Missing-and-found Brit paraded by cops, 'apologizes' to Thais

[BuckBee]

the kid was a tit but no need for police milk it like this.

I think the UK deserves a big apology from police & the PM for what was done & said over koh tao tragedy. trial concludes on xmas eve, can u believe that timing !

What has Xmas eve got to do with it? A normal day for 99.99% of Thai people....

it not just thailand with an interest in this case ... more chance of less coverage with case concluded during western festive period .

[monkey4u]

What a horrible country.

Yes he was a silly boy but these arrogant selfish Thais should be apologizing for all the scams and thuggery they put innocent foreign 'guests' through.

Again and again I am convinced they don't deserve any tourists.

If you don't like it

Don't come here

[metisdead]

A post containing Thai language has been removed. English is the only acceptable language anywhere on ThaiVisa including Classifieds, except within the Thai language forum, where of course using Thai is allowed.

[cgphuket]

What happened to all the TV posters yesterday who cried "he was only having fun, don;t pick on the poor lad..." I know, few foreigners here like the concept of being responsible for their own actions...

[dbrenn]

Selfish oaf - no need to worry his parents by telling them he'd been kidnapped. He was probably off his head on drugs, as he couldn't recall what he said to his parents.

That said, travelling was fun in the past because you really could get away from it all, save the odd call home from a post office. Nowadays, everyone back home expects texts and photos from you several times a day, detailing your every movement.

[Youaredoomed]

What a horrible country.

Yes he was a silly boy but these arrogant selfish Thais should be apologizing for all the scams and thuggery they put innocent foreign 'guests' through.

Again and again I am convinced they don't deserve any tourists.

If you don't like it

Don't come here

That's a helpful reply Mr Gatekeeper.....

[todlad]

I think half the men here should have Shaun the Sheep as their mascot/avatar.

One wally here decides that Thailand is a really bad country and who are the Thai police to parade a Brit to apologise for wasting valuable time and resources? Then, just like sheep, a whole flock arrives to say the same thing, at least one just copied and pasted the bleat, saving himself a bit of effort.

The more rational have pointed out that this lad is a tool and he really needs to be sent home. Don't forget, when he gets home, he will be treated like a celeb for a while, given the culture there. I would be tempted to disown the creature too if he were mine as not only was his mother planning to get to Thailand to try to find him but she would have had to stop vital anti cancer therapy to do so.

Wearing a baseball cap back to front makes him an even bigger tool.

[Old Croc]

Says so much about Thailand that he needs to apologise to a whole nation.

the idiot should be banned from Thailand AFTER he gets out off the slammer! he mus be a real dumb ass to worry his parents like this! if he was my boy I would knock the shit right out of him and teach him how to wear his cap right!

At least he seems to have lost the man scarf he has worn in previous photos.

The must have accessory for every w......r travelling in the tropics.

[Oziex1]

Coconuts article states he was forced to apologise to the people of Krabi.

Well that's the most sincere form of an apology, had he refused then what?

[ldiablo]

The guy's 21 freaking years old. If he wanted to stay in Thailand longer he should of just told his parents he was staying longer. Nuff said. At one time the Thai people had nothing but the highest respect for foreigners but over the years with cases like this and others much worse it's a wonder why they now call us farang.

[Caveat Emptor]

What a horrible country.

Yes he was a silly boy but these arrogant selfish Thais should be apologizing for all the scams and thuggery they put innocent foreign 'guests' through.

Again and again I am convinced they don't deserve any tourists.

I've seen apologies from Thais caught scamming and other offences involving tourists but it's to the country for any damage to the national reputation and the the tourist industry naturally, never to their victims.

Before being paraded did this young idiot have access to anyone from the British Embassy so if not who ' whispered ' in his ear that an apology was necessary ?

I'm not convinced he would have thought of it himself.

I have a funny feeling I can guess how ' his ' decision to make an apology to the nation was arrived at and was probably nothing to do with diplomacy or commonse on his part.

[JAG]

Wearing a baseball cap back to front makes him an even bigger tool.

There is a school of thought that holds that wearing a baseball cap once one has left ones teens should be a criminal offence (unless of course one is playing baseball).

The more extreme hold that wearing one back to front should be a capital offence!

[Tchooptip]

What a horrible country.

Yes he was a silly boy but these arrogant selfish Thais should be apologizing for all the scams and thuggery they put innocent foreign 'guests' through.

Again and again I am convinced they don't deserve any tourists.

If you don't like it

Don't come here

You mean not coming here on Thai Visa to dump hatred and bitterness whatever the topic ? Yesss good advice

[Youaredoomed]

What a horrible country.

Yes he was a silly boy but these arrogant selfish Thais should be apologizing for all the scams and thuggery they put innocent foreign 'guests' through.

Again and again I am convinced they don't deserve any tourists.

If you don't like it

Don't come here

You mean not coming here on Thai Visa to dump hatred and bitterness whatever the topic ? Yesss good advice

Indeed. I bet there's a few wobbling barstools as the TV bitter old men read this one.......

[geriatrickid]

Seems to me that there's a bit more to this story. I don't believe that we will get the full story while he is still in Thailand.

[MobileContent]

Was he obliged to do this to avoid criminal charges?

Unsure, did he break a law ?

I am sure if they take Urin samples they will find a complete collections of all drugs available in Thailand.

[NoshowJones]

What a horrible country.

Yes he was a silly boy but these arrogant selfish Thais should be apologizing for all the scams and thuggery they put innocent foreign 'guests' through.

Again and again I am convinced they don't deserve any tourists.

I think you are being very unfair onThailand, it is no worse for scams on tourists than any other country.

As for thuggery, it is true about their odds of six to one, but if you stay sober, and mind your own business, you will be 99% safe.

[NoshowJones]

Boy wants drama...boy gets drama.

Tit for T.A.T.

I suppose all the attacks on Brits this year have brought alot of pressure on Thailand to take action. So they did. This case was easy, though.

I don't know if it is because they are easy targets, or otherwise obnoxious...but Brits have sure been taking on alot of public humiliation this year. I would recommend they tread carefully.

All these Brits and other Westerners, stop walking through the streets and shopping malls drunk and showing

off your fat ugly tattooed bodies, then you might get more respect from the Thais.

[eaglesflight]

Boy wants drama...boy gets drama.

Tit for T.A.T.

I suppose all the attacks on Brits this year have brought alot of pressure on Thailand to take action. So they did. This case was easy, though.

I don't know if it is because they are easy targets, or otherwise obnoxious...but Brits have sure been taking on alot of public humiliation this year. I would recommend they tread carefully.

What a ridiculous comment. I thought blanket statements about particular nationalities were not acceptable on Thai Visa, or is that only if they're directed at Thai people?

[Thian]

What about wasting time and goodwill from other European newspapers who tried to help him? They might not help next time a Brit gets lost.

[losername]

Good news for divers. At least it looks as though this guy is not going to turn up as anyone's Dive Leader.

[evadgib]

What a horrible country.

Yes he was a silly boy but these arrogant selfish Thais should be apologizing for all the scams and thuggery they put innocent foreign 'guests' through.

Again and again I am convinced they don't deserve any tourists.

I've seen apologies from Thais caught scamming and other offences involving tourists but it's to the country for any damage to the national reputation and the the tourist industry naturally, never to their victims.

Before being paraded did this young idiot have access to anyone from the British Embassy so if not who ' whispered ' in his ear that an apology was necessary ?

I'm not convinced he would have thought of it himself.

Rest assured that whoever did that is in the photo!

[Taffyfromflint]

I wonder who gets the reward for finding him? Maybe he was having a quick smoke while texting and it got lost in translation.

[Ks45672]

What would they do if he refused to apologise and said go and fcck yourselves?

Would be interesting if they could charge him under defamation or LM for insulting Thainess...

[oneday]

Was he obliged to do this to avoid criminal charges?

Unsure, did he break a law ?

Believe me they would come up with something to jail him on if they wanted...article 44.

He probably should be jailed. It would serve him right. What a complete idiot. His parents should disown him.

[Squeegee]

If you don't like it

Don't come here

Not the brightest bulb in the spoon drawer, are you?

I think half the men here should have Shaun the Sheep as their mascot/avatar.

One wally here decides that Thailand is a really bad country and who are the Thai police to parade a Brit to apologise for wasting valuable time and resources? Then, just like sheep, a whole flock arrives to say the same thing, at least one just copied and pasted the bleat, saving himself a bit of effort.

The more rational have pointed out that this lad is a tool and he really needs to be sent home. Don't forget, when he gets home, he will be treated like a celeb for a while, given the culture there. I would be tempted to disown the creature too if he were mine as not only was his mother planning to get to Thailand to try to find him but she would have had to stop vital anti cancer therapy to do so.

Wearing a baseball cap back to front makes him an even bigger tool.

I'd say the "wally" would be he who misses the point and focuses the attention on the boy, conveniently ignoring the double standards going on. Are you an apologist for the Thai police in the Ko Toa case as well?

I think you are being very unfair onThailand, it is no worse for scams on tourists than any other country.

As for thuggery, it is true about their odds of six to one, but if you stay sober, and mind your own business, you will be 99% safe.

Thank you for the only intelligent counter to my point. I agree there are scams and thuggery all over the world but the issue here is the way these arrogant people parade him to apologise and yet lack the decency to do such a thing themselves. It's particularly sickening in the light of Ko Toa, and as another poster added, if Thais ever apologise it's only to their own for the sake of their own, nevermind the victims.

Sure, you may be able to dig out some example to show there are exceptions, but that's all they are: exceptions.

More than anything, the police or powers that be are doing Thailand a huge disservice by creating headlines like this, so they can have absolutely no complaints when they get called for their double standards and lack of integrity.

PS. I can understand that it seems I am being unfair to Thailand and as such I will also thank you for giving me an opportunity to clarify my position: when I said "What a horrible country" it would certainly seem like I am tarring the whole population with the same brush. Of course, I don't really think that every Thai person is horrible - far from it - however the police, just like the government, should hold a deep, integral responsibility for representing their country so if they cannot behave in a decent and civilised manner that reflects on the country as a whole.

Edited December 19, 2015 by Squeegee

[freebyrd]

Immature, selfish, irresponsible, stupid....... He's 21 and not exactly a kid. If he were mine I'd disown him.

[2fishin2]

Boy wants drama...boy gets drama.

Tit for T.A.T.

I suppose all the attacks on Brits this year have brought alot of pressure on Thailand to take action. So they did. This case was easy, though.

I don't know if it is because they are easy targets, or otherwise obnoxious...but Brits have sure been taking on alot of public humiliation this year. I would recommend they tread carefully.

All these Brits and other Westerners, stop walking through the streets and shopping malls drunk and showing

off your fat ugly tattooed bodies, then you might get more respect from the Thais.

Like Thais dont do the same thing??? You dont live in Thailand do you?

[elgordo38]

It's his parents he should apologize to not the Thai people. Although I guess he had wasted precious police time and resources in the hunt for him. Naughty boy!

Precious police time??

[Prbkk]

Well done to whoever spotted/identified him. I could have walked past him a hundred times and not picked him out as the bearded character.