Latest news with #ProvincialPoliceRegion8
Bangkok Post
21-07-2025
- Bangkok Post
'Over 6kgs of cocaine' found in couple's luggage
KOH SAMUI: Customs officers and police on Koh Samui have arrested a Brazilian man and woman after 6.63 kilogrammes of cocaine were found hidden in their luggage at Samui International Airport. The suspects, identified as Diego dos Santos Silva, 35, and Fernanda Gabriele Lorenco de Andrade, 25, were detained on Saturday morning upon their arrival. Officers discovered the drugs allegedly concealed among clothing and personal items in two black suitcases, with 3.62kg in one and 3.31kg in the other. Pol Lt Gen Surapol Thanomjit, commissioner of Provincial Police Region 8, said the pair left São Paulo's Guarulhos International Airport on Qatar Airways flight QR780 on Thursday, transited in Doha on flight QR830 and arrived at Suvarnabhumi Airport at 9am on Saturday. The suspects then flew to Koh Samui on Bangkok Airways flight PG123, landing shortly before their arrest, he said. Customs officers flagged their luggage during routine scanning Both suspects told authorities it was their first visit to Thailand. They are being held at Bo Phut police station and face charges of importing a Category 2 narcotic. Police are investigating possible links to a broader drug trafficking network.
Bangkok Post
20-07-2025
- Bangkok Post
Brazilian couple caught smuggling 6.6kg of cocaine onto Koh Samui
KOH SAMUI: Customs officers and local police on Koh Samui have arrested a Brazilian man and woman after 6.63 kilograms of cocaine were discovered hidden in their luggage at the island's international airport. The suspects, identified as Mr Diego dos Santos Silva, 35, and Ms Fernanda Gabriele Lorenco de Andrade, 25, were detained late on Saturday morning upon arrival at Samui International Airport. Officers found two black suitcases containing the illicit drugs concealed among clothing and personal items. Pol Lt Gen Surapol Thanomjit, commissioner of Provincial Police Region 8, said the pair had flown from Sao Paulo international airport in Guarulhos, Brazil on Qatar Airways flight QR780 on Thursday. They transited through Doha on flight QR830 before arriving at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok at 9am on Saturday. The Brazilian couple then boarded Bangkok Airways flight PG123 to Koh Samui, landing shortly before their arrest. Customs officials scanning luggage from international arrivals detected the narcotics, weighing 3.62 kg in one bag and 3.31 kg in the other. Both suspects claimed it was their first time visiting Thailand. They are now in custody at Bo Phut police station and face charges of importing a Category 2 narcotic (cocaine) without authorisation. Police are continuing their investigation to determine whether the two suspects were part of a wider drug trafficking operation.
Bangkok Post
09-07-2025
- Bangkok Post
German arrested on Koh Phangan for investment fraud targeting Australians
SURAT THANI - A 54-year-old German has been arrested on Koh Phangan for allegedy orchestrating a fraudulent investment scheme targeting investors in Australia. Officers from Provincial Police Region 8, the Immigration Bureau, Surat Thani and Pathum Thani, accompanied by Australian Federal Police, searched four locations on the popular tourist island. They took David Guy Hamburger, 54, a German suspect, into custody. Mr Hamburger was apprehended while riding a motorcycle near his residence, Choco Villa on Koh Phangan, Pol Lt Gen Surapong Thanomjit, commissioner of Provincial Police Region 8, said on Wednesday. Police executed an arrest warrant approved by Pathum Thani Provincial Court on June 19 on charges of public fraud and putting false information into a computer system. The arresting team took the suspect back to his house and searched it. The officers seized assets worth more than 19 million baht, believed to have been acquired through fraudulent activities. Items impounded included a cryptocurrency account valued at 8.04 million baht, four bank accounts containing 6.23 million baht, 495,000 baht in cash, a land title deed worth 1.5 million baht, four vehicles worth 2.27 million baht, 13 luxury watches valued at 605,000 baht and two laptop computers. Upon inspecting the laptops, police found scripted dialogue used to dupe investors in Australia into making fake stock investments, and detailed records of victims. Police also searched three other premises linked to nominee companies allegedly established by the suspect. They were a law office on Koh Phangan, the Montana Realty real estate office, also on Koh Phangan, and a residence on Koh Samui in the name of his Thai wife. Police also summonsed individuals suspected of being part of Mr Hamburger's network for questioning. They are suspected of helping set up four nominee companies - Chesapeake Ross Co, Montana Realty Co, Laguna Cliff Co and Gollum Co. Pol Lt Gen Surapong said the action followed advice from Australian authorities that many people Australia had been conned by online investment scam operated from Thailand. Investigators took up the case, and located and identified the prime suspect, Mr Hamburger. They obtained approval from Koh Samui Provincial Court to search the suspect locations, which led to the arrest of the German suspect, Pol Lt Gen Surapong. Mr Hamburger had been residing on Koh Phangan for over five years on a retirement visa. He had run several businesses, including a villa rental company, a construction firm and a restaurant. He was handed over to Muang police station in Pathum Thani province for legal processing on the fraud charges. Surat Thani police would bring additional charges against him under the Foreign Business Act, Pol Lt Gen Surapong said.
Bangkok Post
27-06-2025
- Bangkok Post
Two more suspected explosive devices found in Krabi, Phuket
KRABI/PHUKET: Two more suspected explosive devices were discovered in these two southern Thai tourist provinces on Friday afternoon, authorities said. In Krabi, police bomb disposal officers successfully disabled a device found near the Pla Bai (sailfish) sculpture plaza at Ao Nang beach at about 2pm. The object, which resembled an artificial rock, had been planted on the seawall near the sculpture in the bustling commercial and tourist zone of Ao Nang. An initial inspection showed that the object, suspected to be a homemade explosive device, was similar in design to one found recently in Phangnga province. Police cordoned off the area to prevent local residents and tourists from entering the area. The location is a well-known photography spot at Ao Nang beach. An explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) team was called in to examine the device. They safely disarmed it and said it had been fitted with a 120-day countdown timer. The EOD team found another suspicious object at Noppharat Thara beach, beneath a banyan tree opposite the staff living quarters of Hat Noppharat Thara-Mu Ko Phi Phi National Park. The item, resembling a PVC pipe about 4–6 inches in length, was retrieved using a rope for safety. Upon inspection, no explosive materials were found. In Phuket, EOD officers destroyed a second suspected object on Patong beach on Friday following statements made by two suspects that two devices had been planted in the area. EOD teams, officers from Provincial Police Region 8 and Phuket police conducted a thorough sweep of the area around 4pm after the first device was discovered and safely destroyed on Thursday. It was buried in the sand beneath a tree about 400 metres from the Bangla Patong police booth, near the Dolphin public park. A search on Friday led authorities to a second site, located about 50 metres from the initial discovery. The device was retrieved and destroyed. On Thursday, bomb squads destroyed suspected explosive devices in Phuket and Krabi following the arrest of two men linked to a suspicious object found at the Phuket airport on Wednesday. Authorities said the devices appeared intended to cause fear rather than damage, but urged the public to be vigilant and report any suspicious objects they see. The two suspects linked to the airport incident — Sulaiman Kacha, 27, and Muhama Wadeng, 29 — were arrested in Muang district of Phangnga on Tuesday. Police seized explosive devices from their car. During questioning, the two men told police that four explosive devices had been planted — one hidden in a motorcycle abandoned near Phuket International Airport, two buried at Patong beach and one at Promthep Cape. The pair reportedly told police that they had two accomplices who remain at large.
