300 Visa stamps go missing from Thai Embassy in Malaysia

[webfact]

IMMIGRATION
300 Visa stamps go missing from Thai Embassy in Malaysia
The Nation

Nine foreigners were suspected of using the stolen stamps

BANGKOK: -- The Thai Embassy in Malaysia has alerted immigration authorities in both countries after hundreds of visa stamps went missing, saying that they could be used for illegal purposes, Thai Foreign Ministry deputy spokesman Jakkrit Srivali said Thursday.

The Malaysian police have been notified about the missing stamps and the embassy is seeking legal action against five local staff for their alleged involvement in the incident.

The ministry had known about the theft for quite some time but kept it out of the media to facilitate the investigation, Jakkrit said, adding the neither side wanted those who used the stolen stamps to escape across the border.

An investigation panel comprising officials of the embassy and the ministry in Bangkok has been investigating the theft since July and found that the group had covered their crime very well.

"Our investigation shows that some Thais in Thailand were involved but there was no participation by any ministry officials. We will be taking legal action against the culprits," he said.

Meanwhile Deputy Prime Minister Pracha Promnok put the number of the missing visa stamps at 300.

Thai immigration authorities have found a total of nine suspicious entries by foreigners suspected of using the stolen stamps. Two were from Cameroon and Guinea and attempting to enter Mukdahan province from Laos with a visa issued by Thai Embassy in Kuala Lumpur. However, they had no entry stamps into and out of Malaysia, so were denied entry to Thailand.

Three Pakistanis, two Iranians and two Indians were arrested at the Suvarnabhumi Airport for allegedly using falsified entry documents. An investigation is underway to ascertain or otherwise if they have any record of involvement in terrorist activities.

-- The Nation 2013-08-22

[RickeyParkany]

...well, this will go a long way toward suppressing cross-border infiltratioon of fresh radical terrorists into the South; speaking of *Facilitation *, won't it? ;-} rap.

[Thai at Heart]

Oooooh. Woooops

[nicolas18]

Yesterday, I went to Jomtien for a 30-day extension on my tourist visa issued at KL. Now I know why the employee actually spent five minutes checking the number on my visa sticker against a list of visa numbers.

[webfact]

Nine people arrested for using Thailand visa stickers stolen in Malaysia
By English News



BANGKOK, Aug 22 -- Nine people have been arrested on arrivals to Thailand for using stolen visa stickers earlier reported as having disappeared from the Royal Thai Embassy in Malaysia.

Thai Deputy Prime Minister Pracha Promnok said that two men were detained at immigration in the northeastern province of Mukdahan while seven others were arrested at Suvarnabhumi airport.

One of those arrested at Mukdahan was a Cameroon national holding a visa granted from the Thai embassy in Kuala Lumpur.

Consular officials earlier admitted that 300 Thai visa stickers had been stolen from the embassy.

Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs voided the remaining 291 stickers, while asserting that none of 259 remaining missing stickers have been used as reported in the media. (MCOT online news)


-- TNA 2013-08-22

[animatic]

That explains why KL embassy has been a pain lately.

Maybe the head of section will be removed, might inprove KL consular services a lot.

[Thai at Heart]

Shouldn't be possible to just nick the stickers and fill in the blanks surely? Presumably the running numbers are printed at source? Just delete the numbers from the system?

I wonder whether they've filled my hundreds are papers for my 90 day reports over the years yet?

Edited August 22, 2013 by Thai at Heart

[TackyToo]

I told them on many occaisions, finally someone was listening: Privatisation is the answer to all immigration issues!

Edited August 22, 2013 by TackyToo

[ginjag]

I told them on many occaisions, finally someone was listening: Privatisation is the answer to all immigration issues!

Very good, NO ministry officials involved.

[clockman]

The usual, nobody official involved. Just the fall guys!

[Badbanker]

I told them on many occaisions, finally someone was listening: Privatisation is the answer to all immigration issues! alt=giggle.gif>

Very good, NO ministry officials involved.

My fiends in immigration say it was closer to 1500 and that they are now going public with 300 to try and keep the heat off as they are discovered!

[tomross46]

Could these visa stamps be used by terrorist infiltrating into the south? Has the responsible person at the embassy been determined?

[travelman]

I think many ports in Thailand have inter-connected databases that can show detail of individuals coming or going out of Thailand and on what visa.

Loosing stamps may not play a bigger role of terrorists infiltrating the borders of Thailand provided if there are proper check and balances by Thai officials. And that I doubt very much.

Cheers

Edited August 22, 2013 by metisdead
Font

[johntren]

" ...saying that they could be used for illegal purposes."

No! Now I'd never have thought of that.

[A1Str8]

And this is a rare occasion when it got to the media.

It happens on a regular basis, but usually the people who do it are smart enough not to attract this kind of attention and eventually get caught.

[rubl]

Shouldn't be possible to just nick the stickers and fill in the blanks surely? Presumably the running numbers are printed at source? Just delete the numbers from the system?

I wonder whether they've filled my hundreds are papers for my 90 day reports over the years yet?

Whenever I'm asked for a paper I submitted already I wonder whether it was really necessary to cut down a few trees to make the paper needed for my 19 year history of visas and workpermits. Would I have some 'private' shelfs or even a whole cupboard? How many years would have been eaten by termites by now?

[aguy30]

And this is a rare occasion when it got to the media.

It happens on a regular basis, but usually the people who do it are smart enough not to attract this kind of attention and eventually get caught.

Can you share with us just how you know this unreported information?

[lunatic farang]

workers in kl thai embassy are malaysians. as with most embassies they employ local staff. i think it must be some sort of international requirement as all embassies i have visited do it.

every thai border i have crossed has a computer link so these stamps would be useless there, unless they have also access the online info and made them legit.

perhaps useful for use inside thai after crossing with a 15day border pass, for showing to hotels or police, but how many times have police in thai looked at your visa: zero. but then you still have to leave the country somehow. in short, cant see the point.

Edited August 22, 2013 by lunatic farang

[scotinsiam]

Yesterday, I went to Jomtien for a 30-day extension on my tourist visa issued at KL. Now I know why the employee actually spent five minutes checking the number on my visa sticker against a list of visa numbers.

I left Thailand 2 days ago and (B visa from KL & Work permit) and my passport was thoroughly checked and as you say looking at a list.

[lunatic farang]

Yesterday, I went to Jomtien for a 30-day extension on my tourist visa issued at KL. Now I know why the employee actually spent five minutes checking the number on my visa sticker against a list of visa numbers.

I left Thailand 2 days ago and (B visa from KL & Work permit) and my passport was thoroughly checked and as you say looking at a list.

why would the people using these stolen sticker be stupid enough to type kl in the issuing embassy.

was going to point out: why would they have a list and not auto in computer but know better than to ask. seen all the finger counting and contortions when they had restrictions on number of 15 day entries.

Edited August 22, 2013 by lunatic farang

[webfact]

IMMIGRATION
Border guards on watch for stolen visa stickers
The Nation



BANGKOK: -- Border checkpoints have been ordered to stay on high alert after 300 Thai visa stickers were stolen from the Kingdom's embassy in Malaysia.

The Foreign Ministry cancelled the missing visas and launched an investigation in July. The embassy has sought legal action against five of its local staff.

Immigration authorities of both countries were alerted.

Nine foreigners have been arrested trying to enter Thailand with the stolen stickers.

"A check into the history of the nine foreigners detained for using the missing visas found they are in a risk group of terrorism and transnational criminals," Pol Lt General Panu Kerdlarbpon, Immigration Police Bureau commissioner, said without elaborating.

The nine were two Iranians, three Nigerians, two Indians and two Pakistanis. Two of the Nigerians were arrested yesterday by immigration officials in the border province of Songkhla.

The investigation showed that 259 of the 300 stickers had been used and 55 visa holders were still in Thailand.

Panu declined to reveal whether the theft gang had Thai accomplices.

Earlier Jakkrit Srivali, deputy Foreign Ministry spokesman, said the embassy in Kuala Lumpur had alerted immigration authorities in both countries after hundreds of visa seals went missing, saying they could be used for illegal purposes.

The ministry had known about the theft for some time but kept it out of the media to facilitate the investigation and neither side wanted those who used the stolen stickers to escape across the border, he said.

An investigation team of officials from the embassy and the ministry in Bangkok has been pursuing the case since last month and found that the gang had covered their crime very well.

"Our investigation shows that some Thais in Thailand were involved but there was no participation by any ministry officials. We will be taking legal action against the perpetrators," he said.

Pol Colonel Withoon Decho, an immigration commander at Suvarnabhumi Airport, said the cancelled visa stickers bore the numbers A4049901-A4050000, A4055901-A4056000 and A5801901-A5802000.

He identified five foreign suspects as Pakistani Yasir-ul-Barni, 31; Nigerian Omonaovie Samson, 36; Iranians Kamandani Behroz Alireza, 29, and Afraz Razieh Gharib, 29; and Russian Linenko Alexander, 26.

An immigration commander, said the suspects claimed that they got the visa seals through a middleman and had to pay expensive fees of Bt60,000-Bt10,000 each.


-- The Nation 2013-08-23

[arthurboy]

"Our investigation shows that some Thais in Thailand were involved but there was no participation by any ministry officials. We will be taking legal action against the perpetrators," he said.

So, Khun Jakkrit, who sold them to who and, importantly, how did this happen? I would have thought that such items would have been the subject of strict control, and those handling them under close supervision.

We wouldn't want them falling into the wrong hands, now, would we?

Unless of course...oh, never mind...

[scorecard]

"Our investigation shows that some Thais in Thailand were involved but there was no participation by any ministry officials. We will be taking legal action against the culprits," he said."

So what is 'ministry officials'.

How can they not be 'involved'? Surely there is a duty to keep documents like this in a secure place. It seems they were stolen, so how can it be said 'no ministry officials were involved.

Given things like this, the ministry involved looks pretty unprofessional.

By the way another news source says it's 1,00 nor 300.

[BeforeTigers]

I assume the embassy is different.
But when I went to the consulate on Penang, I didn't see any Thais working there at all.
It seemed to be staffed entirely by Malaysians.

I mean, I have no idea whether or not Thais hold the keys to those stamps, but I can imagine it 's just as likely that Thai people had no part in this. We are talking about Muslim travelers receiving stolen stamps in a Muslim country, after all.

[newermonkey]

Its got to be an inside job, so they will investigate themselves, I am sure they will get to the bottom of this "NOT"!

If they have serial numbers why not just cancel them? is that too logical?

[jpinx]

Quote --

Thai immigration authorities have found a total of nine suspicious entries by foreigners suspected of using the stolen stamps. Two were from Cameroon and Guinea and attempting to enter Mukdahan province from Laos with a visa issued by Thai Embassy in Kuala Lumpur. However, they had no entry stamps into and out of Malaysia, so were denied entry to Thailand.

/Quote

Hat's off to the guys checking hundreds of passports a day an picking up on these ones. I'll happily stand in the queue a bit longer if it keeps the bad guys out.

[harrry]

The investigation showed that 259 of the 300 stickers had been used and 55 visa holders were still in Thailand.

Panu declined to reveal whether the theft gang had Thai accomplices.

presuming that Sherlock Holmes nabs the 55 they still let 195 get away with it.

[lee b]

It would be very sad if you went to that embassy for a visa, and were issued with one of the stolen ones ! Who knows something has happened on the inside !

Edited August 23, 2013 by lee b

[lunatic farang]

no proof that the people that have the visas are in on the scam. they could have just got the visa from an agent in malaysia

[SOTIRIOS]

....and how about their Thai counterparts......???