Phuket’s Biggest Stories From the Past Week: 98 Visas Revoked in Five Months, and More

The following is our weekly feature in which we highlight the top local stories in our area of Phuket from the past week. The number of stories differs from week to week.

These are chosen and curated by our editorial team and are designed for our readers to get a quick “catch-up” of important stories they may have missed. We publish many stories daily and it is easy to lose track of important events or changes in our area. We do national recaps in a separate article, this is only the top local stories in Phuket.

They are in no particular order of importance but roughly in order of publishing. These are from Monday, March 18th to Sunday March 24th, 2024.

  1. An arrest warrant has been issued for a Tajikistani man who has already left Thailand for intent to murder after a Russian man was found dead at a cannabis farm in Chalong.

An INTERPOL Red alert has also been issued for the suspect. The murder is speculated to have been over a business dispute involving the cannabis farm, say Phuket police.

2. General Surachet Hakparn, the Thai Deputy National Police Chief has ordered to revoke the visas of two New Zealander men involved in a viral alleged assault on a Thai police officer and blacklist them from Thailand.

The two men were also allegedly trying to bribe police when they were arrested.

3. At least 98 visas have been revoked and 614 foreigners arrested in Phuket in the last five months.

The strict crackdown started after a viral alleged kicking incident involving a Swiss expat in Pa Klok and has continued after two New Zealander men were involved in a viral alleged assault on a Thai police officer in Chalong.

4. A British man was arrested in Karon for allegedly selling cocaine and using methamphetamine and crystal methamphetamine.

Mr. David was taken to the Karon Police Station to face charges of illegal possession of cocaine with intent to sell and using crystal methamphetamine and methamphetamine pills.

5. An Egyptian man attacked a taxi driver and damaged his taxi car in Cherng Talay.

The Egyptian man was taken to a hospital for a mental health check.

That’s it for this week. Be safe!

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Goongnang Suksawat
Goong Nang is a News Translator who has worked professionally for multiple news organizations in Thailand for many years and has worked with The Pattaya News for more than four years. Specializes primarily in local news for Phuket, Pattaya, and also some national news, with emphasis on translation between Thai to English and working as an intermediary between reporters and English-speaking writers. Originally from Nakhon Si Thammarat, but lives in Phuket and Krabi except when commuting between the three.