‘Mafia island’: From paradise to bloodshed

[jamesbrock]

Come on guys, allow me to make a fool of myself in this thread, you have usurped that privilege for yourselves for 4 months now in every Koh Tao thread.

At least you can admit it. Not many can.

[hobz]

Koh Maffia is riddled with bad police and maffia, as is I expect many other thai islands (and the mainland)

The police cant be bothered to investigate these murders.

"Dont come to Thailand, Shut up and leave us alone, dont bother us or expect civilisation or sympathy"

"If you were not in Thailand this wouldn't have happened"

Police in thailand IS mafia ..

[BirdsandBooze]

I think TAT coud find a positive in this. 'Whodunnit' holidays to Koh Tao with real murders to be solved.

[thailandchilli]

Why all this speculation? Did you not read the "Samui Times" this week? It told us "Relatives of a French tourist who hanged himself did not doubt the nature of his death, Surat Thani police said." Interesting facts are reported in the Samui Times, like this week they tell us that Thailand has the world's "longest single-span suspension bridge". ;-0

mmmm Surat Thani police said

"The embassy has said relatives did not doubt his death after they were explained of the investigation procedure of the Thai police and the autopsy result."

Now the French government is also into the cover up of crimes in Koh Tao?

Did I say that? Putting words in my mouth? Think you'll find I was responding to a post by Ducking where he mentioned the RTP

[PaulHamon]

Kao Tao was the place I feel in love with Thailand in 2002 :/ Made we wanna live here.

[CharlieH]

Post removed

7) You will respect fellow members and post in a civil manner. No personal attacks, hateful or insulting towards other members, (flaming) Stalking of members on either the forum or via PM will not be allowed.

[sabaitoo]

Why all this speculation? Did you not read the "Samui Times" this week? It told us "Relatives of a French tourist who hanged himself did not doubt the nature of his death, Surat Thani police said." Interesting facts are reported in the Samui Times, like this week they tell us that Thailand has the world's "longest single-span suspension bridge". ;-0

mmmm Surat Thani police said

"The embassy has said relatives did not doubt his death after they were explained of the investigation procedure of the Thai police and the autopsy result."

Now the French government is also into the cover up of crimes in Koh Tao?

Now this it what you claim... I do not recall to have seen any statements from the French Embassy, Source please or did you dream it up yourself...if the source is RTP...oh well

[Anthony5]

Why all this speculation? Did you not read the "Samui Times" this week? It told us "Relatives of a French tourist who hanged himself did not doubt the nature of his death, Surat Thani police said." Interesting facts are reported in the Samui Times, like this week they tell us that Thailand has the world's "longest single-span suspension bridge". ;-0

mmmm Surat Thani police said

"The embassy has said relatives did not doubt his death after they were explained of the investigation procedure of the Thai police and the autopsy result."

Now the French government is also into the cover up of crimes in Koh Tao?

Did I say that? Putting words in my mouth? Think you'll find I was responding to a post by Ducking where he mentioned the RTP

You made it clear in your previous post that you don't consider the statement of the RTP as credible, but you consider the statement of the French embassy as credible.

You should have know that there is little chance that the RTP has even communicated with the family in France, even if it was for language issues only, so you should also have known that they are only parroting the statement from the Embassy.

[thailandchilli]

Anthony5#158

This statement is clear to you is it? mmmm Surat Thani police said

Where have I considered the statement from the French Embassy credible? I haven't seen one, all I've seen is a statement by the RTP claiming thats what the French Embassy said.

However if I did see a statement directly from the French embassy then I would give it more credibility

[ozyjon]

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This won't slow down tourism there.

How many check for sinister news stories when booking a ticket?

You're kidding, right?

I think it's exactly as was said, i just saw a commercial on TV here in Europe for Thailand just days after

horror in Paris and it showed the beautiful sandy beaches, the temples the food,, no didn't see any dead

people or body parts being picked up from an accident by a falang who was riding his motor bike too fast

and crashed killing himself and who knows, people only know what they see on the media and Thailand is

precious tropical jewel waiting to be discovered. I read TripAdvisor when i want to book a hotel or Google

when i want to know about a place, never read about crime in my research, i think we here on Thaivisa are

here for a reason, we care, we share and we learn and we take the time to contribute so others will learn

but many don't take the time to research, as i said before, they only know what they are spoofed.

[Anthony5]

Anthony5#158

This statement is clear to you is it? mmmm Surat Thani police said

Where have I considered the statement from the French Embassy credible? I haven't seen one, all I've seen is a statement by the RTP claiming thats what the French Embassy said.

However if I did see a statement directly from the French embassy then I would give it more credibility

I am so sorry that the French Embassy didn't inform you personally, and firstly, about their statement.

Surat Thani police commander Pol Maj Gen Apichart Boonsriroj said the police were in touch with the French embassy after a French tourist, Dmitri Pofv, was found hanged in a rented Bungalow room in Koh Tao on January 1.

The embassy has said relatives did not doubt his death after they were explained of the investigation procedure of the Thai police and the autopsy result.

http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/relatives-wont-doubt-frenchs-death-koh-tao

Now I'm sure you have no doubts that the French Embassy will be aware of what Thailands major news agency posts on their websites, and wouldn't refrain from making a public statement if it wasn't true.

[bander]

The village chief at KT think he's reborn as Al Capone...untouchable,

[thailandchilli]

Anthony5#158

This statement is clear to you is it? mmmm Surat Thani police said

Where have I considered the statement from the French Embassy credible? I haven't seen one, all I've seen is a statement by the RTP claiming thats what the French Embassy said.

However if I did see a statement directly from the French embassy then I would give it more credibility

I am so sorry that the French Embassy didn't inform you personally, and firstly, about their statement.

Surat Thani police commander Pol Maj Gen Apichart Boonsriroj said the police were in touch with the French embassy after a French tourist, Dmitri Pofv, was found hanged in a rented Bungalow room in Koh Tao on January 1.

The embassy has said relatives did not doubt his death after they were explained of the investigation procedure of the Thai police and the autopsy result.

http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/relatives-wont-doubt-frenchs-death-koh-tao

Now I'm sure you have no doubts that the French Embassy will be aware of what Thailands major news agency posts on their websites, and wouldn't refrain from making a public statement if it wasn't true.

Sarcasm shows your level of intelligence and your comprehension of that statement shows the limit of your grasp of an official statement made by an Embassy.

I can dig up a few media articles where the RTP have made statements on behalf of the UK police and even UK government that clearly did not belong to them. One particular statement from The Thai Prime Minister who also made a claim that was far from the truth and as a consequence the FCO issued an official press release to state the true statement

[Anthony5]

Anthony5#158

This statement is clear to you is it? mmmm Surat Thani police said

Where have I considered the statement from the French Embassy credible? I haven't seen one, all I've seen is a statement by the RTP claiming thats what the French Embassy said.

However if I did see a statement directly from the French embassy then I would give it more credibility

I am so sorry that the French Embassy didn't inform you personally, and firstly, about their statement.

Surat Thani police commander Pol Maj Gen Apichart Boonsriroj said the police were in touch with the French embassy after a French tourist, Dmitri Pofv, was found hanged in a rented Bungalow room in Koh Tao on January 1.

The embassy has said relatives did not doubt his death after they were explained of the investigation procedure of the Thai police and the autopsy result.

http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/relatives-wont-doubt-frenchs-death-koh-tao

Now I'm sure you have no doubts that the French Embassy will be aware of what Thailands major news agency posts on their websites, and wouldn't refrain from making a public statement if it wasn't true.

Sarcasm shows your level of intelligence and your comprehension of that statement shows the limit of your grasp of an official statement made by an Embassy.

I can dig up a few media articles where the RTP have made statements on behalf of the UK police and even UK government that clearly did not belong to them. One particular statement from The Thai Prime Minister who also made a claim that was far from the truth and as a consequence the FCO issued an official press release to state the true statement

Enjoy your evening, and I wish you a healthy night rest.

The new logo of Koh Tao

Edited January 11, 2015 by CharlieH

[Traveller45]

This observation will have been made by others: Dimitri Povse is not a very French name. Now I know that you can have a French passport, much like a UK and US one, for all kinds of reasons, without really being from there in a cultural sense. Still...

[bander]

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They way things are handled here (not solved in a proper way) lead to the most worrisome questions: WHO IS NEXT and HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE?

Easy to answer: a foreign girl who wants to get raped and killed.... it's just a matter of time

[elektrified]

The French guys suicide looks iffy - tied hands is a tad difficult like that and a note written in English? And what happened to Sam Austin from Bristol - reported to have died their and then complete media silence.

People should think carefully before they go there - but many won't or simply will go anyway.

The cash will keep rolling in and greasing the wheels.

Like all of the Koh Tao threads there is so much info to read and I don't know where to begin -- can anyone confirm...was the "suicide note" that was recovered written in English as stated by Baerboxer? And not in French (or Russian)??? If true, that would be very suspicious!

[poweratradio]

This is good material for TAT.

"Visit Koh Tao......The Mafia is waiting to greet you"

Yeah "Walk on the Wild Side" visit Thailand.

[Shadychris]

K Samui is a mafia controlled island - who in turn are under the wing of Suratthani's mafia. They have a totally different mind-set to the K Tao animals though. Sure there's been a couple of murders over the decades but mostly it's a safe place where the mafia understand that apart from coconuts, tourism is it's biggest income stream and they do try to protect that income stream, as opposed to murdering it. Most tourists, if not all, don't even know there's a mafia there.

Being a Newbie I am planning to start exploring Thailand at weekends.... I'll be travelling alone.... are all of the islands as dodgy as Koh Tao appears to be??

Kevin - I would be very wary of letting the negative opinions and comments from some you may read on this forum influence you too much. Whilst there are some very well balanced and knowledgeable folk on here who will offer sensible and accurate information there is also a large contingent of bitter, bigoted and uninformed people who like nothing more than to run down Thailand at every opportunity, and sensationalise and exaggerate just about everything.

To be fair there is 'Mafia' style presence in areas of Thailand just as there is in many other parts of the world - Ibiza, Corfu and Crete just to name a few.. Strictly speaking the term Mafia is not always accurately applied as that relates to the Cosa Nostra based in Sicily. There are Thai 'mafia' style families operating in Thailand along with Indian, Arab, Russian and Chinese gangs. However unless you are planning to sell drugs, set up a brothel or engage in any other criminal activity that will cut into these guys profits you will likely not even be aware of their presence.

I have spent a lot of time on Koh Tao and Samui and have never experienced any threat to myself. You just need to be sensible. Educate yourself a little before you go - read up on local etiquette, expected standards of behaviour and dress code, maybe learn a few basic polite words of Thai - you will be respected for it. Stick to the more public areas at night - definitely don't go walking off into dark side streets or off the beaten track after dark if alone - much the same as you wouldn't do in any strange place - even in your own country. Avoid confrontation. If you are hiring bikes cars or any other equipment make sure you inspect it carefully before you take it and photograph any damage with the date time stamp showing on the photo and make sure the hirer is aware you have that evidence. If you are in tourist areas take a note of the phone number for the Tourist Police - should you get involved in any problem not of your own making they can often be a big help - but don't expect them to bail you out if a Thai policeman catches you with a bag of weed smoking a spliff on the beach!

Also be wary of the ladies (or ladyboys) of the night - it's not unheard of for gullible guys to have their drinks spiked with rohypnol or ketamine and wake up in the morning to find that last nights walk on the wild side has cost them a lot more than they bargained for! IMHO the only region of Thailand that I would describe as remotely dangerous is the Southernmost area beyond Surrathani where there is Muslim insurgent activity However given the current global situation even that is probably no more risky than London or Paris right now...

So do some serious research other than just canvassing opinion here on TV, be sensible, and I'm sure you will have a great time and many good experiences in Thailand.

[alfalfa19]

Good to see a bit of exposure for this entire shambles. The more light that is shone on the murderous cockroaches of Koh Tao and their minions (some of whom are on this board) the better.

[HiSoLowSoNoSo]

The French guys suicide looks iffy - tied hands is a tad difficult like that and a note written in English? And what happened to Sam Austin from Bristol - reported to have died their and then complete media silence.

People should think carefully before they go there - but many won't or simply will go anyway.

The cash will keep rolling in and greasing the wheels.

Like all of the Koh Tao threads there is so much info to read and I don't know where to begin -- can anyone confirm...was the "suicide note" that was recovered written in English as stated by Baerboxer? And not in French (or Russian)??? If true, that would be very suspicious!

If the letter was handwritten it would be very easy to check with the French Guys relatives if it was his own hand writing, maybe to difficult to figure out for the RTP.

[Bakeman]

Things that make you go Hmmm.....

[englishoak]

My Son's have just returned from Koh Tao with friends and said it was a beautiful Island and the people lovely. They loved it I was a bit worried after what happened to the young British couple.They had nothing but friendliness from the local. It is very sad if this is true about Mafia the press it is getting is going to chase people away sadly.

And you unfortunately as most others are sadly ignorant of the truth of the place, how its run, who by has always has been mafia controlled for want of a better word and most Thai Islands are like this to varying degrees.

Like so many others most do not have a clue just how much tourist money in these places and in general goes into the pockets of what is essentially organised crime syndicates.

Just remember to tell you sons here everything is fine until it isnt, when things go wrong here they can often end up badly and those lovely friendly people can just as quickly become a wall of silence or in other cases become your worst nightmare.

Best to remember even paradise has an equally dark side.

[quidnunc]

Its just never going to go away all.

Do the authorities still think that anyone, here or abroad following events, believes these two Burmese boys are guilty?

Do the authorities really still think that all these suspicious deaths will all be forgotten about in the era of social media?

I doubt Koh Tao will ever recover to anything near approaching the tourist revenues of the past. Its reputation appears, from what i keep reading, to be shattered for good. Such a shame because its such a beautiful island.

Well, I believe that the parents of at least one of the 2 young English people who were murdered do believe. You should be careful with your rhetorical quesitons.

[HeijoshinCool]

The French guys suicide looks iffy - tied hands is a tad difficult like that and a note written in English? And what happened to Sam Austin from Bristol - reported to have died their and then complete media silence.

People should think carefully before they go there - but many won't or simply will go anyway.

The cash will keep rolling in and greasing the wheels.

Like all of the Koh Tao threads there is so much info to read and I don't know where to begin -- can anyone confirm...was the "suicide note" that was recovered written in English as stated by Baerboxer? And not in French (or Russian)??? If true, that would be very suspicious!

If the letter was handwritten it would be very easy to check with the French Guys relatives if it was his own hand writing, maybe to difficult to figure out for the RTP.

.

It would be much quicker to compare the handwriting with that of the cops who "investigated" the matter.

[anon022]

Come to the Sicily of Thailand, where not only the suspense could be killing you! Koh Tao! Paradise for many, Death for others!

[Straight8]

Many places around the world will have death people on their holiday

Things happen everywhere cologne moskwa new york rio tokyo bangkok jakarta

Apples to oranges.

Your comparing cities with 10 million plus population against a small island.

It is what is, and this should be making headlines, people should be avoiding KT like the effn plague.

[thailandnotbenidorm]

hit the mafia where it hurts the most, (in the pocket) avoid the place and give it back to the fishermen

Hit the Mafia where it hurts the most? Pocket ? Give it back to the fishermen?

There is only one way to cripple Koh Tao.

Send it to Hollywood and let the whole world know about it.

But then you cripple Thailand as a whole..

Unless you blame on Burma People.

Has not anyone ruled out a serial faring killer on the loose, maybe a scuba diving instructor.

google, Charles Sobraj.

Maybe these killings are all connected, but it might not even be Thai or Burma.

Thats cos this guy maybe too clever..

That makes him Western..

[Dogmatix]

Perhaps they should shoot the next season of "Survivor" on the island. Never before has the winner earned their prize money more deservedly and as close as to the show's title as it gets.

Suggest some attractive female participants should be required to go drinking alone at AC Bar and go out on the boat with Shark's Tooth until there is only one left. Would make great TV ratings.

Edited January 12, 2015 by Dogmatix

[GAZZPA]

This won't slow down tourism there.

How many check for sinister news stories when booking a ticket?

I think it might. For example, I am very confident that people will think twice simply because of the coup,, this will be a scary thought for a lot of people.

I agree that not everyone will see or even know about the murders on the island but today more then any other time social media is so powerful. Word of mouth will also prevail after social media speculation. So I think there are many people who have heard and they will / may simply book somewhere else.

Lets face it, flying to the island from the western world is not a cheap holiday and there is plenty of choice,, personally if I were back home now and I wanted a tropical paradise I would book the Maldives or Mauritius over Thailand any day of the week,, especially knowing what I know today.

Anyway, I think most would agree that it cannot go on with high levels of crime and tourist murders for ever without any effect whatsoever.