Thai Police Try to Extort Cash from Tragedy Victim

Wednesday, 28th November 2012

THAI POLICE TRY TO EXTORT CASH FROM TRAGEDY VICTIM – If you ever thought Thailand was a wonderful, warm and friendly tourist destination you may want to rethink your next holiday plans if you are intending to visit Thailand.

Before I begin you need to understand that while Thailand likes to present itself as a friendly tourist destination, it is in fact fast becoming one of the most dangerous places in South East Asia to visit for foreigners as they increasingly become targets for violent crime, extortion and corruption; mostly by the Thai Authorities.

This is a story of a young, who are very much in love, and go for a holiday on the island of Kho Samui, Thailand.   After spending a wonderful day relaxing, they headed out to the local restaurant just over 1 km from their resort.  The young man, Jamie Keith, admits that neither were wearing helmets and while it is law in Thailand to do so, very few abide by the rules and are only stopped and fined at checkpoints set up every now and then – the exercise is a plain one – to fill the pockets of the police with cash.

The evening meal was, according to Jamie and wonderful time for him and his girlfriend, Nicole Fitzsimons.  Upon finishing the meal they set off back to their resort and upon reaching the junction they indicated to turn right and sat in the outer lane waiting for traffic to pass.  Little did they know that a Thai man travelling at over 80 km per hour was coming up fast behind them.  The accident, which left Jamie injured and Nicole fighting for her life was all captured on CCTV footage.

The tragedy for Jamie began after Nicole passed away as a result from her injuries some three hours later.  What follow was to shock Jamie, his family and friends and leave Nicole’s family with a clear understanding of how evil Thailand and its people are.

Jamie, soon after leaving the hospital was arrested for the accident, had his passport confiscated and then he was incarcerated.  What transpired over the next 7 days was the local police trying to pin the blame on Jamie and extort what amounts to approximately A$30,000.

Surprised?  Don’t be!  Thailand is a country that revolves around corruption, extortion and murder.  In fact Thailand has a higher violent gun crime rate than the United States or even Bogota, Columbia.

Testament to Jamie’s resolved and that of his and Nicole’s family the Thai Police didn’t see a penny due even though they tried on many occasions during the 7 days of incarceration to get him to sign paperwork that laid the blame at his feet and not the maniac Thai driver.  With the CCTV footage so clear the Thai Police finally gave up  but not before getting Jamie to sign a ‘BLANK’ piece of paper that they said would provide confirmation that this was an accident and that no charges would be filed against the driver of the other motorcycle.

Still want to go to Thailand for your next holiday?  More and more people are now abandoning Thailand in search for a much safer destination.  Before you go take a look at a recent article posted on Meebal.com – Consumers Moral Obligations to Boycott Products – there is a very disturbing piece on how Thailand’s Police Officers are involved in the sex slavery and mutilation of children and your tourist dollar is fueling this despicable trade.