Chinese woman held for zero-dollar tours
Police have arrested a 43-year-old Chinese national for allegedly using falsified documents to obtain a Thai identification card which was used to open a company running so-called “zero dollar” scam tours.
The woman, who allegedly used the identification of a Lahu hilltribe woman named Siripas Manae, was arrested at a housing estate in Soi Nawamin 86 of Bangkok’s Kannayao district on Tuesday, police said yesterday.
The arrest was part of the government’s policy to fight illegal tour operators as well as foreigners using Thai identification cards to run tour operations in the country, said Pol Maj Gen Surachate Hakparn, acting deputy commissioner of the Tourism Police Bureau (TPB).
Such illegal operations and zero-dollarscam tours, where tourists are pressured into spending money on high-priced souvenirs and services, have damaged the image of the tourism industry as well as the economy, he said.
He said the woman used the Thai ID card to operate the tour business. She called herself the managing director of Thai Tongmong International Travel Group Co.
Pol Maj Gen Surachate said the suspect first applied for the ID card in Tak’s Phop Phra district on Sept 10, 2002 under the name of Nakham Manae but an investigation later found her age and date of birth had been falsified.
In 2003, the suspect changed her name to “Siripas Manae” at Bung Kum district office, the officer said.
The court approved a warrant for her arrest on Nov 18 on charges of seeking a Thai ID card by using false documents, using false evidence to be documented in the house registration and giving a false statement to officers handling state documents.
The woman denied using a false document but admitted to running zero-dollar tours, which are unlawful.
She claimed she was just running a small business that feeds tourists to three major companies, he said.