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CHON BURI – A large number foreigners, many of them old age pensioners, were arrested and fined 5,000 baht each for playing bridge in Pattaya on Wednesday.

Local police. soldiers and Bang Lamung district officials raided a Jomtien & Pattaya Bridge Club meeting above Alto's restaurant off Thappraya Road in the resort city, taking into custody 32 people, mostly European nationals, and holding them until 3am.

Pattaya police chief Sukthat Pumpunmuang told AFP Thursday the raid was sparked by a member of the public complaining to the government's anti-corruption centre. It was initiated by district officials, local media said, not by Pattaya police.

read more http://www.bangko...ing-bridge

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kære Thai politi det er lovligt at spille bridge selv i thailand i taber den sag når den kommer for retten


http://www.thaila...eague.com/

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Thailand: 32 udlændinge anholdt for at spille bridge
En dansker, tre svenskere og 12 briter var angiveligt blandt en gruppe anholdte, som politiet i Thailand sigtede for at spille bridge

32 ældre, bridge-spillende udlændinge, heriblandt angiveligt en dansker, tre svenskere og tre nordmænd, blev onsdag anholdt af thailandsk politi i byen Pattaya.

Det skriver BBC


Anholdelserne skete i en bridge-klub under en razzia mod gambling.

Selvom formanden for bridge-klubben fortalte politiet, at de ikke spillede om penge, men om point, blev udlændingene anholdt for hasardspil, fortæller politibetjent Colonel Suthat Pumphanmuang ifølge Sky News til nyhedsbureauet AFP.

Bridge-spillerne blev angiveligt anholdt for at have brudt en lov fra 1935, der siger, at ingen spiller må være i besiddelse af mere end 120 spillekort, skriver det lokale medie Pattaya One.

Udlændingene - der ifølge nyhedsbureauet AFP tæller 12 briter, tre nordmænd, tre svenskere, to australiere, en tysker, en dansker, en canadier og en newzealænder - blev løsladt ved kaution på 5.000 baht, svarende til ca. 937 kroner, torsdag.

Det er ikke offentliggjort, hvor resten af de anholdte kommer fra.

De blev løsladt efter 12 timer i politiets varetægt - ifølge Sky News var der dog en enkelt person, der ikke var i stand til at betale, og som derfor stadig er i fængsel, fortæller politiet.

Thailand har strenge love mod gambling, og ifølge BBC er næsten alle former for spil forbudt.

Ekstra Bladet har været i kontakt med Udenrigsministeriets Borgerservice, der torsdag aften ikke har fået nogen melding om en anholdt dansker, men som vil undersøge sagen nærmere. Der kan dog først forventes svar fredag.


http://ekstrablad...ge/5938676

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UPDATE – 4 February – 12.00pm

Pattaya One was contacted once again by a member of the Bridge Club who informed us that all players have been released on bail pending further investigations. Police decided not to refer the case to Court at this point pending further discussions with the Chief of Banglamung District, who instigated the raid, and the President of the Contract Bridge League of Thailand who traveled to Pattaya to provide further information on “Bridge” and how it is played for points and not money.

http://pattayaone...h-pattaya/

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citat fra http://pattayaone...club-raid/

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Mon de også får erstatning for 12 timers uberettiget fængsling.
Sikkert ikke, og de ansvarlige politifolk hører nok heller ikke et ondt ord fordi deres lille trick ikke lykkedes.

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lidt nyt i sagen om de kære kort spillere


Confessions of a Bridge Criminal
http://bridgewinn...-criminal/

her er måske grunden til at det gik så galt

And how did all this come about?

The Guardian report on the previous page is on the right track; this nonsense was started by the disaffected Thai ex-wife of a man who works for the owner of the club building. She is a nutter; last week she came by to accuse me of being an Australian policeman sent to spy on her. She made a complaint of gambling to the Office of the Prime Minister, whose staff have perhaps been a little over-enthusiastic.

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Facts from Pattaya

Thank you for your excellent editorial (BP, Feb 8) about the Pattaya bridge club raid. However, one or two details are wrong. We were never put "behind bars" but in a guarded meetings room on the top floor of the building. Also the passports and driving licences of the members are now being returned as we roll up to the police station singly or in groups to collect them. Our bail money cannot yet be returned as the public prosecutor has formally to sign off the cases. This may take until the end of the month. You can't hurry the Orient.

It is an open secret in Pattaya amongst informed observers that the police had cleared the bridge club of all improprieties in a separate investigation three months ago. This raid was not initiallyconducted by police but by the civilian Department of Public Administration, backed by army personnel, presumably to cover the eventuality that we pensioners started a fight. The DOPA also brought along the local press so that there would be adequate media coverage of the arrests. They certainly got that.

http://www.bangko...om-pattaya

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Hvorfor er det kun politiet der skal have al æren?
Hæren har åbenbart også været med, men det er måske tystys?