A dozen foreigners, including two Singaporeans and one Indian, were arrested from a Bangkok gambling den during a raid by the Thai police force this week. A Thai woman was also caught in the raid.
Details of the late-night raid (about 10.30pm local time) on February 13 have been released on the Facebook page of the Metropolitan Police Bureau, which enforces security in Bangkok.
The Facebook post on the raid is accompanied by images of those arrested — faces blurred digitally to protect their identity. One image shows Thai police personnel standing around a table laden with gambling paraphernalia, including stacks of casino-style chips.
According to what the Facebook post said, the building where the gambling den was busted this week had earlier seen other illegal activities, including drug peddling. This time, police informants found that people were gathering on the third floor to play illegal games of poker.
Thai law is very strict with regard to any kind of betting or gambling outside what the government sees fit to permit.
In its post, the Metropolitan Police Bureau said that when the raid team entered the gambling room on the third floor, they found at least 20 players in the room who were foreigners.
A total of 12 foreigners were arrested (10 men and two women) — there were eight Chinese; two Singaporeans; one Indian; and one Filipino. Several of the gamblers managed to escape. The arrest of the Thai woman took the total to 13.
Currency of Thailand, Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Macau, Euro Zone, and the United States were confiscated in the raid. Furniture, mobile phones, and 45 bottles of contraband liquor were also seized.
The Facebook post said that some of the foreign gamblers claimed, when interrogated by the Thai police, that they had been “invited” to this den, and that they had no idea this was illegal in Thailand. One of two Singaporeans was found to have overstayed in Thailand.
