Latest news with #AustralianTourist
ABC News
22-05-2025
- Health
- ABC News
Rabuka says he wasn't told the truth about suspected poisoning
Fiji's Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has directed his government to look into the suspected alcohol poisoning of guests at a Fijian resort last year. In December 2024 seven guests fell ill and some were hospitalised after drinking a pina colada at the Warwick hotel on the Coral Coast. At the time, the Fijian government released findings that no methanol had been found in the drinks' ingredients or blood and urine samples from the guests. But now, five months on, one Australian guest, Susan, who asked the ABC not to use her real name has spoken out, describing how she almost died and accused the Fijian government of not following through on independent testing. Responding to the comments, Prime Minister Rabuka said he's calling for the various government bodies involved to work together to get to the bottom of the case. "My first reaction and probably the most logical response from me as prime minister is that I have not been told the whole truth. I believe what I heard from my minister responsible for tourism that things had already been tested," he said.
Daily Mail
12-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Shocking moment Australian tourist brutally knocks out reveller during brawl with Brits in notorious Thai resort
An Australian tourist was seen in brutal footage fighting with British revellers during a night out in Thailand. The Aussie holidaymaker had reportedly been downing beer with his friends at a Pattaya bar in the notorious Thai 'Sin City' on May 5. However, he was said to have sparked alarm when he suddenly began shouting at other tourists in an alcohol-induced rampage. Footage of the shocking moment shows the Australian man bellowing as he stormed out of the bar during closing time. After a moment of throwing fake punches, he finally swung his fist into the the tourist in front of him and knocked him out in one blow. The Aussie man and a still-unidentified suspect then turned their fury on the other bargoers as a woman screamed, trying to control them. Police said they were notified at 3:45am local time that three foreigners were injured. According to reports, they were identified by officers as a Brit tourist, German holidaymaker, and Swedish national. The wounded were taken to a hospital for treatment and to obtain a medical certificate for the police investigation. They were later summoned to the police station with their friend, a Cambodian woman. Police said they obtained CCTV footage from the area, allowing them to identify Hallam, who was arrested and detained at the Pattaya City Police Station. They said they were coordinating with the Immigration Bureau to investigate him for possible visa revocation. A motorcycle taxi rider who witnessed the altercation said: 'At the time of the incident, we saw two groups of foreigners in a heated argument that quickly escalated into a violent fight in the middle of the street. 'One person was beaten so badly they collapsed, and then the attackers fled before the police arrived.' Police Lieutenant Colonel Suthiraphan Tapsri of Pattaya City Police Station said: 'It was a fight where everyone was drunk. 'The pub was closed, but the foreigners were standing around arguing about various things. 'They did not know each other, and it was the first time they had met. The Australian arrived with another suspect who has not yet been arrested, while the four victims came together. 'We are still investigating to track down the other suspect. It will take some time.' Former fishing village Pattaya became popular with American troops on 'rest and relaxation' breaks in the 1950s and 1960s when the US military had bases in Thailand while fighting Communism in Vietnam. Rural families are said to have even dressed their sons as women to cash in on the gold rush. The handful of bars in the coastal town quickly grew and it is now the world's biggest sex holiday destination, with round-the-clock prostitution and drugs - a modern-day Sodom and Gomorrah rife with crime and debauchery. Government chiefs have attempted to clean up the city but regular violence, depravity and claims of corruption continue to blight its reputation.
