PEACH gets topped off

Pattaya will soon have one of the finest and largest meeting places in Asia. Those who have been past the Royal Cliff Beach Resort will have noticed the building work that has gone on in the grounds for the past few months. That building will soon be finished and its name is PEACH. Those initials stand for Pattaya Exhibition and Convention Hall and the building of this marks a very significant step forward for all of Pattaya and her international reputation, and will even be an important factor in the economic stability of this region.

To emphasize this importance, Khun Juthamas Siriwan, the Deputy Governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand was present at the Roof Topping Ceremony last weekend. She presented statistics to show that the MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions, Exhibitions) market was a most important sector of the total tourism to Thailand. She said, "MICE is a high yield market with returns 2.5 - 3 times higher than that of the leisure market."

(L to R) General Manager of PEACH Jeremy Yap, Managing Director of the Royal Cliff Beach Resort Panga Vathanakul, Deputy Governor of TAT Juthamas Siriwan and Executive Vice President of the Royal Cliff Beach Resort Jean-Fernand Wasser field questions at the roof topping ceremony press conference.

Jeremy Yap, the General Manager of PEACH, stated that on completion it will make "Pattaya the ideal MICE market destination."

These sentiments were echoed by the Executive Vice President of the Royal Cliff Beach Resort, Jean-Fernand Wasser, who also added that there was now only 120 days to the soft opening of the center. He reiterated the policy and thinking behind the building of PEACH and confirmed that the 5 star standards of the Royal Cliff Beach Resort would also be embodied in the new PEACH and its operation. "With the capacity to accommodate 5,800 people theatre style, the building also incorporates the latest state of the art technology and flexibility. It will be indeed a world class facility," he said.

The Managing Director of the Royal Cliff Beach Resort, Khun Panga Vathanakul, pointed out that the Resort, which has won the award for the best resort in the Asia/Pacific for a record breaking 8 consecutive years, has invested approximately 1 billion Baht in the PEACH project. She said, "We are confident in the come-back of Pattaya as a top leisure and MICE destination."

The Roof Topping ceremony marks an important stage in the construction of any building and is normally celebrated by the construction workers who have brought the structure to this point. For a building as large and as significant as PEACH, those who became involved in this celebration included the Governor of Chonburi, Sudcharit Padchimnan and the Mayor of Pattaya, Pairat Sutthithamrongsawat as well as Khun Juthamas and Khun Panga. To mark the occasion, the four people signed the last roof section and it was then slid into place to symbolically mark the traditional roof topping.

Whilst the ceremony last weekend may have been symbolic, the importance of the completed project to Pattaya cannot be underestimated. PEACH is undoubtedly another milestone in the history of this city. The management of the Royal Cliff Beach Resort deserve all the accolades they will receive.

German extortionist arrested in Pattaya

Charged with working without a permit

An untold number of Austrian, German and Swiss men can sleep easy now, as their holiday nightmare turned out to be just that, only a bad dream.

Dieter Walter Leopold, 52, German national, was arrested on Tuesday, July 13, for working in the Kingdom without a work permit. The charge stems from his involvement in an introduction service, a scam, that he and his accomplices had allegedly been running for the past few years.

Dieter Walter Leopold was arrested for working without a permit. He is shown here with several copies of a picture of the same woman sent to many German speaking men in an introduction service advertised as "Thai girls want to marry foreigners".

However, what brought him most to the attention of the foreign media, and hence the police, was a series of letters he allegedly sent on a Bangkok law office’s stationary. The letters were written in German and sent to Austrian, German and Swiss men who had recently stayed at a prominent hotel in Pattaya. The letters stated that the law office was representing a "client" who had become pregnant by the addressee of the letter. The men were given a choice of paying 25,000 baht for an illegal abortion for the woman, or face paying 10,000 baht per month in child support until the child reached the age of 18. The men were instructed to deposit the money in an Indonesian bank account.

At press time, how Leopold obtained the guest list of the hotel is still unknown. It is also unknown how many letters were sent out, although at least one person has admitted to depositing 70,000 baht into the Indonesian bank account.

What is known is that the girl named in the letter as being pregnant, a Miss Saguan, does not exist.

So far, only 4 men have filed official complaints with the German police. Evidently, this was not enough for German officials to come get Leopold, so the authorities asked Thai police to gather evidence.

Thai police tracked Leopold to a local post office box under the name of "Babsi". That particular post office box was being used as the address for an introduction service, whereby Leopold was allegedly introducing Thai women to German, Austrian and Swiss men.

Leopold had allegedly publicized the introduction service in the foreign media under the heading "Thai girls want to marry foreigners", which received plenty of response.

After a couple of communications between Leopold’s "girls" and the men, the "girls" agreed to marry them. The "girls" would then send letters asking for 5,000 DM (a little over 20,000 Baht) for expenses, such as applying for a passport and visa, and for air tickets. After the men would send the money, they wouldn’t hear from the "girls" again. This was because the "girls" did not exist, and were only a ruse created by Leopold and his accomplices.

German, Swiss and Austrian authorities had suspected Leopold for quite some time, as many of the duped men went to the police authorities in their hometown and filed complaints about the matter.

On Tuesday 13 July 99, ca. 14.00, after receiving a request from the German Police Authority, Pol. Lt Co. Supathee Boonkhrong of the Pattaya Foreign Assistance Center arrested Dieter W. Leopold charging him for working in the kingdom without a work permit.

Elephant mauls young mahout

12-year-old boy dies from injuries

12-year-old mahout Siriyong Saendii last week suffered fatal injuries when attacked by his father’s elephant. The tragedy took place at the Pattaya Elephant Farm on Sukhumvit Road on the afternoon of July 10th.

The young boy was declared dead on arrival at the Pattaya Bangkok Hospital after succumbing to multiple injuries from the elephant, a 25-year-old male named Bunliang.

Siriyong’s mother witnessed the incident and told reporters her son was riding on Bunliang’s back just 50 meters from the house when the elephant suddenly roared and shook violently, causing Siriyong to fall to the ground.

The 25-year-old male elephant, Bunliang shows signs of injury after going mad, killing a young mahout who was taking the animal for bath on a very hot day in Pattaya.

The elephant then trampled the boy and kicked him, sending him flying 10 meters. She said Bunliang didn’t stop there; he walked up to Siriyong and used his tusks to pierce the boy.

The mother’s screams alerted other men in the area to come and assist. The men were forced to use spears and machetes to get the elephant to back off. Bunliang received numerous wounds before finally retreating.

Doctors at the hospital said young Siriyong had many broken bones and his head was almost severed by the elephant’s tusks.

Siriyong’s father, Somphorn Saendii, was very upset at the loss of his son. He said that the elephant had never before displayed such behavior. He told how he and his family had just moved to Pattaya four months ago. They had brought two elephants with them to seek employment in Pattaya, as no work was available in Surin.

The elder Somphorn said he was the mahout for Bunliang, while his son was the mahout for the other elephant. "Siriyong often took both of the elephants to bathe, but Bunliang was more accustom to me, just as Siriyong’s elephant was to him."

On the fatal day, Somphorn took his son’s elephant to perform in a show, entrusting Bunliang to his son. He instructed him to bathe the elephant in the afternoon, not even thinking something like this could ever occur.

Sutham Phatananamrob, the owner of the Elephant Farm, said the elephant was tranquilized after the incident and has since calmed down. When the police arrived to investigate, however, the elephant was still keyed up and was chained in a distant area.

Sutham believes the elephant was keyed up (in must) and the extremely hot afternoon temperature just made the elephant more agitated, which, added to the elephant not being used to the young boy’s control as it would be with his father’s commands, created a dangerous situation.

Motorcycle taxi driver busted with counterfeit 1,000 baht note

Tells police it was given to him to buy drugs

Wirachai Masaphan, age 28, drove into the Mobil Gas station at Sukhumvit and South Pattaya Road and purchased fuel costing 46 baht. He gave a crisp 1,000 baht note to the attendant, Wanthapha Nakjan. Wanthapha noticed that it seemed a little too crisp and informed the station owner, who immediately called the police.

When police arrived they found the motorcycle driver still waiting for his change. After examining the 1,000 baht banknote, the police took Wirachai into the station where he told police that he received it from two criminal types on Soi Bonkot. Seems the criminal types wanted him to purchase amphetamines for them.

Wirachai regularly works in that street as a taxi driver. He claimed he agreed to get the drugs and was on his way to Central Pattaya to make the purchase when he noticed he needed fuel. So he stopped at the Mobil station and used the 1,000 baht note to pay for the fuel, not realizing it was counterfeit.

The young man’s story did not impress the police, who now have him behind bars waiting to go to trial for violation of article 245, intending to disseminate counterfeit money. Police are also investigating his story of the two criminal types and the drug dealers in Central Pattaya.

Little girl murdered in act of revenge

Miss Phidsamai Sriwong, age 23, became psychotic after repeatedly being rejected by her ex-lover, Mr. Aphirak Phongsupha, age 30. In a fit of premeditated rage, Phidsamai locked up Aphirak’s 3-year-old daughter, Aridsara Phongsupha, then set fire to the house. The resulting inferno resulted in the death of the innocent young girl.

After the arrest, Phidsamai admitted to setting fire to the house in Soi Khaotalo on the evening of July 8th while persons were still inside. Phidsamai said she set fire to a pile of clothing in one corner of the house and then left after blocking the little girl’s door.

In all, five persons were in the home when the fire started. One of the occupants told reporters she ran from the home as soon as she realized there was a fire. She then heard Nong Anne screaming from inside. She yelled for help but the flames became too big and no one was able to get back inside.

Miss Phidsamai told police and reporters she set fire to the home in order to get back at the father of the little girl. She said he was upset with her and had told her to leave after ignoring her for days.

She said she decided that if she could not live in the house then nobody could live there. Phidsamai gave her information to police showing no apparent remorse. The two had been living together for only three months.

Police and Sawang Boribun Rescue Unit personnel had Miss Phidsamai return to the location of the incident so she could reconstruct her crime. When they arrived, a crowd of residents and relatives were assembled in the vicinity and once seeing Phidsamai they became enraged and repeatedly tried to attack her. Police and rescue personnel were needed to keep them at bay.

Phidsamai shows Pol. Lt. Col. Phaisan and personnel from the Sawang Boribun Rescue Foundation how she set fire to the home with Nong Anne still inside. Phidsamai confessed to the terrible crime saying she intended to get even with the little girl’s father, Mr. Aphirak Phongsupha who recently ended their affair.

Evidence showed that the murder was premeditated. Apparently, the little girl, Nong Anne, was staying at a nearby relative’s home when Phidsamai came by to pick her up, claiming she wanted to take the girl home to have a friend to sleep with for the night. She also took along some of Nong Anne’s clothing. This appeared normal to the relative who allowed Nong Anne to go with her to spend the night, apparently not aware of the recent split between Phidsamai and Nong Ann’s father. At the house Phidsamai waited for Nong Anne to fall asleep before setting the fire.

The father, Aphirak, said he has never been this sorry in his life. He said Nong Anne was a very clever little girl who loved to play and was very much loved by the whole family. She even loved Miss Phidsamai, calling her mother all the while. He couldn’t understand how anyone could be capable of doing such a sinister thing.

Aphirak Phongsupha is employed as a singer. He is currently trying to contact his little girl’s mother.

Aphirak has taken his daughter’s body to the Thamasamakhi Temple in South Pattaya for the funeral ceremony.

Police have received information from five witnesses and have Phidsamai’s confession. Due to the nature of the crime, they intend to close the case quickly.

Phidsamai will be transferred to the Chonburi Provincial Court and charged with using fire to commit murder. If convicted, she could face the death penalty.

“Amazing Thailand Concert”

Although the exact date has not yet been released, the excitement is mounting over the "Amazing Thailand Concert" scheduled to take place in December of this year.

The Rayong Business and Tourism Association released information that the concert will be held at U-Tapao Airport. One million square meters of the airbase have been designated for the concert.

The Rayong Business and Tourism Association also revealed that the construction of the stage is scheduled to begin on December 1, 1999. The concert stage will be 120 meters wide and 30 meters high. A crew of 800 from the Netherlands will come and assemble the stage. Four Boeing 747 aircraft will be required to transport the equipment.

The concert will be presented in three segments on the giant stage, apparently scheduled to run concurrent Saturdays from 7:00 to 10:00 p.m.

Unconfirmed sources revealed that superstars scheduled to appear include Madonna, The Eagles, Janet Jackson, Rod Stewart, Elton John and Tina Turner.

The entertainment will also include Thai Traditional performances from all regions of Thailand, supported by the Tourism Authority of Thailand. Thai handicrafts and other merchandise for export will also be on display throughout the concert along with a lot of Thai food.

Sources also said that somewhere in the area of 100-150 million US dollars (4,000-6,000 million baht) will be invested in the concert, with most of the funds being invested by promoters from Great Britain. Approximately 500,000 foreign tourists are expected to be coming into the country during the event, bringing in almost 48,000 million baht in revenue.

The concert will be promoted both in Thailand and outside of the country by way of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Mass Communication Organization, Thai Airways, Ministry of C ommunications Offices in Chonburi, Rayong and Pattaya City, and the Tourism Authority of Thailand.

Sethaphan Butthani, Tourism Authority of Thailand Director of Central Region 3, said that he is unsure of the details of the concert at this time because the concert, being held in Rayong Province, falls under the jurisdiction of Tourism Authority of Thailand Central Region Area 4. "The concert is still in the planning stages, but as soon as further information becomes available it will be presented, due to the enormity of this event."

U.S. Embassy Consular Officer to visit Pattaya July 23

Consular Officer Ethel Oates from the U.S. Embassy, Bangkok will visit Pattaya on July 23, 1999. Her visit will provide the opportunity for the Americans residing in the area to obtain a number of consular services without having to travel to the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok.

The officer will be providing services at the following times and location:

* Friday, July 23, 1999 from 08:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and from 13:00 to 16:00 p.m. at the Merlin Hotel, 429 Moo 9, Pattaya Beach Road, Pattaya, Chonburi. Tel: (038) 428-755.

Below is a list of services that will be provided during this visit:

* extra passport pages

* passport applications (be advised, however, that new passports must be picked up at the U.S. Embassy in Bangkok - they cannot be sent via mail)

* notarials, including affidavits required by the Thai governments for marriage, driver’s licenses and certain types of visas

* registration with the U.S. Embassy

* information on application procedures for Thai citizens seeking U.S. visas (note that applications must be submitted at the U.S. Embassy, Bangkok)

Please note that U.S. law requires a US$55 (or Thai Baht equivalent) fee for each notarial service provided. Passport applications cost US$40-60.

Please share this information with other Americans in your area. Should you have any questions, contact the American Citizen Services office at 02-205-4049.

Inspector Thui allegedly mixing words

Wants victim to change his story

In early June (Vol. VII #24, 11 June 1999), Pattaya Mail reported a incident of an alleged beating of a civilian by an officer of the law. Apparently, the victim’s only crime was to be the common-law husband of the policeman’s ex-girlfriend.

Since then, the officer, "Inspector Thui", has allegedly been trying to get the victim to change his story.

The victim was Suriya Seniwong, a reporter for the Pattaya Naew Na Newspaper.

On July 6th, Pattaya Mail met with Suriya to get an update of the situation. Suriya said that he was contacted on July 4th by Pol. Lt. Col. Wanchai Wichiensan, Asst. Superintendent of Suppression Unit 3, and Pol. Lt. Col. Chaiyaphorn Sirileut, Department 1 of Suppression Unit 3 (Inspector Thui). The two officers told him they wanted to meet to clear up the matter.

They made an appointment to meet at a restaurant in the Walking Street near South Pattaya Road. Before meeting the two officers at the restaurant Suriya contacted Pol. Capt. Manoj Bamphenphan, officer in charge of the case, requesting the captain accompany him to the meeting.

The four men met at the restaurant on July 4th. Pol. Lt. Col. Wanchai began by telling Mr. Suriya that Inspector Thui was certainly at fault when he let his emotions cause his actions during the incident. He continued, saying how it is now up to Suriya to decide if the matter can be ended.

The entire time Inspector Thui not only refused to admit to physically abusing Suriya, but also denied that it was his subordinate officers accompanying him that day. He declared the men were merely some of his friends.

Inspector Thui became very upset with Suriya during the meeting, accusing him of reporting false information to both the police and the news media.

Suriya said he countered by saying that the men were in full uniform and armed. He said his neighbors witnessed the incident.

However, according to Suriya, this just upset the Inspector even more. At that point Pol. Lt. Col. Wanchai refrained the Inspector from continuing and then apologized to Suriya. Inspector Thui calmed down somewhat and made a weak apology for what appeared to be for Pol Lt. Col. Wanchai’s benefit only.

Thereafter, they wanted Suriya to give in and change his story in order to keep the incident from going to court. Apparently, Inspector Thui is about to present himself to his superiors.

Suriya was also asked to make the claim that he mistakenly identified the wrong person. Suriya did not agree or disagree to anything, only stating that he will do what he can.

Later, Suriya told Pattaya Mail’s reporter that he feels as though he is an innocent party to this whole affair. He added that he was just not capable of letting the matter drop, and will leave it up to the courts to decide. He believes there are laws established to protect people from incidents such as this, therefore, the matter should not just easily disappear. He’ll be looking out for his personal safety from now on whether he changes his story or not, tiredly adding that he is considering visiting relatives in Germany for a brief period to sort things out.

Later the same day, Pol. Gen. Pracha Phromnok, Police Director-General of the Royal Thai National Police, told news reporters that soon after the incident an investigation of the Pattaya Police Headquarters was completed. The Chonburi Provincial Police Commander, Pol. Maj. Gen. Phongsan Wacharathorn, and the Pattaya Police Superintendent, Pol. Col. Phinit Satcharoen, were instructed to report within five hours providing results of the investigation. Both sides were to receive fair and just treatment and a thorough investigation of the accusations made against the Pattaya Police officer’s alleged involvement in the incident were to be included in the report.

The National Police Director-General did not receive any report so he said he is unaware of the particulars involved in investigation. However, there is no need to fret, he said, because the matter will be followed up on and resolved in due time.

Pol. Col. Phinit Satcharoen, Pattaya Police Superintendent, commented that the officer in charge of the case, Pol. Capt Manoj Bamphenphan, will be called in to see if he witnessed Inspector Thui and Pol. Lt. Col. Wanchai asking Suriya to change his story. If found to be true it will not be allowed, and the Chonburi Police Commander will be advised on the matter.

SPE Upstream / Downstream Oil & Gas Industry Panel Discussion

The Society of Petroleum Engineers, Thailand Chapter wishes to extend an invitation to those interested in our Final Season Meeting. We are a non-profit industry international organization consisting of oil and gas industry professionals. We regularly get together and discuss our industry needs and emerging technologies. Our June meeting is, however, more of a local political tone than normal.

An Upstream / Downstream Panel discussion will take place where key officials will share insight and answer questions about the future of the local petroleum industry. We will be gathering July 16th at the Dusit Resort in Pattaya at 6 p.m. for cocktails followed by a keynote address, dinner and panel discussion.

The keynote speaker is Khun Pricha Attahvipach, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Industry. The panel will be compromised of Khun Nopadon Mantajit, the Director General of the Department of Mineral Resources, Khun Maroot Mrigadat, VP Bongkot Unit, PTTEP, Mr. Tim Hake, Executive Director Rayong Refining, Dr. Martin Bradshaw, Executive Director of Thai Shell, Mr. John Russel, Director Petroleum Economics Ltd.

After dinner all of the above dignitary’s will be offering a brief introduction and will discuss their views of the local petroleum industry. This will be followed by an open panel discussion with questions from the floor.

Saturday morning we will be gathering for an informal round of golf being organized for 9 a.m. Saturday morning at Khao Kheow. Everyone is welcome and membership is not required for attendance.

Organizations make donations to fire victims

Helping those in need

Associations and Foundations from Chonburi collectively organized items and money to be donated to the people who were recently made homeless after a fire.

The fire occurred on July 5th, burning down six homes and leaving 26 persons with very little of their possessions, with most of them having to seek assistance. Once the various agencies and the administration heard of their plight, they initiated a combined effort to assist the victims of the fire. The following organizations donated money for each of the 26 people involved:

Arts Preservation Foundation - 500 baht per person

Buddhist Traisarana Associates Foundation - 500 baht per person

Potekteung Foundation - 400 baht per person

Si Ko Foundation - 500 baht per person

Jihongko Foundation - 500 baht per person

Each family also received a set of essential items including a rice cooker and blankets. The assistance was characteristically a typical Thai way of displaying concern and help for fellow human beings experiencing hardships.

Copyright 1998 Pattaya Mail Publishing Co.Ltd.
370/7-8 Pattaya Second Road, Pattaya City, Chonburi 20260, Thailand 
Tel.66-38 411 240-1, 413 240-1, Fax:66-38 427 596; e-mail: [email protected]
Updated by Chinnaporn Sangwanlek.