3-8-2023 (BANGKOK) A video clip that recently went viral on social media showing a group of tourists of Middle Eastern appearance being held at gunpoint at a hill viewpoint has turned out to be a hoax, according to Pattaya police. The Myanmar workers who participated in the prank are now at risk of imprisonment.
The Pattaya police arrested two Myanmar men, aged 25 and 22, at a convenience store in Soi Bongkot Road on Wednesday afternoon. They seized a pistol-shaped cigarette lighter and clothing seen in the 99-minute-long video clip from the suspects on Thursday.
During interrogation, Kaeo Saw, one of the suspects, revealed that while he and his friend were resting at the Sor Thor Ro 5 hill viewpoint on Tuesday, a group of tourists came across them. The tourists saw him using the pistol-shaped lighter and asked him to act like a gunman holding them hostage and demanding money from them. They also requested his Myanmar friend to record the act using their smartphone, with the intention of posting it on social media.
The Pattaya police have stated that the Myanmar men could be charged with spreading false information, an offense that carries a jail term of up to one month and/or a fine of up to 10,000 baht. If the content creators are found to have intended to damage Pattaya’s image, the police can press a computer crime charge, which carries a jail term of up to five years and/or a fine of up to 100,000 baht (S$388).
