Russian prostitutes detained in Phuket

On the eve of Russian Women’s Day, an erotic and criminal scandal broke out on the Thai island of Phuket: tourists from the Russian Federation were detained on charges of “prostitution in a public place.” In the Russian diaspora, the largest in Phuket, the imprudent act of their compatriots was called “going out on the eight-March cleanup day,” since on the eve of their holiday the ladies, obsessed with dreams of planned purchases, lost their vigilance and were raided.

The local press reports the detention of Russian citizens aged 19 and 23 as “another success of the police headquarters for the eighth region together with the Patong police station and the central police department of Phuket province.” This time, the “operation based on a received signal”, or, more simply put, a raid based on a call received on a special hotline, is a joint one, and before that, the brave police headquarters of the 8th region, specializing in Russian violators, had already distinguished itself more than once on its own. It was he who recently, “on a signal from the population,” busted an “underground casino” – five Russians who sat down to play poker in a private villa. Gambling is prohibited in Thailand, but only in public places, but the players from the villa were kept in Phuket dungeons and then deported. Young Russian women, according to Phuket media, now face up to two years in Phuket prison.

– Isn’t prostitution allowed in Thailand? – I ask a question to Boris, a Russian-speaking lawyer practicing in Phuket. “They’re standing in rows on Bangla Road, and they’re grabbing our people!”

– Allowed, but not quite as you probably think. Moreover, it was legalized just a year ago, also just before March 8th. Although, of course, it has always existed, it was punished by the law on the prevention and suppression of prostitution, which served as a bottomless feeding trough for security forces and officials. A year ago, it was amended to allow street prostitution and the provision of voluntary sexual services to Thai citizens over 20 years of age. But at the same time, they must register as “self-employed,” undergo regular medical examinations, receive certificates of the absence of infectious diseases, and work in strictly designated places. This is done to stop corruption in this most profitable business. Well, it is prohibited for foreigners, like any other work in Thailand without special permission and a work visa.

Friends of the Russian moths who came under the raid are sure that they were “snitched on” by a competitor’s hotline.

– Taiki, or what?

– The Thais are not our competitors, they snitched on their own. There is now a lot of competition among Russian relocants in this profession; I want to eat.

It turns out that Russian women Anya and Olya found clients through social networks and received them in a small hotel in the tourist area of ​​Kathu. The girls’ business was not set up on a grand scale, but was more of an emergency part-time job for the purpose of “keeping their pants up.” So on the eve of March 8, on which the girls planned to please themselves with generous gifts and treats, they decided to earn a little extra money so as not to deny themselves anything. But in the pre-holiday mood, they didn’t carefully study the client’s page on social networks, as usual, they simply made an appointment via messenger, undressed and waited in the room. However, following the client, who turned out to be a decoy, a detachment from the notorious police headquarters of the 8th region entered the ladies with reduced social responsibility. Officers said they received a “appropriate signal” and asked to see their work permit and work visa. But the girls could only present foreign passports issued by Russia. Now they are in the neighborhood.

“They asked for 14 thousand baht, that’s almost 400 dollars,” a compatriot and colleague of our moths shares on condition of anonymity. – If they raised so much at a time each time, then not only ours, but also the secret ones could have snitched. This is a lot for Patong. Greed destroyed them! You had to take a hundred dollars each and not show off!

At the police station, questions about the fate of the Russian women are answered in general terms: the Thai authorities are doing everything possible to make such services safer both for clients and for the workers of the most ancient profession. Therefore, those who violate trade union laws and ethics must be punished mercilessly.

– Will they really go to jail?! – I turn to the Russian-speaking lawyer Boris.

– Under this article, up to 2 years of imprisonment, and in Thai prisons there are enough of their own prisoners. I think they will get off with a fine and deportation to their place of citizenship at their own expense. But the fine, if no one stands up for the girls, can reach more than 40 thousand baht, approximately $1,200.

Only the Russian consulate has the right to stand up for compatriots, but it is unlikely that it will consider it appropriate to intervene in such a piquant situation. Alas, instead of $400 worth of gifts on March 8, the girls “earned” themselves three times the expenses, not to mention the moral loss.