Bouncers attack 3 foreign tourists in Pattaya strip bar

Three drunk foreign men were assaulted by bouncers at a Pattaya go-go bar after arguing with other patrons and allegedly attacking the Australian owner early yesterday.

The men, aged between 25 and 30 years old, and assumed to be tourists, suffered cuts and bruises after the altercation erupted at the Showgirls go-go bar on Soi LK Metro in tambon Nong Phreu in Chon Buri’s Bang Lamung district about 3.30am yesterday, police said.

Rescue workers gave first aid to the injured, men who were still under the influence of alcohol.

The incident caused excitement among other people at the nightspot in the entertainment zone frequented mostly by expats and foreign tourists. Broken glasses and beer bottles littered the scene.

Witnesses told police the three foreigners, whose names and nationalities were withheld, began arguing with other patrons at a nearby table, prompting security guards to ask them to leave. The men objected.

Shortly after, Ronald James Kingsnorth, 71, the Australian owner, tried to intervene, but one of the men elbowed him in the face.

The guards immediately attacked the men, witnesses told police.

Pol Lt Col Kowit Sawadmonkhol, crime suppression chief at Pattaya police station, said the incident hurt Pattaya’s tourism image.

All involved in the bar fight, including the bar owner, were taken to the station for further questioning.

Police had earlier told bar owners to close at midnight for the start of Makha Bucha Day, but Showgirls was still open past the usual 2am closing time, Pol Lt Col Kowit said.

Bar-bouncer attacks on foreign tourists have long been a problem in Pattaya, with authorities adopting a zero-tolerance policy to such attacks.

In January, a Russian tourist was beaten unconscious at a North Pattaya beer bar by a bouncer who mistakenly thought he was running out on the tab. He was arrested.

In October, a Walking Street go-go bar was closed for 30 days after bouncers assaulted a Kuwaiti military officer and, in June the popular Lucifer disco also was closed for a month after two Israelis were put in hospital by bouncers.