Interesting topics / reads .

[Rooo]

American DUI fugitive linked to Ibogaine death on Koh Phangan
By Coconuts Bangkok



BANGKOK: -- A U.S. fugitive arrested on Koh Lanta off Krabi last week after living on the run for six years in Thailand has been linked to another death of an Australian backpacker in Thailand.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/809741-american-dui-fugitive-linked-to-ibogaine-death-on-koh-phangan/

[Rooo]

Online 90 day reporting available from April 1st

BANGKOK: A spokesperson for Thailand’s Immigration Bureau has confirmed the new online service for 90 day reporting will be effective from April 1st 2015.

Col. Worawat Amornwiwat confirmed on Thursday that foreign nationals in Thailand will now be able to report their address via the Immigration Bureau’s website, rather than having to attend their local immigration office in person or send the notification by registered mail.

Col. Worawat said the new service has been introduced as part of Thailand’s integration into the ASEAN Economic Community and will provide more convenience for foreigners staying in Thailand.

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http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/812263-online-90-day-reporting-available-from-april-1st/

[Rooo]

Cigarette and liquor prices to go up now

BANGKOK: -- Smokers will now pay higher prices for cigarettes after the Sports Act, which requires tobaccos producers and distributors to contribute to a newly established ‘national sports development’ fund, has become effective.

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http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/812600-cigarette-and-liquor-prices-to-go-up-now/

[Rooo]

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/816975-thailand-live-monday-13-apr-2015/page-2#entry9300153

[Rooo]

'M Redshirt' arrested in connection to Friday attacks
THE NATION

THE NATIONAL Council for Peace and Order yesterday confirmed that Article 44 of the provisional constitution was cited to arrest Narin Umnongbua or "M Redshirt" in connection with the weekend bombing at the Central Festival shopping mall on Samui island.

Colonel Winthai Suvari, spokesman for the NCPO, said yesterday that the suspect is being detained at a classified place for investigation, which should take no longer than seven days.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/816976-m-redshirt-arrested-in-connection-to-friday-attacks-on-samui-island/

[Rooo]

Tourism ministry: Samui explosion no effect on tourism



BANGKOK, 13 April 2015 (NNT) - The Ministry of Tourism and Sports has reported that no foreign tourist has cancelled trips to Thailand despite a car bomb explosion on the island of Samui on Saturday. Security at all hotels in Samui has been tight.

Minister of Tourism and Sports Kobkan Watthanawarangkun on Sunday said Thai tourism-related units had explained the situation to foreign countries after the attack. As for the overall tourism during Songkran festival this year, Ms. Kobkan said more than two million tourists were expected to join in Songkran celebrations nationwide.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/816987-thai-tourism-ministry-samui-explosion-no-effect-on-tourism/#entry9299225

[Rooo]

Koh Samui blast 'political'

KOH SAMUI: -- THE AUTHORITIES are convinced that the bomb blast in Koh Samui on Friday night was politically motivated.

Considering the timing and the location - shortly before the Songkran Festival in a popular tourist destination - observers yesterday insisted the attack was aimed at challenging the government.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/816748-koh-samui-blast-political/

[Rooo]

Camera shows suspects driving to plant bomb
THE NATION

POLICE RULE OUT LINK WITH INSURGENTS IN DEEP SOUTH AS HUNT FOR SUSPECTS WIDENS

BANGKOK: -- POLICE have obtained footage from a surveillance camera showing a number of alleged suspects in Friday night's bombing on Koh Samui travelling to the island in two vehicles on Friday morning before the explosion at the Central Festival shopping mall, a police inspector-general said yesterday.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/816992-camera-shows-suspects-driving-to-plant-samui-bomb/

[Rooo]

Evidence at guards' homes linked to Samui car bomb
THE NATION

THREE MALL GUARDS HELD AFTER GIVING CONFLICTING STATEMENTS TO POLICE; NOW IN MILITARY CUSTODY

BANGKOK: -- POLICE found evidence during a search of three homes belonging to security guards working at Central Festival on Koh Samui that they believe is linked to the car-bomb attack on the shopping mall on Friday night.

The three guards were detained yesterday for questioning by a military team appointed by the Fourth Army Region commander after police said they gave conflicting and suspicious statements about the incident.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/817181-evidence-at-guards-homes-linked-to-samui-car-bomb/

[Rooo]

Posted Today, 03:10

Truck used in bombing

Police are looking to identify a man dressed in blue who is believed to be the driver of the truck used in the Samui bombing this weekend.

Officers from Bangkok’s Crime Suppression Division and the Provincial Police Region 8 reviewed footage from the 123 security cameras at the Central Festival Samui in hopes of identifying the man.

Region 8’s deputy chief, who is leading the investigation, said that police are confident the man they are searching for is the driver of the truck used in the bombing. Cameras caught the man exiting the shopping mall approximately one hour after parking the truck on the ground floor of the parking garage. The man was wearing a blue shirt, but his identity still remains a mystery. Cameras lost sight of the man after he left the property.

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http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/817161-police-on-the-hunt-for-a-man-in-blue-in-samui-bomb-case/

[Rooo]

Blue-shirted suspect was not involved in Samui car bomb attack



BANGKOK: -- The man who was suspected to be involved in Samui Central Festival’s shopping mall car bomb explosion has turned himself in to the police to deny any role in the incident.

The man who was seen on the mall’s video footage wearing a blue shirt claimed that he did not drive the bomb-rigged Mazda pickup truck into the car park of the mall because he could not drive. A native of Tambon Ang Thong, he said rode a motorcycle to the mall, said Pol Maj-Gen Somchai Nittayabovornkul, deputy commissioner of Region 8 Provincial Police Bureau, today.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/817303-blue-shirted-suspect-was-not-involved-in-samui-car-bomb-attack/

[Rooo]

Terminally ill man set to be first to undergo the world’s first full head transplant

AN Italian surgeon is set to become the first in the world to transplant a human head on to a donor body.

The pioneering operation by Dr Sergio Canavero is to be carried out on a 30-year-old computer scientist who is suffering from a fatal muscle wasting disease.

Valery Spiridonov has admitted that the prospect of going through with the operation is terrifying.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/817309-worlds-first-human-head-transplant-planned/

[Rooo]

SAMUI ATTACK
Car bomb 'the work of people who lost power'
THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- THE car bomb in Koh Samui was masterminded by people who have lost power and want to destroy the Songkran atmosphere, along with the country's image and economy, Defence Ministry spokesman Maj General Kongsheep Tantrawanit said yesterday.

Asked to respond to the comment by former People's Democratic Reform Committee chief Suthep Thaugsuban that a person who lives abroad funded the bomb, Kongsheep said he believed that - as he did not think Thais would hurt one another because of different ideologies. "The bomb is about losing interests.''

National police chief Pol General Somyos Pumpanmuang said police analysed the Samui car bomb and believed the motive of the perpetrators was to instigate turmoil. Masterminds hired assailants to carry out the attack. The Samui blast and motivation was similar to the blast in Ramkhamhaeng in Bangkok in 2013.

Six people suspected of being involved in the Samui car bomb are being held at Vibhavadi Rangsit camp, pending interrogation by military officials from Surat Thani.

But police said they had cleared a man in blue shirt - seen on surveillance cameras and suspected of having driven the pickup laden with explosives last Friday morning. The man was identified as Weera Pancharoen, 39, a resident of Samui. He had no link to the bomb, they said.

Continued.....................

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/817357-samui-attack-car-bomb-the-work-of-people-who-lost-power/

[Rooo]

Politicians in South involved in Samui bombing

BANGKOK: -- Royal Thai Police commissioner Pol Gen Somyot Phumphanmuang stated on Wednesday that several leading politicians in the South have knowledge and assisted suspects in the Central Festival Samui car bomb attack last week.

The national police chief affirmed the latest development in the investigation of the car bomb attack at a press conference today.

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http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/817576-politicians-in-south-involved-in-samui-bombing/

[Rooo]

Police probing the route of the vehicle used for Koh Samui bombing
SUWANNEE BANDISAK,
NAKARIN CHINWORAKOMON,
PIMNARA PRADUBWIT
THE NATION

BANGKOK: -- CCTV RECORDINGS show the pickup truck used in the car-bomb attack at Central Festival Samui shopping mall on April 10 had left Yala just a day earlier and it also stopped for a long period along the Songkhla-Nakhon Si Thammarat border.

An informed source said the pickup, which was converted into a vehicle bomb, had moved from Yala to Songkhla and then to Nakhon Si Thammarat before heading to Surat Thani where the shopping mall is located.

"But along the way, it must have definitely made a long stop somewhere in the border zone of Songkhla and Nakhon Si Thammarat," the source said.

According to this source, recordings showed that the vehicle was sighted on the border of Songkhla's Ranot district at 5.32pm on April 9 and later at 1.05am on April 10 in Nakhon Si Thammarat's Chien Yai district - a spot just a little over 30 kilometres away.

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http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/817889-police-probing-the-route-of-the-vehicle-used-for-koh-samui-bombing/

[Rooo]

EDITORIAL
We need the facts, not spin, about car-bomb attack
The Nation

Government spokesmen have been pre-empting the investigation by making political insinuations

Thailand does not seem to be ready for the truth given the way the government and military spokesmen have been putting a spin on the recent car-bomb attacks at a major shopping mall in Koh Samui, one of the most important tourist destinations in the country.

Within hours of the bomb going off at the Central Festival shopping mall, Deputy Government Spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd and Army spokesman Winthai Suvari were already suggesting that the attack was motivated by political sentiment.

The two military officers went far beyond being spin-doctors to become fortune-tellers. They also linked the blast in Samui to previous bombings in Bangkok in spite of the fact that investigations into these incidents are still ongoing.

Continued..............

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/817896-thai-editorial-we-need-the-facts-not-spin-about-car-bomb-attack/

[Rooo]

Prawit says the military knows who are behind Samui car bombing



BANGKOK: -- Deputy Prime Minister Gen Prawit Wongsuwan said today that security authorities now know who are behind the car bomb attack at Central Festival Samui shopping plaza.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/818036-prawit-says-the-military-knows-who-are-behind-samui-car-bombing/

[Rooo]

CAR BOMB
Authorities know the identity of Koh Samui bomb masterminds, ministers told
The Nation

BANGKOK: -- THE AUTHORITIES know the identity of people behind the car bomb on Koh Samui but are waiting to see if more evidence comes to light, a source quoted Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Prawit Wongsuwan as saying yesterday.

There are networks of operatives and other people involved and the attack who had nothing to do with the insurgency in the far South, Prawit reportedly told a meeting of ministers working on a public relations plan to announce the Prayut Chan-o-cha government's achievements over its six months in office.

National police chief General Somyot Poompanmuang backed Prawit's comments, saying there was sufficient evidence against the masterminds of the attack but police were in no hurry to obtain court warrants for their arrest.

"Hurrying the case may result in the case being put at a disadvantage. Although we have obtained sufficient evidence, we are in no need to be in a hurry. We can wait until we are completely confident, before taking further action," he said.

continued....................

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/818171-authorities-know-the-identity-of-koh-samui-bomb-masterminds-ministers-told/

[Rooo]

National police chief says Samui car bomb gang implicates a former influential politician

BANGKOK: -- The Samui car bomb attack probe is now almost coming to an end after the military and the police obtained evidence that could link the stolen car used in the car bomb attack with the politician.

Royal Thai Police commissioner Pol Gen Somyot Phumphanmuang said today that investigation by the military and the police have come to a common stand now that the bombing is politically motivated, while ruling out terrorism, and business conflict.

Continued..............................................

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/818265-national-police-chief-says-samui-car-bomb-gang-implicates-a-former-influential-politician/

[Rooo]

Asiatique restaurant fined Bt460,000 for showing beer bottles in menus

Bangkok:- In a case that could serve as a warning to farang expatriates who own restaurants and bars in Thailand, showing pictures of beer bottles and glass with beer or liquor brands has led to a very hefty fine approaching half a million baht.

The precedent ruling has been made against the Kacha Kacha restaurant at Asiatique in Bangkok.

An executive of the shop, who uses a Facebook username of Ozawa Curry, has posted the ruling against his shop as a warning to others.

continued.........

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/818637-asiatique-restaurant-fined-bt460000-for-showing-beer-bottles-in-menus/

[Rooo]

Know your rights, stop the myths

Everyday there is a thread of people asking for advice on what to do

Everyday you get responses like "This is Thailand", or "This is how it is"

Well, its NOT and most of the rubbish posted is just that-RUBBISH.

Thailand, just like any other country in the world has laws and agency's which enforce it, People just need to know it.

So here is a break down of those agencies,, so hopefully it will help many many people.

continued.........

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/807508-know-your-rights-stop-the-myths/

[Rooo]

Koh Tao named Asia's No 1 island



BANGKOK: - Koh Tao was named Asia’s Number 1 island and the world’s Number 5 island among tourists ahead of Bali and Phuket, according to TripAdvisor, the world’s largest travel site.

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http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/819451-koh-tao-named-asias-no-1-island/

[Rooo]

Phuket Police Issue Arrest Warrants for 5 Suspects in Samui Car-bombing

Phuket police have issued arrest warrants for five men suspected in aiding in the Koh Samui car-bombing that occurred earlier in the month. While the five men are not yet being charged for any crimes, they are being sought under the Emergency Decree.

There are already 3 other suspects in military custody.

continued..................

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/820759-phuket-police-issue-arrest-warrants-for-5-suspects-in-samui-car-bombing/

[PoorSucker]

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/892149-british-led-card-room-raided-by-officials-in-south-pattaya/