“Night of tourist nightmares”: Russians in Phuket attacked, kicked out, refused to pay

The compatriots in Thai Phuket spent the night, called Epiphany in Russia, in such a way that the morning press called it “the night of tourist nightmares”: 18 emergency situations involving guests of the island, the top three “strongest” were citizens of the Russian Federation.

At the Patong district police station – the most “party” part of Phuket, beloved by all guests of the island – they explain that the tourist police are a separate unit, although, of course, they work in conjunction with law enforcement officers. Tourist Policy has a hotline that receives signals from all citizens – both Thais and tourists. Each call is subject to mandatory verification.

“This unit has been expanded since the pandemic due to the influx of tourists, but the ones who cause the most trouble are long-stayers (long-term tourists – author),” says Sompong, an officer of the island’s criminal police. “We wouldn’t be able to cope with all the challenges.” And they have professional psychologists on their staff.

– For what?

– Well, if a signal was received about a fight, and it turned out to be a conflict between spouses. Don’t just leave like that.

I call 1155, the same number where any signals are received:

– I live in the private sector, my neighbors got into a fight here.

– We’re leaving, tell us the address.

The false slander has to be urgently cancelled, it is clear that the hotline does not refuse help, no matter what happens. And they don’t even ask for the informant’s name. But is this good, because a signal can be not only a cry for help, but also a denunciation.

– Fine! – says the Phuket tourist policy psychologist, who calls herself Jackie in the European manner. “After all, sometimes it all starts with a minor quarrel, but if no one stops it in time, then the outcome can be anything, even the saddest.”

A colorful example of this is the past “night of horrors.” Tourist Policy psychologists compile their summary, which includes incidents that include the “human factor” – for example, not just an accident, but an accident as a result of a quarrel between vehicle drivers, which happens on the Phuket serpentines every single day.

If the list of ordinary law enforcement officers for the past “night of horrors” includes road accidents and mass fights in bars (compatriots also took part in them), then in the summary of “tourist” psychologists for the past night marital quarrels are in the lead; Russians also distinguished themselves in them. Thus, psychological officers provided assistance to a Ukrainian tourist who had quarreled with her Russian husband over a stray cat (the lady wanted to shelter her, the husband refused, and as a result, the wife left him). The police accepted a statement from the tourist about “domestic violence” and arranged for her to spend the night in another hotel, since for now she flatly refuses to live with her husband, a “tyrant husband.”

The “cat question” also became the cause of another scandal on Epiphany night: the Phuket cat was walking on its own, like most local cats, until our compassionate compatriot noticed “suspicious symptoms” in her. A kind tourist caught the animal and took it to the “veterinarian”, where she indicated what procedures, in her opinion, the animal needed. They were shown through, but the lady flatly refused to pay the bill: it was not her cat, but yours, a Phuket one. A tourist police psychologist looked into the scandal between the veterinary clinic and the Russian woman.

On the fateful night, our fellow citizens also “crashed backwards into other people’s vehicles,” but did not admit their guilt and refused to compensate for the damage. On Christmas Eve, another group of Russian tourists again had an accident on the now notorious “sea trip to admire the sunset.” The reason is the same – a faulty boat, but unlike the January emergency, this group escaped with minimal damage. However, I wanted to activate the medical insurance issued in my home country, but the company stubbornly refused: as a result, the dispute was settled by the Phuket “tourist policy”.

To be fair, the tourist police office notes that it was not only Russians who “burned” last night. So, following a signal to number 1155 from local residents, a US citizen was found crying on the beach at night; she reported that she had found her husband in a room with a Thai woman, and in response to her righteous indignation, her husband kicked her out without things, money and a passport. That same night, the regular (criminal) police rescued a guest from Saudi Arabia who was attacked by an unexpectedly strong British pensioner. Meanwhile, a tipsy tourist from Scotland, instead of paying the bill at the bar, started a fight with the waiters, shouting that “his country has long paid off all its debts to the world.” And the guest of Phuket from the Middle East, like a true Muslim, was crystal sober, but wandered into the local “street of sin”, where he fell into a stupor when he saw “a man transformed into a woman.” The indignant guest decided to overcome such a terrible haram (sin – author), but the colleagues of the “ladyboy” (transsexual – author), who was attacked by a Middle Eastern traveler, managed to dial the coveted number 1155, thanks to which no one was hurt.