Yesterday evening I was called in for help when a German friend was visiting Patpong market on her last day in Thailand. When she was at Patpong browsing over the market when she was at a watch stand. Next to her was a Thai man standing telling her that she could buy better quality at another stall. She followed him to that stall (also at Patpong, same street).

The woman from the stall layed out some watches and after a while the Thai man disappeared. According to the stall owner her friend (Thai man) disappeared with a 10,000 THB watch. She told the stall owner that the Thai man was not her friend. The stall owner called in some "police officer". "The police officer" told my German friend or she could pay for the watch that "her friend" (the Thai man) took or get arrested.

She called me and I went down there with my Thai wife. My wife talked with the "police officer" and he would let her go if she paid her 5,000 THB and all charges would be dropped. We already thought it was a scam but my German friend did not want to miss her plane having herself arrested. So she ended up paying the "police officer" 5,000 THB to receive her passport back. Everyone be carefull when browsing at a market. This scam is really new to me.

Posts removed: vulgar /slur

That's a common scam, happens in Pattaya but haven't heard of one for a while. Her first mistake was getting assisted by a "guide". Smells of a scam immediately.

Second mistake was offering her passport. NEVER carry your passport - the BIB know you will pay 10K to get it back.

The scam was not about the watch, it was because the BIB had his mitts on her passport. Once they have your passport, they will even just make up an alleged crime to extort money from you.

If it was just the watch and no passport, she might have got away with nothing or a token 1k Baht.

A good way to deter the BIB in this situation is to wave a fist full of 1,000 Baht notes in the air and say the word "corruption" which is the same in Thai. The BIB loses face to all the locals watching and will let you go. They prefer to receive their tea money discretely. This also works at roadside stops - wave the cash around and the cop will do a runner.

We should have a pinned thread : Thailand hub of scams.

Im not sure he was a real BIB seems to me the guide stall owner and someone dressed as BIB were all in it together.

Im not sure he was a real BIB seems to me the guide stall owner and someone dressed as BIB were all in it together.

He was dressed up as a BIB and also had ID. My wife asked him to ID himself. He then lowered the bribe money.

Im not sure he was a real BIB seems to me the guide stall owner and someone dressed as BIB were all in it together.

Might well have been one of the BMA Thetsakit officials. There are lots of them hanging round Silom to stop the street traders starting up shop before 7.00 pm.

They look very like policeman with 'Police' branded copied attachments to their belts, but they do not carry guns.

They must be really hurting financially not having the opportunity make the money they used to.These are the guys that do the 2000 baht cigarette butt fines.

They seem to sit around Silom all day wondering where there next bottle of Johnnie Red is coming from.

She should have refused to pay and asked to go to the station. Then she would've known if it was real or not. You should never pay a fine here without been issued with a ticket...They always stop the scam if you stand up to them and show no fear.. .

Lovely thai people at their best.....outstanding once again....and again...

...and your post is disgusting Thai-bashing at its worst.

These were a few slime-bags working a tourist trap... not the Thai people in general.

ok so you were there ?? so you must know all about it then go bishop bash

No I wasn't there. I spend most of my time in Chiang Mai among family and friends. I avoid tourist areas like the plague.

I've spent most of my adult life among working class Thais - chow ban - and when people gratuitously insult them I get pissed-off.

She should have refused to pay and asked to go to the station. Then she would've known if it was real or not. You should never pay a fine here without been issued with a ticket...They always stop the scam if you stand up to them and show no fear.. .

Or she has to pay more people. The shop owner the arresting policeman,the desk policeman and maybe any policeman that is in the station at the time. Best to pay up and be gone the more involved it gets the more expensive it gets

The lesson is to NEVER shop at those tourist markets in places like Patpong. Just rip offs anyway.

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Well my friend was in Thailand on a business trip for a mayor German company attending and presenting some international seminars on International Trading at Queen Sirikit Expo Center and at Chula University this Monday and Tuesday. She was staying at the Crowne Plaza Bangkok Lumpini Park. Not the cheapest hotel in Bangkok. But any how I have reported your post as "libel". Please go back where you came from...

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Dunno, they're preferable to those kind of people who kneel before big corporations and worship them. "Don't shop in markets..! Shop at the BIG C...!". Sad thing is you'll probably get your wish and one day markets and stalls will be a thing of the past, and we'll all be shuffling aimlessly through homogenised malls.

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What a ridiculous attitude.

There's no greed in bargain hunting, in fact it's smart.

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Well my friend was browsing over the Patpong market while she still had a few hours off before leaving to the airport. She arrived last Monday at 6:20 AM and was sceduled to leave at Thursday 2:10 AM.

First time in Thailand. Now also the last time in Thailand. And I can assure that the company she is an executive and board member for, will withdraw their investments... It's a mayor banking and insurrance company.....

I have hardly seen any one that pi**ed off!!!

Edited November 27, 201411 yr by CharlieH

Well my friend was browsing over the Patpong market while she still had a few hours off before leaving to the airport. She arrived last Monday at 6:20 AM and was sceduled to leave at Thursday 2:10 AM.

First time in Thailand. Now also the last time in Thailand. And I can assure that the company she is an executive and board member for, will withdraw their investments... It's a mayor banking and insurrance company.....

I have hardly seen any one that pi**ed off!!!

Good for everybody that this is her last time in Thailand.

Anybody who can't learn from their experiences here and come out the better and smarter doesn't belong here.

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...and your post is disgusting Thai-bashing at its worst.

These were a few slime-bags working a tourist trap... not the Thai people in general.

you can have similar things in Rome, Paris or New York....

Edited November 27, 201411 yr by Rooo

Good for everybody that this is her last time in Thailand.

Anybody who can't learn from their experiences here and come out the better and smarter doesn't belong here.

Live with dogs, you will get flees too..

Lovely thai people at their best.....outstanding once again....and again...

...and your post is disgusting Thai-bashing at its worst.

These were a few slime-bags working a tourist trap... not the Thai people in general.

you can have similar things in Rome, Paris or New York....

While those cities may have scams, and probably more petty street crime than Bangkok, in those places the police are not going to conspire with the scammers to steal your money. It's only in Thailand that I am more afraid of the police than I am of muggers.

She forgot, (or didn't know), one of the golden rules of travelling.

If you are approached by a local when in a foreign country, they are probably up to no good.

A good way to deter the BIB in this situation is to wave a fist full of 1,000 Baht notes in the air and say the word "corruption" which is the same in Thai. The BIB loses face to all the locals watching and will let you go. They prefer to receive their tea money discretely. This also works at roadside stops - wave the cash around and the cop will do a runner.

Jesus, you are going to get someone arrested man. I do not suggest you flap a fist full of 1,000baht notes screaming corruption if you value those bahts and your freedom.

Lovely thai people at their best.....outstanding once again....and again...

...and your post is disgusting Thai-bashing at its worst.

These were a few slime-bags working a tourist trap... not the Thai people in general.

you can have similar things in Rome, Paris or New York....

While those cities may have scams, and probably more petty street crime than Bangkok, in those places the police are not going to conspire with the scammers to steal your money. It's only in Thailand that I am more afraid of the police than I am of muggers.

That is a valid point.....

Greed begets greed you cannot cheat an honest man or woman.

Greed begets greed you cannot cheat an honest man or woman.

Ho Ho Ho. I laugh on you.

Greed begets greed you cannot cheat an honest man or woman.

Ho Ho Ho. I laugh on you.

Laugh as much as you like your friend was suckered into a cheap Rolex deal and paid the price.

As the head of blah blah she should have gone to Siam Swiss and bought a real one.

What a load of cobblers.

What a shameless rip off.

Another satisfied tourist selling the benefits of Thailand to friends and family

Greed begets greed you cannot cheat an honest man or woman.

Ho Ho Ho. I laugh on you.

Laugh as much as you like your friend was suckered into a cheap Rolex deal and paid the price.

As the head of blah blah she should have gone to Siam Swiss and bought a real one.

What a load of cobblers.

Read your post. Especially the part about "you can't cheat an honest man"

Then Google "Jet Ski Scam".

Let me know if you can't see the flaw in your logic.

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Im not sure he was a real BIB seems to me the guide stall owner and someone dressed as BIB were all in it together.

He was dressed up as a BIB and also had ID. My wife asked him to ID himself. He then lowered the bribe money.

Not having a go as it was good of your wife and yourself offering assistance, but did it not sound strange that the accusation was that the "Thai friend" ran off with a 10,000 baht watch.

And yet everybody seemed to be happy when 5,000 baht was accepted? I know I would be really p1ssed off if I was the watch seller.

I know that your friend was in a rush and didn't want to miss her flight, but in cases like this, straight out refuse to pay and take it to the police station.

IMHO, far too many people are intimidated by these scum; times are changing, they are now starting to think twice about follow-up actions.

Edited November 27, 201411 yr by chrisinth

Im not sure he was a real BIB seems to me the guide stall owner and someone dressed as BIB were all in it together.

Might well have been one of the BMA Thetsakit officials. There are lots of them hanging round Silom to stop the street traders starting up shop before 7.00 pm.

They look very like policeman with 'Police' branded copied attachments to their belts, but they do not carry

guns.

They must be really hurting financially not having the opportunity make the money they used to.These are the guys that do the 2000 baht cigarette butt fines.

They seem to sit around Silom all day wondering where there next bottle of Johnnie Red is coming from.

Wow depressingly dodgy..I can't stand that area around Patpong and my wife won't even walk in the market area, she thinks it's a cesspool.