E-cigarette seller drag off the streets of Pattaya in midnight raid

 

Picture: TNews

 

PATTAYA: -- A surprised seller of electronic cigarettes and shisha was arrested in a midnight raid in front of the Royal Garden department store on Saturday night.

 

Tawatchai Muakseng, 33, had 100,000 baht's worth of merchandise on his cart when police from the local station and tourist cops led by Piyaphong Ensarn descended on the area.

 

Taken into evidence were 24 electronic cigarettes, 10 electronic shisha pipes, a quantity of heads, coils, charcoal and 125 bottles of

vaping fluid.

 

Tnews said that Tawatchai was selling his wares in full view and was shocked by the raid before he was taken to tourist police HQ.

 

Thaivisa notes that the selling of such products can attract heavy fines and even jail terms in Thailand as the products are not only

illegal but have not been subject to tax.

 

Many raids have taken place throughout Thailand.

 

Source: TNews

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2017-07-24

Whilst on the other side of Beach Road everything on sale is totally legit.

I know there is a practical state monopoly of tobacco products in this country, so this seems to be the main driver for such punitive measures. A not dissimilar approach is taken against independant micro beer breweries.

Interesting to see the Tourist Police involved. Why would that be?

More excellent work by the B.I.B. here in Pattaya..........any chance in the near future they may actually target serious crime

With e cigarettes found to be 95% safer than tobacco, one wonders what is the Thai logic for making them illegal? I feel very sorry for this fella, who was just trying to make a living. Every time I drink in a bar in Pattaya I get multiple people selling them every night and yet the cops, who would do far better catching handbag and necklace thieves, decide to waste their time on such a petty matter. Thumbs down to the BIB for this one.

http://scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org/2017/02/06/new-study-comes-the-closest-yet-to-proving-that-e-cigarettes-arent-as-dangerous-as-smoking/

What surprises me most is that Pattaya police were working after dark!  On a Saturday!  Times are getting hard.  Now if all bar owners clubbed together to say no more monthly envelopes maybe the BIB would leave town?  

quite a stash..hehe

 

is to possible the guy didnt know these are illegal…..theyre village people after all.

1 hour ago, darksidedog said:

With e cigarettes found to be 95% safer than tobacco, one wonders what is the Thai logic for making them illegal? I feel very sorry for this fella, who was just trying to make a living. Every time I drink in a bar in Pattaya I get multiple people selling them every night and yet the cops, who would do far better catching handbag and necklace thieves, decide to waste their time on such a petty matter. Thumbs down to the BIB for this one.

http://scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org/2017/02/06/new-study-comes-the-closest-yet-to-proving-that-e-cigarettes-arent-as-dangerous-as-smoking/

Quote

one wonders what is the Thai logic for making them illegal?

If the law say's they are illegal, then they are illegal...

Also stated, tax evasion...

1 hour ago, darksidedog said:

With e cigarettes found to be 95% safer than tobacco, one wonders what is the Thai logic for making them illegal?

Bwahahaha! Sorry DSD. I don't mean to make fun of you, but surely you had a brain fart as you wrote "Thai Logic"

Edited July 24, 20178 yr by jaywalker

3 hours ago, webfact said:

E-cigarette seller drag off the streets of Pattaya in midnight raid

Why wasn't he frog marched like the skinny dippers?

1 hour ago, Basil B said:

If the law say's they are illegal, then they are illegal...

Also stated, tax evasion...

You sound like an exciting person to be around. 

Sad fact: in tbeory you could buy an ecigarette perfe tly legally  in many  European airport sbops... or even on some flights ( for example, British Airways sells them on some routes) ... and face 5 years in prison if you get caught with it on landing in Thailand. But you can smoke yourself to death and poison everyone around you with second hand smoke with no problem...

'Thaivisa notes that the selling of such products can attract heavy fines and even jail terms in Thailand as the products are not only

illegal but have not been subject to tax.'

 

If they are illegal, and are imported, hardly likely to have been taxed are they? Unless they tax illegal products and then let them through customs......

 

Or are they illegally produced in Thailand? If that is the case, they should be going after the producers - ah wait that is too much like hard work....

Edited July 24, 20178 yr by captainhornblower
additional comment

How about cleaning up Beach Road

Would it not be more useful to use the police manpower to secure the streets from theft and assault against bystanders?

 

What will the Thai Police do with the goods confiscated?

 

Ok the goods are illegal, no arguing about that. But what about the notion of giving proper priority to the issues that harm society most? Violent crime and robbery being amongst one of these issues...

God knows what chemicals are chucked in those vaping fluids..... it's totally unregulated.... did see an article that some of the vanilla flavored ones can cause "popcorn lung".... nasty.


Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

Gotta protect the TTM (Thai Tobacco Monopoly).

Tell me why most civilized countries around the world approve e-cigs??? and yet here they go out of their way to nail people using them.

4 minutes ago, pattayadgw said:

Tell me why most civilized countries around the world approve e-cigs??? and yet here they go out of their way to nail people using them.

One point is the tobacco tax. Another is that you never can be sur what is in the liquid fluid because it don't give rules about it.

Last week the UK become a new law that all producer of e-cigarettes and liquid must register their products and let check .....

http://cigelectric.co.uk/tpd-vaping-laws-uk-2017-regulations/

 

7 hours ago, mikebell said:

What surprises me most is that Pattaya police were working after dark!  On a Saturday!  

 

I think that's what tripped that vendor up.  I get the biggest kick out of the street vendors near me who sit nearby in the open with their carts, waiting for the police pickup to leave so they can set up without troubles.  I used to think it was about permitted hours of operation, but it seems the only common theme is they don't set up until the truck leaves, which is pretty erratic timewise.  God forbid the stampede if the truck came back unexpectedly.

 

12 hours ago, snowgard said:

One point is the tobacco tax. Another is that you never can be sur what is in the liquid fluid because it don't give rules about it.

Last week the UK become a new law that all producer of e-cigarettes and liquid must register their products and let check .....

http://cigelectric.co.uk/tpd-vaping-laws-uk-2017-regulations/

 

Spot on comments , the manufacture of many of the liquids takes place in a back street Chinese shed without any control or regulation to what makes up the liquid . You could be vaping rat shit , seriously . Anyone know of a regulated kosher supplier ? do not think they will be any  in Thailand 

Acctually im thinking of trying this

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