothetically speaking of course.

Ok so you had a business,didn't run it very well and subsequently had to sell it at a knockdown price.So you lash out and blame others for your shortcomings as a business owner and lack of financial nous by using obscure by-laws like 'easement'?

Does that about cover it?

Mr. Stuck. . . you are right on! I just happened across Harpel's story on the internet. Just browsing and thought I'd type in his name, as he had dropped of the radar years before and well, you never know, something just might pop up. And there it was! Unbelievable! People on this side of the planet assumed he was dead and lo and behold he's been up to all sorts of shenanigans! You see, I knew Roger years ago. We went to high school together. I know his family - or what's left of it. He abandoned them in 1989 and as executor of his father's estate (his father raised mink), managed to embezzle funds which would otherwise have provided his mother a comfortable retirement. The man is without conscience, a sociopath. He cares for nobody more than his own self. He disappeared from his American children's lives 27 years ago without a care, and wants people to believe he wants his Thai daughter back. . . because? It doesn't take a genius to figure that out. Yes, the man by the name of Roger Harpel, from Graham, Washington USA (I believe he was living in Onalaska, WA. at the time of his departure), graduated from Bethel High School, Spanaway, WA. in 1968. I believe he was part owner of a software company (Cosmos) for several years. Who knows what he might have taken when he left them?

Amazing coincidence that knowing him all those years ago,from High School no less,that you should be in Thailand and perusing this forum,nay this very thread at the time!

What are the chances of that?

Well, you know what they say about what happens when you ASSUME, don't you?

Why do you think I am in Thailand? The World Wide Web has amazingly long arms, you know, accessible by anyone, from anywhere. I am not now in Thailand, nor have I ever been - though I'm sure it's a beautiful country to visit should I ever desire to sit on an airplane for 20 hours, or so. I reside in my native country, The United States of America. Always have. Missing persons intrigue me and the other day I happened to google the name of a missing person I happened to know, and there you have it. Voila! I guess in his dire hour of needing help recovering his ill begotten wealth, Roger decided it was worth the risk to emerge from the rock he's been hiding under all these years. It seems as though you've championed his cause too. Be careful with that, I'd say.

If you google the name Roger Harpel, you will see a website, 2bangkok.com, therein is a post from Roger's son Tom Harpel. It goes like this: Do You Know Roger Harpel? Tom Harpel asks: "16 years ago my father left Washington for Thailand. For the first year, he sent letters back home but eventually stopped communications. I wonder if in your travels you have met him? His name is Roger Harpel, he lived in Washington state and ran a software company called Cosmos until 1989. It may be a long shot, but the world can be a surprisingly small place. I look forward to your reply".

Dated: Dec. 11, 2004

That's just very sad, I think.

Edited June 14, 2013 by Lennox7

[stuck]

@Lennox7

I spoke with Tom several times after I discovered what Roger was and what he was not. I found Tom's posting months before and when I mentioned it to Roger he just remarked "Tom's a fine boy." I left it at that. But when things started falling into place and there were threats and danger to my family, I armed myself with knowledge and di d so by calling Tom.

After a week or two Tom decided he didn't want to know any more about his father. I could say more but I don't want to violate Tom's privacy. Let's just say that Roger's hasty exit left damage that is still felt today in that family.

You're right about the rock - he's been under the radar for a long time so he must be at rock bottom. There was always talk of money in the Cayman's and in Singapore but like much of what was said, it probably was a ruse.

[wooloomooloo]

I could say more but I don't want to violate Tom's privacy.

That particular boundary appears to have been surpassed.

[stuck]

 

I could say more but I don't want to violate Tom's privacy.

That particular boundary appears to have been surpassed.

How so? Tom posted on the WWW which is not private.

[musiclover]

Well, at least he is lucky he did not have to go through the drug and kidnap style of monetary extraction.... :-) Given the widespread usage of the internet, and the fact these types of stories are well known, I am always somewhat surprised to see them occur on a regular basis here....A couple of years ago a good friend of mine put about 1 million dollars into a resort in the southern islands. In his wife's name of course as per Thai law. When things turned bad with his wife, he wanted to recover a part of his money back, so he sent down a lawyer to see her.When his lawyer came back, he was very scared and told my friend to forget about ever seeing a dollar back. I gave him the same advice if he wanted to keep living. He walked away, and is still alive and well..Conclusion : Be fully prepared to lose any assets you put in the name of your wife. If you know that going in, no problem. If you take your life's savings and turn it over to your Thai wife, things will generally not go well for you in the future..Download the torrent movie " My Thai Bride"... :-)There is a slight variation on this concept involving the family of the wife. Meaning perhaps your Thai wife loves you more than anything in the world, and all the assets are in her name.She happens to have an untimely death. Next thing you know there is a pickup truck outside the house full of her relatives demanding you get out of " their" house. Same net effect to the poor farang....

Not always like that actually.....It's not their house if you are legally married. And I should know!!!

Really ?? I have no direct experience fortunately. My understanding was in Thai law that if the wife dies, her will cannot legally turn her property over to a non Thai, ie her farang husband. If this is incorrect I would like to know.

Sorry to reply so late but indeed this is definitely NOT so! It is incorrect. The husband being farang or Thai is an irrelevance under Thai law when therei no will and they are legally married !

[bangarang]

" Later, he married Nattiyanee in a village ceremony without having the marriage registered. They have a girl, now aged 11."

Well mate, your SOL... According to thai law that I remember if you have a child and dont have a registered marriage then the 0 rights as a father. And as far as the the assets go... does the government have to side with the "husband"? They were never technically married (registered at the local amphur). I would imagine that the wifes family could reject everything and keep what their daughter had for assets. Sad but if you dont protect your self, expect the worse.

[bangarang]

Well, at least he is lucky he did not have to go through the drug and kidnap style of monetary extraction.... :-) Given the widespread usage of the internet, and the fact these types of stories are well known, I am always somewhat surprised to see them occur on a regular basis here....A couple of years ago a good friend of mine put about 1 million dollars into a resort in the southern islands. In his wife's name of course as per Thai law. When things turned bad with his wife, he wanted to recover a part of his money back, so he sent down a lawyer to see her.When his lawyer came back, he was very scared and told my friend to forget about ever seeing a dollar back. I gave him the same advice if he wanted to keep living. He walked away, and is still alive and well..Conclusion : Be fully prepared to lose any assets you put in the name of your wife. If you know that going in, no problem. If you take your life's savings and turn it over to your Thai wife, things will generally not go well for you in the future..Download the torrent movie " My Thai Bride"... :-)There is a slight variation on this concept involving the family of the wife. Meaning perhaps your Thai wife loves you more than anything in the world, and all the assets are in her name.She happens to have an untimely death. Next thing you know there is a pickup truck outside the house full of her relatives demanding you get out of " their" house. Same net effect to the poor farang....

Not always like that actually.....It's not their house if you are legally married. And I should know!!!

Really ?? I have no direct experience fortunately. My understanding was in Thai law that if the wife dies, her will cannot legally turn her property over to a non Thai, ie her farang husband. If this is incorrect I would like to know.

Sorry to reply so late but indeed this is definitely NOT so! It is incorrect. The husband being farang or Thai is an irrelevance under Thai law when therei no will and they are legally married !

They were not legally married... They had a ceremony, but not registered.

" Later, he married Nattiyanee in a village ceremony without having the marriage registered."

[stuck]

Whatever money there was, plus assets were held in the Thai Corporation Earth 666. His oldest daughter now over 18 was the 51 percent shareholder. Control of the corporation and assets were always hers but as a minor Roger controlled her assets. When she turns 18 and no one has ki... eh ... she hasn't bought in a car accident like her mother, well I guess she gets it all.

As far as I knew, Su (her mother) was only the managing director with a small percentage of the company.

So it doesn't matter who was or was not married and where.