Missing plane highlights Phuket's stolen passport trade

[Lite Beer]

Missing plane highlights Phuket's stolen passport trade
Lindsay Murdoch

PHUKET: -- Investigations into the stolen passports of two passengers listed on missing Malaysia Airlines flight 370 have swung to the Thai resort island of Phuket, where there is a thriving stolen passport racket.

Police in Malaysia have also viewed CCTV footage of the passengers on the flight, specifically looking for images of two men listed as Italian Luigi Maraldi and Austrian Christian Kozel.

Mr Maraldi, 37, was surprised to see his name on the passenger manifest because he was in fact holidaying in Thailand.

He rang his father, Walter in Cesena, Italy, according to Italian press reports.

“Ciao, dad,” the younger Maraldi said.

“Have you heard the news about the missing plane? Don’t worry, it wasn’t me who was listed as a passenger on board. I don’t know why my name is on the list, or what happened but I’m ok. I’m in Thailand.”

On an earlier trip to Phuket in August last year Mr Maraldi had his passport stolen from a car rental agency.

According to media reports quoting Austrian authorities Mr Kozel had his passport stolen in the same part of Phuket 18 months earlier.

Both Mr Maraldi are Mr Kozel are reportedly men with average builds and both wear eye glasses.

The Italian honorary consul in Phuket Francesco Pensato confirmed Mr Maraldi is in Phuket and Italian authorities are checking whether the man on the plane may have been a different man with the same name and date of birth. Malaysia Airlines’ code-share partner China Southern Airlines had sold seven tickets for flight 370, including those in the names of Maraldi and Kozel.

Malaysian authorities are cautiously saying talk about the possibility of a terrorist attack bringing down the plane is pre-mature.

“We are looking at all possibilities – it’s too early to reach any conclusions,” said Malaysia’s prime minister Najib Razak.

But the curious thefts of the passports will be a focus of a team of FBI investigators who are flying from the United States to assist Malaysian and other international investigators.

Malaysian authorities have not commented on the CCTV video of the passengers who boarded the early morning Saturday flight at Kuala Lumpur's international airport for the almost six hour flight to Beijing.

CCTV footage of their luggage has also been scrutinised.

“We cannot reveal any more for security reasons,” said Department of Civil Aviation official Azharuddin Abdul Rahman.

Hundreds of passports are lost or stolen on Phuket each year, raising fears they could fall into the hands of criminal or terrorist networks.

Honorary consuls representing countries there often deal with tourists who report their passports missing.

Former Australian honorary consult Larry Cunningham, who retired from his Phuket posting last September, said during his time as consul passport thefts occurred regularly.

“Some passports were certainly lost, falling out of pockets or being genuinely misplaced. But there were also substantial incidents of passports being stolen,” he said.

Six Syrian men have been held at Phuket airport for months after travelling on fake Greek passports.

Source: http://www.theage.com.au/world/missing-plane-highlights-phukets-stolen-passport-trade-20140309-hvgrt.html

--The Age.com.au 2014-03-09

[Mentors]

...Phuket...

[bigbamboo]

Apparently the two men who acquired the passports booked their flights together so it would appear to be an organised operation in Thailand.

Regarding the flight latest reports say that five people who checked in did not board the aircraft and their luggage was later removed.

[Seastallion]

Apparently the two men who acquired the passports booked their flights together so it would appear to be an organised operation in Thailand.

Regarding the flight latest reports say that five people who checked in did not board the aircraft and their luggage was later removed.

I haven't read that news yet. Quite significant, I would think.

[Costas2008]

"Hundreds of passports are lost or stolen on Phuket each year, raising fears they could fall into the hands of criminal or terrorist networks."

Thousands of passports are lost or stolen all over the world each year.

Why single out Phuket?

Where there is concentration of tourists, crime and thieving is very common.

Stop, bashing Pucket.

[zydeco]

When is the last time any good news at all came out of Thailand?

[theslime]

Pick up the wrong Girl pissed up and PP and money gone when you awake,

[winstonc]

When is the last time any good news at all came out of Thailand?

2008..thaksin left..never to return

[somchaismith]

Okay, if the passports were 'lost' or 'stolen' they'll be no need for these guys to sweat, when the FBI comes a calling.

[mrtoad]

When is the last time any good news at all came out of Thailand?

The Hub announcements, but we haven't had many of those of late either

[crusader79]

When is the last time any good news at all came out of Thailand?

Miss Universe 1988

Edited March 9, 2014 by crusader79

[darrendsd]

"Hundreds of passports are lost or stolen on Phuket each year, raising fears they could fall into the hands of criminal or terrorist networks."

Thousands of passports are lost or stolen all over the world each year.

Why single out Phuket?

Where there is concentration of tourists, crime and thieving is very common.

Stop, bashing Pucket.

Read the report before stating it is Phuket bashing

2 passengers listed as being on the flight had their Passports stolen in Phuket

Why is Phuket bashing if it is stating the facts?

[mojorison]

Make some arrests and charge them with conspiracy and terrorism... then they may understand the gravity of their crimes.

[impulse]

"Hundreds of passports are lost or stolen on Phuket each year, raising fears they could fall into the hands of criminal or terrorist networks."

Thousands of passports are lost or stolen all over the world each year.

Why single out Phuket?

Where there is concentration of tourists, crime and thieving is very common.

Stop, bashing Pucket.

On an earlier trip to Phuket in August last year Mr Maraldi had his passport stolen from a car rental agency.

According to media reports quoting Austrian authorities Mr Kozel had his passport stolen in the same part of Phuket 18 months earlier.

Quick, name one other tourist town where passports were stolen and used to board a plane that's now missing. Then maybe they'll leave Phuket alone.

[maimeephom]

PP PRUNE pilots forum have pictures of the tickets. Used by the the stolen passport holders. Priced inThai bart (They could well be fake)

However, a OP checked out the booking locator number... and the tickets were alledgedly issued in

Pattaya.

[clockman]

Just another indicator, of the lack of law in Thailand.

[Lite Beer]

Stolen Phuket passports a connection to Malaysian Airlines flight

International media is reporting that investigations into the stolen passports of two passengers listed on missing Malaysia Airlines flight 370 have now focussed on Phuket.

Police in Malaysia have also viewed CCTV footage of the passengers on the flight, specifically looking for images of two men listed as Italian Luigi Maraldi and Austrian Christian Kozel.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Mr Maraldi, 37, was surprised to see his name on the passenger manifest because he was in fact holidaying in Thailand.

He posted on Facebook yesterday, “Now I have learned that [on] the plane [that] disappeared in Malaysia, there was an Italian named Luigi Maraldi [on board]. In telling you that is not me, I want to express my closeness to the family."

On an earlier trip to Phuket in August last year Mr Maraldi had his passport stolen from a car rental agency, the Herald reported.

Other media reports quoted Austrian authorities saying Mr Kozel had his passport stolen in the same part of Phuket 18 months earlier.

The Italian honorary consul in Phuket Francesco Pensato confirmed Mr Maraldi is in Phuket and Italian authorities are checking whether the man on the plane may have been a different man with the same name and date of birth, the Herald reported.

The South China Morning Post said Austrian Foreign Ministry spokesman Martin Weiss confirmed that a name listed on the manifest matched that of an Austrian passport reported stolen two years ago in Phuket. Weiss would not confirm the identity, although Britain’s Daily Mirror website named him as Christian Kozel, aged 30.

Source: http://www.thephuketnews.com/stolen-phuket-passports-a-connection-to-malaysian-airlines-flight-45037.php

-- Phuket News 2014-03-09

[jalansanitwong]

Okay, if the passports were 'lost' or 'stolen' they'll be no need for these guys to sweat, when the FBI comes a calling.

Exactly what i was thinking.Selling western passports and reporting it stolen is common in Thailand., Theyre worth up to a thousand dollars each.

The cops will want to know if they sold the PP to a passport smuggler. The Thai cops and immigration know who these guys are.

[edwardandtubs]

I'm surprised there isn't an international system for national authorities to inform airlines about stolen passports and prevent people using them from buying tickets.

[Prbkk]

Make some arrests and charge them with conspiracy and terrorism... then they may understand the gravity of their crimes.

yes, agree. This crime is not taken seriously enough in many countries. I would hand out very hefty jail time for anyone stealing a passport..and for those who think it is clever to sell their own and claim it has been stolen. 10 years jail.

[Maestro]

...

On an earlier trip to Phuket in August last year Mr Maraldi had his passport stolen from a car rental agency.

...

It would be interesting to know the name of this car rental agency that asks its customers to leave the passports with them and then has the passports stolen from them. I have a feeling that the FBI will be looking into this. How many passports were stolen? Did passport theft from that agency happen often? Is there any record of other passports stolen from this agency having subsequently been used for travel? Etc.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[MobileContent]

Hundreds of passports are lost or stolen on Phuket each year, raising fears they could fall into the hands of criminal or terrorist networks.

Many passports actually don't get stolen but tourists sell them for some quick cash, normally around 10k-15k Baht.

I would focus on those tourists that sell their PP for cash to human smuggling groups.

[MobileContent]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

Make some arrests and charge them with conspiracy and terrorism... then they may understand the gravity of their crimes.

yes, agree. This crime is not taken seriously enough in many countries. I would hand out very hefty jail time for anyone stealing a passport..and for those who think it is clever to sell their own and claim it has been stolen. 10 years jail.

+1 good point

[thomash]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

...
On an earlier trip to Phuket in August last year Mr Maraldi had his passport stolen from a car rental agency.
...

It would be interesting to know the name of this car rental agency that asks its customers to leave the passports with them and then has the passports stolen from them. I have a feeling that the FBI will be looking into this. How many passports were stolen? Did passport theft from that agency happen often? Is there any record of other passports stolen from this agency having subsequently been used for travel? Etc.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

I guess what your saying there will actually be a proper investigation into a possible racket of stealing and selling passports something that obviously the Thai police have not done because they are most likely being paid off!

[sfokevin]

I'm surprised there isn't an international system for national authorities to inform airlines about stolen passports and prevent people using them from buying tickets.

This was my thought?... Any time you fly in or out af a modern airport (Like Kuala Lumpur) you have your passport number scanned or punched into a computer?... Or a photo taken to compare with the entry photo?... Wouldn't there be a international database of lost passports?...

[Prbkk]

I'm surprised there isn't an international system for national authorities to inform airlines about stolen passports and prevent people using them from buying tickets.

This was my thought?... Any time you fly in or out af a modern airport (Like Kuala Lumpur) you have your passport number scanned or punched into a computer?... Or a photo taken to compare with the entry photo?... Wouldn't there be a international database of lost passports?...

There is one: it has 38,000,000 passports listed on it. One of the issues raised now is why that database was not accessed at KLIA...indeed, itis it used widely at all?

[JRSoul]

My new electronic passport was stolen, I believe by my BIL who had left for BKK in the 3 day gap between when I last used it to buy an airfare and when it was noted missing. I reported it as stolen to Samui police, that it had been taken from my well-secured house, and my suspicions as to had taken it. Their only action was to issue a report, and give me erroneous directions as to what further steps were now necessary.

For the next 12 months, every time I left or re-entered Thailand there were minor delays, nothing serious. No problems experienced entering Malaysia, Cambodia, or Australia (passport issuer).

[pitrevie]

I'm surprised there isn't an international system for national authorities to inform airlines about stolen passports and prevent people using them from buying tickets.

I read several years ago that Interpol actually have a database of passports that have been reported stolen. At the time it said that the Swiss off all people used to make 45,000 checks using this database per month and get a few hundred hits. While at the same time the UK made only a few hundred requests during the same time period. I wrote to my MP at the time and got a reply back that could have been written by Sir Humphrey.Appleby.

[MK1]

Thailand has simply been dragged into this because the country is big magnet for undesirables due to being one of the world’s most popular tourist destinations and having weak un-enforced laws to go along with it.

Perhaps predominantly corruption is to blame, but now it's a prime opportunity for the International media to beat up on the likes of Phuket and highlight all the weaknesses as a consequence to this event.

Edited March 9, 2014 by MK1

[tomyummer]

...

On an earlier trip to Phuket in August last year Mr Maraldi had his passport stolen from a car rental agency.

...

It would be interesting to know the name of this car rental agency that asks its customers to leave the passports with them and then has the passports stolen from them. I have a feeling that the FBI will be looking into this. How many passports were stolen? Did passport theft from that agency happen often? Is there any record of other passports stolen from this agency having subsequently been used for travel? Etc.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

But as of tomorrow, if not today, the rental car agency has already closed and skipped town.