PATTAYA, Thailand – A Russian tourist was assaulted by a gang of motorbike taxi drivers for parking in front of Central Pattaya Shopping Mall, which the gang claimed as their territory, illegally forbidding both residents and tourists from parking there.
The incident came to light through a 40-second video clip circulated on social media, captioned “Motorbike taxi gang in front of Central Pattaya Beach, Second Road assaults a tourist last Saturday night,” sparking widespread public outrage.
On June 23, reporters visited the scene of the incident in front of Central Pattaya shopping center on Pattaya Second Road, where we spoke with the motorbike taxi group involved in the video, who work the night shift. According to their account, a foreign tourist was attempting to park his motorcycle in the area. The motorbike taxi drivers told him not to park there, but the tourist became angry and gave them the middle finger twice, provoking the group to assault him as shown in the video.
Pol. Col. Navin Theerawit, Superintendent of Pattaya City Police Station, disclosed initial details of the case, stating that the tourist was a Russian national. Investigators recorded his statement and sent him for medical examination. All the assailants have been identified from the video clip. Once the medical report is received, charges will be filed against all involved, and the case will be sent to court without offering a settlement at the police station.
Pol. Col. Navin also stated that he has discussed the matter with the district chief and plans to submit a letter to the relevant authorities to shut down the motorbike taxi stand. This group has been involved in similar incidents three times since the end of last year.
