Australians drugged, sexually assaulted and robbed at Thai beach parties, diplomat warns
Linsday Murdoch

BANGKOK: -- Young Australians partying on beaches in southern Thailand are drinking a potentially deadly drug cocktail made from a local leaf trafficked by criminals who prey on them when they are under its influence, Australia's official representative in the area warns.

The drug, kratom, is often mixed with the insect repellent DEET as well as cough medicine, cola and ice, leaving users in a stupefied and vulnerable state, says Larry Cunningham, Australia's honorary consul based in Phuket.

The victims of rapes, assaults and thefts committed at Thailand's beach rave parties usually failed to report the crimes to police, he said, leaving the extent of the problem largely unknown.

“What do you do if you are out of it from taking this stuff and you are dragged away in the night and raped by a pack of Thai guys?"

Kratom is a tree in the coffee family that grows in abundance in the jungles of south-east Asia. Its opiate-like effect and low cost has led to rampant trafficking in tourist areas. Twenty leaves is enough to create a kratom cocktail for several people and costs the equivalent of $3.

The drug has been banned in Thailand since 1943 but Justice Minister Chaikasem Nitisiri has proposed legalising it, saying its use may detract from people using drugs like methamphetamine and crystal-meth. [read more...]

Full story: http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-incidents/australians-drugged-raped-and-robbed-at-thai-beach-parties-diplomat-warns-20130919-2u0mk.html

-- The Sydney Morning Herald 2013-09-19

This is the drug cocktail that the two sisters from Canada died from a couple of years ago. They actually died from an overdose of the insect repellent Deet.

Barry

Possible but unlikely.

This cocktail, called here in Koh Phangan "Asia" or "4x150" is a mix of boiled kratom leaves, M150, alcohol, cough syrup, etc., is a recreational drug mainly used by young Burmese or Thai teenagers, usually illegally sold in the same energy drinks bottles.

I think it would be so much better to inform people in the plane directly for the danger of those drugs , roads etc ... specially in touristic areas ... I remember seeing some warning in some airlines about drug dealing in Thailand ... Maybe an information package with all issues could be a solution for those young people...

I think it would be so much better to inform people in the plane directly for the danger of those drugs , roads etc ... specially in touristic areas ... I remember seeing some warning in some airlines about drug dealing in Thailand ... Maybe an information package with all issues could be a solution for those young people...

That takes the whole trip from Europe.

Ever been in Saint Paulo?That takes even longer.

Stay home and pray that nothing will happen.

I think it would be so much better to inform people in the plane directly for the danger of those drugs , roads etc ... specially in touristic areas ... I remember seeing some warning in some airlines about drug dealing in Thailand ... Maybe an information package with all issues could be a solution for those young people...

Yep.

A very looooong information package about drugs, roads,.........and STD's, jewellery scams, swimming whilst intoxicated, conniving bargirls etc etc etc.

An element of tourists around the world will always get themselves into trouble despite the continued loud warnings. Not only do they need protection from others, they need protection from themselves.

Oh Pleeze! A lot of these young garbage Aussie and Brits only come to Thailand to attend these parties to get high and get wild......so knowing all these in advance...these garbage are asking for trouble. I would not spend a moment or any sympathy or help for garbage like these . I wonder what type of decent parents would allow their kids to come here for drogs, booze and sex parties.Besies these full moon parties, you have al ot of these garnage in Phuket, Pattay, Chiang mai and bangkok these days too.

If anything, the bloody thai authorities should ban all these full moon parties that are an invention of the Westerners in the first place.

Deet, are you kidding????

Oh Pleeze! A lot of these young garbage Aussie and Brits only come to Thailand to attend these parties to get high and get wild......so knowing all these in advance...these garbage are asking for trouble. I would not spend a moment or any sympathy or help for garbage like these . I wonder what type of decent parents would allow their kids to come here for drogs, booze and sex parties.Besies these full moon parties, you have al ot of these garnage in Phuket, Pattay, Chiang mai and bangkok these days too.

If anything, the bloody thai authorities should ban all these full moon parties that are an invention of the Westerners in the first place.

You are calling them garbage and you don't even know them or do you just refer to all Australians as GARBAGE. I see you are some sort of a Supremacist. Which non racist country do you come from from?

why all these info packages? just one line should be sufficient, use common sence and cautiousness at all times. if you really think about it you can avoid 99% of all cases at least, in my backpacking times and travels everywhere I've never had somehing bad happened. only one time and that was when I forgot this sendtence in bulgaria.

maybe for the rest Im just lucky

Oh Pleeze! A lot of these young garbage Aussie and Brits only come to Thailand to attend these parties to get high and get wild......so knowing all these in advance...these garbage are asking for trouble. I would not spend a moment or any sympathy or help for garbage like these . I wonder what type of decent parents would allow their kids to come here for drogs, booze and sex parties.Besies these full moon parties, you have al ot of these garnage in Phuket, Pattay, Chiang mai and bangkok these days too.

If anything, the bloody thai authorities should ban all these full moon parties that are an invention of the Westerners in the first place.

Hey guy, with a moniker like yours, I would watch what you say.

This is the most moronic statement regarding drugs since America's reefer madness campaigns back in the early 1900's.

I would feel much safer if he got the Thai authorities to ban coca-cola, ice, insecticides, cups, and Thai males just to make sure his precious backpackers are safe from this scourge. What a tool!

DEET! OMG. That's freaking deadly. I hope they are okay and they find these a-holes who are doing this ASAP. I'm sorry for the victims.

Oh Pleeze! A lot of these young garbage Aussie and Brits only come to Thailand to attend these parties to get high and get wild......so knowing all these in advance...these garbage are asking for trouble. I would not spend a moment or any sympathy or help for garbage like these . I wonder what type of decent parents would allow their kids to come here for drogs, booze and sex parties.Besies these full moon parties, you have al ot of these garnage in Phuket, Pattay, Chiang mai and bangkok these days too.

If anything, the bloody thai authorities should ban all these full moon parties that are an invention of the Westerners in the first place.

I try to avoid people like you...

Oh Pleeze! A lot of these young garbage Aussie and Brits only come to Thailand to attend these parties to get high and get wild......so knowing all these in advance...these garbage are asking for trouble. I would not spend a moment or any sympathy or help for garbage like these . I wonder what type of decent parents would allow their kids to come here for drogs, booze and sex parties.Besies these full moon parties, you have al ot of these garnage in Phuket, Pattay, Chiang mai and bangkok these days too.

If anything, the bloody thai authorities should ban all these full moon parties that are an invention of the Westerners in the first place.

Yeah westerners invented full moon parties so ban them, and while you're at ban all western inventions in Thailand. Thailand doesn't need western inventions, like umm.............the internet. Then we wouldn't have to read utter drivel that AryanicAristocrat spouts. And that can only be a good thing!

Oh Pleeze! A lot of these young garbage Aussie and Brits only come to Thailand to attend these parties to get high and get wild......so knowing all these in advance...these garbage are asking for trouble. I would not spend a moment or any sympathy or help for garbage like these . I wonder what type of decent parents would allow their kids to come here for drogs, booze and sex parties.Besies these full moon parties, you have al ot of these garnage in Phuket, Pattay, Chiang mai and bangkok these days too.

If anything, the bloody thai authorities should ban all these full moon parties that are an invention of the Westerners in the first place.

man o man are you heading for a well deserved TV smack up.....Garbage? Young people enjoying themselves? Regardless of where these people

( your so called garbage )come from and regardless of what they may or may not consume they do NOT deserve or ask to be assaulted or raped.

I am afraid YOu are a total <deleted>..

So u are telling me that there is crime other than Pattaya,seems a few are telling me porkies on here

I guess the honorary consul had overwhelming pressure to self censor himself during his 8 years in Phuket and finally - after retiring - can now talk the truth. Better years late than never.

Oh Pleeze! A lot of these young garbage Aussie and Brits only come to Thailand to attend these parties to get high and get wild......so knowing all these in advance...these garbage are asking for trouble. I would not spend a moment or any sympathy or help for garbage like these . I wonder what type of decent parents would allow their kids to come here for drogs, booze and sex parties.Besies these full moon parties, you have al ot of these garnage in Phuket, Pattay, Chiang mai and bangkok these days too.

If anything, the bloody thai authorities should ban all these full moon parties that are an invention of the Westerners in the first place.

Jeez, what a wonderful human being you are, were you never young yourself, never did anything that you may have thought to be unwise when looked back on in later life ?

This board certainly attracts its share of the sad, sick and feeble minded with no hint of empathy for the possible problems of others. Give me a young partying backpacker anyday over this type person who views any youngster who has come to Thailand to enjoy themselves as gargbage. What a sorry excuse for a human being !!!!

Trotski

I believe a lot of the past's "mysterious" deaths can be attributed to adulterated cocktails.

today is throat punch Thursday...and i nominate AryanicAristocrat.

Oh Pleeze! A lot of these young garbage Aussie and Brits only come to Thailand to attend these parties to get high and get wild......so knowing all these in advance...these garbage are asking for trouble. I would not spend a moment or any sympathy or help for garbage like these . I wonder what type of decent parents would allow their kids to come here for drogs, booze and sex parties.Besies these full moon parties, you have al ot of these garnage in Phuket, Pattay, Chiang mai and bangkok these days too.

If anything, the bloody thai authorities should ban all these full moon parties that are an invention of the Westerners in the first place.

Hey guy, with a moniker like yours, I would watch what you say.

most aristocrats i have met are at least semi-literate. Methinks it is a self-appointed title.

Oh Pleeze! A lot of these young garbage Aussie and Brits only come to Thailand to attend these parties to get high and get wild......so knowing all these in advance...these garbage are asking for trouble. I would not spend a moment or any sympathy or help for garbage like these . I wonder what type of decent parents would allow their kids to come here for drogs, booze and sex parties.Besies these full moon parties, you have al ot of these garnage in Phuket, Pattay, Chiang mai and bangkok these days too.

If anything, the bloody thai authorities should ban all these full moon parties that are an invention of the Westerners in the first place.

Cretin

Flew from the UK to BKK on Sunday last. Next to me were 4 lads who were off for a week on the razzle in Thailand. They were full of it, how much they were going to drink, what substances they were planning to smoke/ingest. I doubt if any warnings would have had any effect. One of them was so hyper that he kept bouncing up and down in his seat and shouting about what he was going to do,the cabin crew had to keep telling him to calm down. Anyone who has the sense to go online and book a flight should have the sense to be aware of the risks such behaviour entails. If they get into trouble well their problem.

Mind you it was the flight from hell - next to me was some bloke who kept on bullshitting for hours - amongst other things he was best mates with Julian Assange. In front was some tattooed clown who was going to punch someone -anyone-if he didn't get the aisle seat he wanted.In the end the Purser had to tell him that if he didn't shut up he would be first off the plane at Bangkok, in handcuffs!

A breeding licence is probably the only long term solution!

Surely by now people going to these parties as well as discos etc.... should know how to protect themselves against this kind of thing??

If they do get into this then they have themselves to blame !!

Flew from the UK to BKK on Sunday last. Next to me were 4 lads who were off for a week on the razzle in Thailand. They were full of it, how much they were going to drink, what substances they were planning to smoke/ingest. I doubt if any warnings would have had any effect. One of them was so hyper that he kept bouncing up and down in his seat and shouting about what he was going to do,the cabin crew had to keep telling him to calm down. Anyone who has the sense to go online and book a flight should have the sense to be aware of the risks such behaviour entails. If they get into trouble well their problem.

Mind you it was the flight from hell - next to me was some bloke who kept on bullshitting for hours - amongst other things he was best mates with Julian Assange. In front was some tattooed clown who was going to punch someone -anyone-if he didn't get the aisle seat he wanted.In the end the Purser had to tell him that if he didn't shut up he would be first off the plane at Bangkok, in handcuffs!

A breeding licence is probably the only long term solution!

With all that riff-raff on board, remind me never to fly with whatever airline you flew with. Hopefully it wasn't THAI.

Flew from the UK to BKK on Sunday last. Next to me were 4 lads who were off for a week on the razzle in Thailand. They were full of it, how much they were going to drink, what substances they were planning to smoke/ingest. I doubt if any warnings would have had any effect. One of them was so hyper that he kept bouncing up and down in his seat and shouting about what he was going to do,the cabin crew had to keep telling him to calm down. Anyone who has the sense to go online and book a flight should have the sense to be aware of the risks such behaviour entails. If they get into trouble well their problem.

Mind you it was the flight from hell - next to me was some bloke who kept on bullshitting for hours - amongst other things he was best mates with Julian Assange. In front was some tattooed clown who was going to punch someone -anyone-if he didn't get the aisle seat he wanted.In the end the Purser had to tell him that if he didn't shut up he would be first off the plane at Bangkok, in handcuffs!

A breeding licence is probably the only long term solution!

Which airline was this with, JAG?

Oh Pleeze! A lot of these young garbage Aussie and Brits only come to Thailand to attend these parties to get high and get wild......so knowing all these in advance...these garbage are asking for trouble. I would not spend a moment or any sympathy or help for garbage like these . I wonder what type of decent parents would allow their kids to come here for drogs, booze and sex parties.Besies these full moon parties, you have al ot of these garnage in Phuket, Pattay, Chiang mai and bangkok these days too.

If anything, the bloody thai authorities should ban all these full moon parties that are an invention of the Westerners in the first place.

You seem to have a very limited vocabulary, aren't you able to think of an alternative to the word "garbage" that you have used four times?

Oh Pleeze! A lot of these young garbage Aussie and Brits only come to Thailand to attend these parties to get high and get wild......so knowing all these in advance...these garbage are asking for trouble. I would not spend a moment or any sympathy or help for garbage like these . I wonder what type of decent parents would allow their kids to come here for drogs, booze and sex parties.Besies these full moon parties, you have al ot of these garnage in Phuket, Pattay, Chiang mai and bangkok these days too.

If anything, the bloody thai authorities should ban all these full moon parties that are an invention of the Westerners in the first place.

You are calling them garbage and you don't even know them or do you just refer to all Australians as GARBAGE. I see you are some sort of a Supremacist. Which non racist country do you come from from?

The clue is in the name. Probably Upper Caste.

However, he does ask a good question. "I wonder what type of decent parents would allow their kids to come here for drogs, booze and sex parties." Probably wage slaves with several jobs to service the mortgage who have no time to get know their kids, who anyway are on an education treadmill and live in fear of their jobs being exported to low cost economies because fluid global capital wants "trained" not "educated".

Full-moon parties are totally out of control, and have been for a while. A very large percentage of western party-go'ers are looking to get totally drunk, stoned, wasted. Thats what the reputation of the thing is now and has been for 10 years.

So these kinds of people are "easy prey" for criminals. The youngsters are often "out of their minds" already, so its a piece of cake to slip something nasty into their cocktail and do whatever the heck the criminal wants to do with them.

If you are going to dance with the devil, you have to expect the inevitable results. And its not like there haven't been enough new stories both here and around the world for people attending beach parties not to know what they are about.

If you wanna stay safe, don't go to wild beach parties, simple as. They aren't safe environments.