British-led Card Room raided by officials in South Pattaya

[chilli42]

I feel much safer knowing this scum are off the street. No government sticker on the playing cards, outrageous!

[Lupatria]

They really know how to get rid of western foreign senior citizens spending their pension money in this completely messed up country, not harming anyone, not stealing, committing no computer crimes, not fighting in the bars. While high ranking cops rum gambling dens and casinos.

I wonder how long the TAT clowns will stay mum about this scandal. The cops and every "official" involved in locking up old folks for 12 hours should be ashamed!

[elgordo38]

One lady refused to sign; she had the money but would not "confess" to a thing she had not done. She was detained and I have not seen her since.

I don't blame her, she did nothing wrong at all.

She is likely to become a local celebrity. What a gal!

A senior Samurai. Go granny go. The PM would not touch this hot potato with a 10 foot pole in public. In the backroom however I think the phone line is burning and it will be apologies all around to the seniors tomorrow. This one will take a lot of face saving. 20 pages on this subject and climbing. Must be a new record for TV

Edited February 4, 2016 by elgordo38

[Rimmer]

Off topic posts and replies removed, topic is about:

British-led Card Room raided by officials in South Pattaya

[Falang365]

In the Dutch news they wrote that the retired people were released on bail........ So extra pocketmoney???

[Psychic]

Pathetic, disgraceful, shameful, outrageous, ridiculous . Don´t these police have anything better to do ? The Pattaya police are now a laughing stock of the universe.

I totally agree. Totally.

I would only note that, as I guess most would now agree in hindsight, it would have better to have checked w/ the police first and explained what was going to happen w/ 32 people playing cards at 8 tables, and get clearance, maybe a written clearance, before they started this up. I would have; just seems an obvious need to me, as I've lived here for many years. With the mentality and the ignorance here, not to mention odd laws enforced inconsistently, a "bust" was very likely to happen. Sorry it did to these fine folks.

Maybe somebody has made this point, don't have time to read the whole thread.

Bridge clubs have been operating in Pattaya for more than 20 years.

While I agree that it is always wise to check, when there is a sudden change of position like this life is impossible.

From what I've learned, the complaint came from on high.

A rational response would have been to contact the club owner and suggest a temporary suspension of the game while it was cleared up.

I think what actually happened came from a fear that not coming down hard would be perceived as disobeying orders.

[jesimps]

While no money might have been on the Bridge tables and no money was being played for, playing for prizes is considered as gambling and that seems to be what occurred here. We can debate the seriousness of offences and the police numbers involved for ever but the reality is that Thai laws were broken and someone could have and should have checked beforehand.

Then the police was right, its gambling.. and if prizes were there then people probably paid an entrance fee. Looks a lot more as gambling now and seems the police was justified.

Of course not with the amount of police and so on, but these are the laws of the country.

Just like many laws i think they are crazy but when you live here you have to accept them, or break them and not moan when you get caught.

It's amazing you know that under the junta the police can do no wrong, according to the fanboys. Yet under the last govt they were the first ones to slag them off.

These were pensioners playing bridge for goodness sake. Show some common sense.

[cyberfarang]

Daily Mirror account of the raid with full video:

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/brits-arrested-after-thai-police-7308376

[elgordo38]

You have to use Thai logic on this one. A large group of people playing cards ergo cards equal betting, betting equals gambling gambling means tables full of money. Tables full of money equals opportunity. The BIB may be Keystone Kops in most actions but they smelled opportunity for a BIG payday on this one but alas only ended up with egg on their face. Then to save said face they hauled out the ancient rule book on gambling and there it was a 1935 law jumped off of the page. As another poster stated 32X5000 bahts hmm maybe the whole excersize was not a waste of time after all. Change of plans. One poster stated they had to pay the bail on the spot and sign a paper pleading guilty and then they would get their money back at trial.

[oldsailor35]

This just about tells us the standard of their education.

[geisha]

So, if I have rightly understood, ( a few people here seem to be in uproar of these terrible crimes!!) all illegal activities in Pattaya, and the rest of Thailand , should be shut down at once ! Ok, I'm waiting for it. For a start, close down Pattaya , Phuket and Bangkok.

[balo]

One lady refused to sign; she had the money but would not "confess" to a thing she had not done. She was detained and I have not seen her since.

I don't blame her, she did nothing wrong at all.

If it was me , I would do the same thing , I'd even stay in jail for a few days and then contact all the media channels including the Bridge association in Thailand and start a circus , they would probably release me quickly when they realize I'm not a stupid farang but very crazy ,

Edited February 4, 2016 by balo

[SiSePuede419]

"I'd even stay in jail for a few days and then contact all the media channels including the Bridge association in Thailand and start a circus "

Excellent!

They must have good wi-fi in Thai jails....?

Maybe something might get lost in the translation if your teerak is relaying the news...

555

[Psychic]

This just keeps getting better.

One of those arrested was a former British Consul and an MBE.

There's going to be a lot of brown fans.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/thailand/12139797/Elderly-British-bridge-enthusiasts-nabbed-in-Thai-anti-gambling-raid.html

[Jingthing]

The great Bridgegate Scandal on 2016.

Make t-shirts.

Sell! Sell! Sell!

A meme in the making!

Edited February 4, 2016 by Jingthing

[Jokke66]

Is this a signal of how welcome foreigners are? My dreams of comming back to Thailand, and even plans for moving there has just received a Cold bucket of water Down my back (not a songkran feeling)

[ricardofel]

Thank God I left Thailand 2 1/2 years ago!

[Jingthing]

Is this a signal of how welcome foreigners are? My dreams of comming back to Thailand, and even plans for moving there has just received a Cold bucket of water Down my back (not a songkran feeling)

Nobody is inviting you.

[SiSePuede419]

"One of those arrested was a former British Consul and an MBE."

Actually, he was a "former British Honorary Consul", which is a no-professional, no pay honorary "position". Not sure what they do, but whatever it is they don't get paid for it.

OK. He's a member of the British Empire. Another honorary status.

We shall see if he has the "pull" to get an apology from the genius who masterminded this anti-gambling operation.

My money is on "no apology" and a warning that these women shouldn't wear bikinis.

555

[Broken Record]

Thank God I left Thailand 2 1/2 years ago!

Belong to a Bridge Club ?

[Jingthing]

The world of BRIDGE is big and they don't forget.

This may be the most exciting thing in BRIDGE since (???).

[Rimmer]

Barry Kenyon, a former British Honorary Consul who received the MBE for his services to Britain, was among the 30 people and said he was held for 12 hours.

[Trouble]

Is this the 1st of April??

April 1st every day in Thailand.

[Psychic]

"One of those arrested was a former British Consul and an MBE."

Actually, he was a "former British Honorary Consul", which is a no-professional, no pay honorary "position". Not sure what they do, but whatever it is they don't get paid for it.

OK. He's a member of the British Empire. Another honorary status.

We shall see if he has the "pull" to get an apology from the genius who masterminded this anti-gambling

My money is on "no apology" and a warning that these women shouldn't wear bikinis.

555

Yep, just another nobody.

The Brits have no respect for all those honarary titles.

Their government will probably just write him off as another whiny expat.

Edited February 4, 2016 by Psychic

[berybert]

Was on BBC radio 2 at lunch time. The news reader said Thailand's war on corruption had made its way to a bridge club in Pattaya.

[okitsme]

Absolute buffoons, what next, playing scalextric and getting charged for speeding

[IslandLover]

Mot Dang, on 04 Feb 2016 - 04:06, said:

Oh man, I wish I could get this incident onto the world stage. How childish. Just another example that the current Thai authorities just don't want a falang expat population in Thailand. They want for Thailand essentially a Chinese/Iranian expat population, this will be more closely aligned with the foreign affairs and politics that we now see taking shape in this country.

Anywhere around the world, on any day, you will find expats (mainly of English or English extraction origin), in groups playing Bridge. For God's sake what harm are they doing ? It is a harmless (and civilised) game. Are they trving to radicalise the nation, planning a second closure of BKK, planning to smuggle 200 Angel flippen Children across the border at a secret location in the south. No, that would torment our arthritis.

I would love to see this reported on the BBC or front page Sydney Morning Herald. People have to soon see what is happening here.

It's all over the British press now, plus Washington Post and Aljazeera.

[cyberfarang]

Seems like Thailand is not such a good country to retire to after all. Scared to say boo to a goose, terrified of getting into any problems here, like school children having to tow the line. An authority that can hold you to ransom, pay up or we`ll make your life hell. At times here situations can get very scary. Scared of getting into arguments with Thais, scared of running foul of a law, scared of those in authority as their words are final.

Year by year I am becoming more and more disillusioned with this country, the novelty of living in paradise wore off long ago. Thailand maybe cheaper and appear to be a better quality of life then our own countries, but in the end we pay a heavy price and can never feel really relaxed and at home here. People that do have a false sense of security.

[peterb17]

Oh dear- last time in the UK bought a load of packs of Waddington's No 1 cards ( Brits will recognise those) for a beginners bridge class - now think I could have been arrested at the airport?

PS the classes have been abandoned for a while .

Bridge is a fiendish game - and for our more senior citizens it's an excellent game to keep the brain cells functioning .

[SiSePuede419]

Mot Dang, on 04 Feb 2016 - 04:06, said:

Oh man, I wish I could get this incident onto the world stage. How childish. Just another example that the current Thai authorities just don't want a falang expat population in Thailand. They want for Thailand essentially a Chinese/Iranian expat population, this will be more closely aligned with the foreign affairs and politics that we now see taking shape in this country.

Anywhere around the world, on any day, you will find expats (mainly of English or English extraction origin), in groups playing Bridge. For God's sake what harm are they doing ? It is a harmless (and civilised) game. Are they trving to radicalise the nation, planning a second closure of BKK, planning to smuggle 200 Angel flippen Children across the border at a secret location in the south. No, that would torment our arthritis.

I would love to see this reported on the BBC or front page Sydney Morning Herald. People have to soon see what is happening here.

It's all over the British press now, plus Washington Post and Aljazeera.

Wow! This could be the international relations equivalent of Al Capone getting arrested for tax evasion.

Maybe "social network" peer pressure will cause the Junta to rethink their policies?

555+, who am I kidding. Mai Ben rai