Phuket mayor slams 'frightening' police raid on brother's home

[Jim walker]

So this is what happens under martial law for a bouncing cheque from a drug dealer smash down the door and go arrest the bouncer send in the boys in black a bit better than civilian law to soft and wishy washy going through the Thai court process get in and get him by the throat that will teach him and his bouncing cheques, just have to pay for his drugs with cash next time

[DaffyDuck]

Phuket. 'nuff said.

For a <deleted>' bounced check?

[toooa]

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Police state in the making.

A police state run by an honest police is much better than the near anarchy that has been in Thailand the last decades. This high flying guy thinks he is beyond the law or arrest, and hence the shock.

What the hell are you on?

[peecee]

Police state in the making.

What? A bit late for that, unless you are perhaps quoting someone else from the 1960's.

1930's I think!

[toooa]

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Oldsailor35 - guilt by association? You are joke, surely? Hang on....presumption of innocence... Either you jest...or...you are writing from AuZtralia...

Nah, he's not right, just having a lend of himself...

[Alwyn]

.....whatever the circumstances....it appears that a crime was committed...and there is an arrest warrant to be served......

....if it is fraud.....and we don't know the details or the amount....shall we plead for 'civility' suddenly....???

The answer is clearly YES, we should have civility. An arrest warrant to be served and no search warrant means you can't go kicking doors down because you feel like it. 20 mongrel cops hyped up on adrenalin and including a police sharp-shooter for a warrant against a bloke for a bounced cheque seems a little unnecessary doesn't it. 20 armed dimwits and what they find is an old woman and a tot. If one of these armed police had shot wither of them what would you be saying now "they deserved it"? You don't know it's fraud either do you. It's an arrest warrant and a judge (if it goes that far) will decide if it's fraud or not. People like you who condemn people without knowing ANY facts at all are the sort of people that start wars

[sureerat9]

Ha ha

[gbswales]

no doubt hoping the element of surprise would yield some evidence of something

[gbswales]

mind you how often are major criminals arrested in the US on very minor charges because that is all that can proved at the time - a better chance of proving more when they are in custody

[ChrisY1]

Who really cares......both sides are bent.....

[Partigo]

Alwyn - comps to you, Sir. It does my heart good to see such responses.

"Civility Now?"

"Yes" +++ good reply, Alwyn. As per other threads regarding the law : every body is entitled to a presumption of innocence. There ought be no guilt by association alone (mmm...even for those who are tasked with upholding the law). Earlier, some one posted that the amount of the alleged bounced cheque was the issue - wrong. If unintentionally passed, then there was no intent to defraud. If intentionally issued, then it is fraud. Subsequent to a finding of fraud, it is for a member of the judiciary to decide upon penalty (then the amount becomes relevant).

[winstonc]

she needed 200 people to back up her big mouth...pathetic woman ..n you think shes whiter than white...

[Travelman868]

just another case of the police not knowing or Following the law....is there any hope for this place when these fools are acting like this over a Cheque?

Or perhaps it was just the excuse they wanted to search the premises.....

1) Issuing a bad cheque is fraud and should be treated as such. In the UK the police are not interested so people just keep doing it, then if you take them to court

it costs us loads of money that we don't get back.

2) Now they know what it feels like to rent jet ski's in their town.

[dukebowling]

Pretty easy to deduce…somebody (enemy of the mayor) tipped of the police that there were drugs in the Mayor's home. Police use the bad cheque as an excuse to raid. No drugs…plan backfires and blows up in the polices face.

Lesson learned…always verify your sources.

[ggt]

Hum...sounds like they have been reading too many accounts of police swat team raids in the US...very destructive...abrasive officials...sometimes have the wrong house and citizens have been killed due to their overreaction...

Backlash protests are going on in many cities as we speak...protesting police brutality without consequences or repercussions...

[ableguy]

just another case of the police not knowing or Following the law....is there any hope for this place when these fools are acting like this over a Cheque?

It's not over a cheque, it's about the mayor head of mafia in Phuket before he conveniently died, this guys brother who was part of the set up.

[ableguy]

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Police state in the making.

A police state run by an honest police is much better than the near anarchy that has been in Thailand the last decades. This high flying guy thinks he is beyond the law or arrest, and hence the shock.

What the hell are you on?

Reality.

[German Viking]

Srisoonthorn Mayor Worawut Songyos, accompanied by more than 200 residents

why does he need or have the power to get 200 residents to support him over a "family" matter .......very strange

I would call it a good propaganda.

[rickirs]

The police are correct - they do not need warrants or court search orders to enter residences under martial law. In fact they do not even need any probable cause to search anyone at anywhere. And anyone they arrest can be tried before an unappeable military court should the Junta decide that course of action.

The police fall under the NCPO chain of command as a result of the military coup. But if they had any sense they would have cleared their action with the local military commander first. But I doubt that because there would have been at least one military officer to observe. So some police officer gets a slap on the wrist for being over ambitious.

Welcome to a society without democracy.

[MW72]

I doubt this is about a cheque. Something else is in play here.

Agreed. 20 cops to serve a warrant for a bad cheque? A bit over the top. Perhaps they were expecting trouble or maybe they all just wanted to get in on the photo opportunity . That seems to be the way of things in LOS. Get the uniform looking good and get in the photo. Style over substance.

[Wombat6]

Police state in the making.

If you are that Radical you should be in Iraq with those other crazy radicals