Saudi tourist arrested on child sex charges
A 41-YEAR-OLD SAUDI Arabian man was apprehended at Phuket airport last Friday (Jan 19) for his alleged involvement in child sex abuse and trafficking in Thailand. Two weeks earlier a Russian national was arrested on identical charges on arrival in Phuket.
The Saudi tourist was taken into custody based on an outstanding warrant issued in Phuket at an undisclosed date. He was subsequently handed over to Patong Police, as reported by the Phuket office of the Immigration Bureau.
The suspect was arrested at around 9am at the International Arrivals Hall of Phuket airport, an off-limit area for anyone except authorised personnel and passengers arriving on international flights.
Prior to the arrest, three direct international flights from the Middle East had landed: EY430 from Abu Dhabi, QR842 from Doha, and WY833 from Muscat. Currently, there are no direct flights from Saudi Arabia to Phuket.
The suspect’s identity and the specific details of the arrest warrant were not disclosed. Phuket Immigration limited the information to the age of the wanted person, stating that the Saudi man is 41 years old.
The Phuket office of the Immigration Bureau provided the following description of the charges against the suspect: “taking away a minor over 15 years but not yet over 18 years of age from the parent, guardian, or caretaker for obscene actions, even with the consent of the minor”.
The charge falls under Section 319 of the Criminal Code, commonly known as “child sex trafficking.” The man was reported as taken to Patong Police Station for further legal processing, just as the 61-years-old Russian man arrested on Jan 5 and an unnamed man arrested on May 20 last year on identical charges.
Police have not elaborated whether any of the arrests had any connection to the Velvet Bar raid in Patong in March last year. The operation in Patong, conducted by the Department of Provincial Administration (DOPA) led to 36 raids by the Royal Thai Police in 10 provinces across Thailand. The Phuket News