Unregistered Airport Taxi Driver Spared From Jail Term
By Khaosod English


A police officer installs the monitoring device on Mr. Somwang's ankle.

SAMUT PRAKAN — The court has spared an unregistered taxi driver from facing jail time due to his role as the sole breadwinner for his family.

In a briefing filed by the prosecutor to Samut Prakan Provincial Court, Somwang Poomrueng was accused of aggressively hawking his taxi service to tourists in front of the arrival hall of Suvarnabhumi Airport without permission.

Only taxi drivers who register with the airport authorities are allowed to pick up passengers at Suvarnabhumi Airport, and they are required to do so only at a taxi stand on the ground level of the facility. Nevertheless, unregistered taxi drivers are regularly seen picking up tourists just outside the arrival hall.

Mr. Somwang repeatedly returned to the area after he was sent off by security officers, the court document says.

Today the judges found Mr. Somwang guilty of 211 counts of causing annoyance over the course of three days.

The judges noted that although Mr. Somwang's offence warrants a prison term, such a punishment would severely affect the welfare of his family. According to the court documents, Mr. Somwang is the sole provider for his wife and his two children. One of his children is currently studying in sixth grade and the other is 10 months old.

"Although the defendant has committed the offence multiple times, [the court has decided] to grant the defendant a chance to change his behaviour into a good citizen, and to return to his profession to provide for his family," the verdict concluded.

The judges therefore handed down a lenient punishment, banning Mr. Somwang from Suvarnabhumi Airport for five years, and requiring him to wear an electronic device around his ankle for three months so that the authorities can monitor his behaviour.

Source: http://en.khaosod.co.th/detail.php?newsid=1403531088&typecate=06&section=


-- Khaosod English 2014-06-24

I think we will all he sure as hell wasn't using the meter with those tourists as well

All very well but lets see some big fish in the courts ....and doing their time, no bail.

Good decision

I think this is all just for show and everything will return to normal. If the Junta was really serious and not just putting a show then they would be appealing this.

This deserves jail time?????

Up there with the 250 micro grams of coke. 211 counts of annoyance???? Who writes these laws?

My wife's cousin was robbed at gun point by one of those unlicesnsed drivers and literally booted out of the taxi onto the road.

Deleted.

It is good to see the law being followed at last and people being held accountable. Not just at the airports, but throughout out Thailand. Nice to see the DRT have a human side as well allowing the man to escape a prison term.

I see the pessimistic attitude is still being voiced. Surely we must be on the brink of where they start saying "Too many people are getting arrested and this is turning into a police state" When they say that I know the DRT are doing a wonderful job and the bitter few are writhing in a disbelief that Thailand could be everything the PTP could not make it.

If you think you have seen fanciful excuses now, just wait. You ain't seen nothing yet.

Well done DRT.

I think this is all just for show and everything will return to normal. If the Junta was really serious and not just putting a show then they would be appealing this.

Oh, change the record chooka! Don't you have anything positive to say at all? Or are you still hurting from the loss of your poor, hard done by, misunderstood leaders?

The "junta" won't appeal this because it's the right thing to do. If they appeal, they'd be looked on as too harsh and unfair. They are being pretty fair about most things generally (aside from inconveniencing a few petty and major thieves) and the positive "energy" in this country now is incredible compared to even a few weeks ago.

So, perhaps you could look at the brighter and more positive side of things . . . rather than dismissing everything out of hand because they are doing a better job that Thaksin ever did. In a years time when you indeed see that things have "returned to normal" and there is no obvious improvement in "Thailand", then you can bitch about what a bad job they've done.

I think this is all just for show and everything will return to normal. If the Junta was really serious and not just putting a show then they would be appealing this.

Oh, change the record chooka! Don't you have anything positive to say at all? Or are you still hurting from the loss of your poor, hard done by, misunderstood leaders?

The "junta" won't appeal this because it's the right thing to do. If they appeal, they'd be looked on as too harsh and unfair. They are being pretty fair about most things generally (aside from inconveniencing a few petty and major thieves) and the positive "energy" in this country now is incredible compared to even a few weeks ago.

So, perhaps you could look at the brighter and more positive side of things . . . rather than dismissing everything out of hand because they are doing a better job that Thaksin ever did. In a years time when you indeed see that things have "returned to normal" and there is no obvious improvement in "Thailand", then you can bitch about what a bad job they've done.

I agree they have done more than the lowlife Thaksin but I am still sure everything will return to normal when the new pigs get their snouts in the trough everything will back to the way it was.

Why is it everytime they commit a crime, and it was okay at the time of doing so, and when it comes for punishment, suddenly they are the victim?

He knew that it was against the law for whatever he is doing. He would be the one ripping off tourists, not letting them out of the cab unless the passengers pay the fare, deliberately going the wrong roads on purpose, for all we know.

And then somchai when caught, always play the victim. You CANT arrest me, I need to live, I'm a human being too story. Why not play the victim earlier? And proactively think, I must be a honest hardworking lower class individual, I can't afford to commit a crime or else my family is toasted? Huh, somchai?

"Although the defendant has committed the offence multiple times, [the court has decided] to grant the defendant a chance to change his behaviour into a good citizen, and to return to his profession to provide for his family," the verdict concluded.

Return to his profession - as an unregistered taxi driver? That will show him, he now has to find unsuspecting tourists outside of Suvarnabhumi.

211 counts seems to warrant some punishment and they're lettimg him return to his proffesion.

I'm going to remember that excuse of hardship if im ever in trouble. Just seems that the majority of families in thailand would suffer if the bread winner went to the monkey house.

So, do I understand it correctly that having a family that depends on the proceeds of your crimes is grounds for avoiding jail in Thailand?

They should take his car off him and point him towards some of the factories that are short handed in Samut Prakan now the "foreigners" are not there to take the Thai jobs.

After 211 counts of annoying people in 3 days this guy needs a wake up call every 5 minutes for a few days

Well lucky for him I am not the judge! I would have given him 211 day of hard labour working in a quarry that's short of Cambodian's.

Why is it everytime they commit a crime, and it was okay at the time of doing so, and when it comes for punishment, suddenly they are the victim?

He knew that it was against the law for whatever he is doing. He would be the one ripping off tourists, not letting them out of the cab unless the passengers pay the fare, deliberately going the wrong roads on purpose, for all we know.

And then somchai when caught, always play the victim. You CANT arrest me, I need to live, I'm a human being too story. Why not play the victim earlier? And proactively think, I must be a honest hardworking lower class individual, I can't afford to commit a crime or else my family is toasted? Huh, somchai?

Ok, maybe they give one more chance to Somchai so they can show to Thailand they have good heart but they will keep an eye on him and the first wrong step he 'll do they 'll punish him double. At least I hope!!

My wife's cousin was robbed at gun point by one of those unlicesnsed drivers and literally booted out of the taxi onto the road.

Nothing wrong with that. Everything goes in Thailand, as long as you do it in order to feed your family!

So, do I understand it correctly that having a family that depends on the proceeds of your crimes is grounds for avoiding jail in Thailand?

Yes, you understand correctly. The question is, what if you have say 10 kids. Will that allow you to rob a bank? Obviously you need alot of money to feed 10 kids.

My wife's cousin was robbed at gun point by one of those unlicesnsed drivers and literally booted out of the taxi onto the road.

Being the breadwinner, you go free. Almost as big of a joke as Egypt.

"Although the defendant has committed the offence multiple times, [the court has decided] to grant the defendant a chance to change his behaviour into a good citizen, and to return to his profession to provide for his family," the verdict concluded.

Return to his profession - as an unregistered taxi driver? That will show him, he now has to find unsuspecting tourists outside of Suvarnabhumi.

You missed the point. He is not registered with the airport which if he was, would enable him to pick up passengers there but only from the designated taxi rank.

It doesn't say he was un -registered Taxi Driver

Sounds a very fair punishment to me if all he did was try to avoid the AOT scam of charging 50 baht to everyone using a taxi there. If he was booting passengers from the car and robbing them then not, but that does not appear to be his crime.

I am all for harsh punishment but the punishment must fit the crime and the damage to the injured party.

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"Although the defendant has committed the offence multiple times, [the court has decided] to grant the defendant a chance to change his behaviour into a good citizen, and to return to his profession to provide for his family," the verdict concluded.

Return to his profession - as an unregistered taxi driver? That will show him, he now has to find unsuspecting tourists outside of Suvarnabhumi.

He is not an illegal taxi driver, he was simply unregistered to operate officially from the airport, from where he has now been banned for 5 years.

Wow, they now have an electronic device that can monitor behaviour?

I think this is all just for show and everything will return to normal. If the Junta was really serious and not just putting a show then they would be appealing this.

Oh, change the record chooka! Don't you have anything positive to say at all? Or are you still hurting from the loss of your poor, hard done by, misunderstood leaders?

The "junta" won't appeal this because it's the right thing to do. If they appeal, they'd be looked on as too harsh and unfair. They are being pretty fair about most things generally (aside from inconveniencing a few petty and major thieves) and the positive "energy" in this country now is incredible compared to even a few weeks ago.

So, perhaps you could look at the brighter and more positive side of things . . . rather than dismissing everything out of hand because they are doing a better job that Thaksin ever did. In a years time when you indeed see that things have "returned to normal" and there is no obvious improvement in "Thailand", then you can bitch about what a bad job they've done.

I agree they have done more than the lowlife Thaksin but I am still sure everything will return to normal when the new pigs get their snouts in the trough everything will back to the way it was.

The world needs more contrarians to keep the posting interesting, you are one !!

No his not-----------------------

[the court has decided] to grant the defendant a chance to change his behaviour into a good citizen, and to return to his profession to provide for his family,"

well i hope the taxi driver understood al last the meaning of that way to make justice without pain.

i give an aplause to the judge because i still think like many that teaching is better than punishment ( and cheaper for the society too)

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Why is it everytime they commit a crime, and it was okay at the time of doing so, and when it comes for punishment, suddenly they are the victim?

He knew that it was against the law for whatever he is doing. He would be the one ripping off tourists, not letting them out of the cab unless the passengers pay the fare, deliberately going the wrong roads on purpose, for all we know.

And then somchai when caught, always play the victim. You CANT arrest me, I need to live, I'm a human being too story. Why not play the victim earlier? And proactively think, I must be a honest hardworking lower class individual, I can't afford to commit a crime or else my family is toasted? Huh, somchai?

Ok, maybe they give one more chance to Somchai so they can show to Thailand they have good heart but they will keep an eye on him and the first wrong step he 'll do they 'll punish him double. At least I hope!!

That is the EXACT problem I am talking about. Good heart/Family/Poor = evade crime?

I am so sick of this. I go rob a bank, OHHHH give me a chance, I have good heart? I have a family to feed? I have 10 kids? Are they not shameful? Chances, why chances? So people can commit crimes and until they are caught, they will do good?

This is the 3rd article I've read on crimes and wrongdoings, and how it's UNLAWFUL or UNRIGHT to catch them at their wrongdoings just because "POOR/CHANCES/etc."

Was he a good person when he decided to pick up passengers at the airport without registering? Registration began so that passengers can have a record with designated taxis to prevent the "problems" the passengers have had in the past. If there is a problem, IF ANY, that taxi will lose his registration with the airport. And atleast we have a record of who drove where/what/how if problems arise. This allows for quality checks and a system going on. Of course, this smart poor somchai thinks he is better than everyone else and decides to go over the system. He is the EXACT role example that will break the system and lure others to do the same as him.

Keep in mind, he is not as innocent as he sounds. If he merely try to pick up passengers and succeeded, he would only be chased out and put on a blacklist. BUT there must have been many complaints from passengers about this particular license plate taxi about his wrongdoings. That led to an investigation by the police. Most complaints are passengers from the airport, which led to the police checking the license plate and checking the list of registration at the airport, to find that the taxi is not registered in the airport. A+B= C Arrest him.