A penniless Englishman angry with the British government for supposedly not caring for him enough has been deported after living in Pattaya on the charity of bargirls.
Chonburi Immigration Police were called to a clutch of beer bars on Soi 7 Aug. 24 where a disheveled Christopher Paul Smith, 56, was dragging luggage from bar to bar, taking handouts of booze and food from hostesses there. Confronted by officers, Smith gladly offered to be remanded into custody, saying he had neither money nor a place to sleep.
Immigration authorities had a better idea: Clean him up and ship him home.
A friendly Immigration officer helps Smith (left) with the paperwork needed to deport him back to England.
During processing, Smith railed against he British government, saying that he’d been in Thailand for four years and that when he spent all his money, the government wouldn’t bail him out. Smith said he’d always been a tax-paying citizen and felt the government owed him more respect and assistance.
While he said he was happy to get a free ticket back home and be reunited with his eight children, he wanted to return to Thailand, as the generosity of its people during his time of need greatly impressed him. While his deportation likely will slow down any return to the Land of Smiles, the kingdom’s forgiving immigration laws likely will mean Smith will be reunited with his bargirl sponsors at some future point.
