South Korean Tourist Allegedly Scams Free Stay at Pattaya Rental Room

[misskit]

A landlord in Pattaya is pleading with local police to locate and arrest a South Korean tourist who allegedly rented his room last month and then fled without paying.


On August 1st, 2024, local reporters visited Soi Chalermprakiat 11 on Pattaya Third Road, Nongprue sub-district, Banglamung district, Chonburi province, following complaints from the affected landlord.


The landlord, 49-year-old Mr. Arinthat Sirichairangsan, provided CCTV footage of a Korean tourist, who allegedly tricked him by claiming to have lost his passport and wallet, to the reporters.

Mr. Arinthat recounted that the Korean tourist, Mr. Hin Kyung Mo, 48, checked in on July 17th and paid for the room until July 21st. After July 21st, however, the tourist failed to make further payments and claimed that his wallet and passport were lost. He also said he was waiting for friends to pay for the room, but when they didn’t arrive after three days, he again claimed to be waiting for them.




On July 31st, the Korean tourist said he would go to the embassy to handle passport and document issues. Trusting the tourist, Mr. Arinthat even arranged a taxi for him, but the tourist asked to go to a nearby convenience store first and suddenly disappeared. The taxi driver and Mr. Arinthat waited for the tourist for over 30 minutes, but he never came back.


Mr. Arinthat expressed frustration, noting that he had also previously lent the tourist 1,000 baht on July 21st when the tourist had no money to buy food. He also gave the tourist another 3,000 baht during Thailand’s recent extended holiday period. The tourist promised to repay the money once he contacted the embassy but never did. On the day he disappeared, Mr. Arinthat alleged he even gave him another 2,000 baht.


Mr. Arinthat said the reason he lent money to the tourist multiple times was because he had helped other tourists in similar situations who eventually repaid the money once they could resolve their issues. However, this case was totally different.




Mr. Arinthat reported the incident to Pattaya Police Station and warned other rental property operators to be cautious of this alleged scam.

South Korean Tourist Allegedly Scams Free Stay at Pattaya Rental Room - The Pattaya News

[harrybarracuda]

I thought it's illegal to fail to report a foreigner staying within 24 hours of arrival.

[taxexile]

man bites dog.

after reading for years about foreigh tourists being scammed, cheated, mislead and duped by thais opetsting tourism services, it gladdens the heart to read about the process in reverse.