A BRITISH holidaymaker has told how he was drugged and robbed on Phi Phi, a popular resort island close to Phuket where ''bucket'' binge drinking is rife.
His efforts to warn other tourists about the dangers of being targetted for a robbery come as statistics reveal the wide extent of robberies, mishaps and deaths of Britons worldwide.
''I guarantee it was something I drank in Phi Phi that triggered all this off and I believe I was targeted,''.Jeremy Thomas, 37, told Phuketwan.
While he was unconscious, Mr Thomas believes he was stripped of his expensive dive watch, wallet, cash and a ring.
''I think some people on Phi Phi are probably doing this to see who they can catch out or who it has the worst effect on, and that they are adding things to drinks,'' he said.
''Bucket'' drinking is popular on Phi Phi, with purchasers mixing large quantities of spirits, soft drink and energy drink to taste and sucking the combination through a straw, carrying the bucket with them wherever they go.
Back home in Shropshire, Mr Thomas, a computer consultant, provided details of what happened after he and his wife arrived on Phi Phi on Wednesday, August 5.
Two evenings later, he left their hotel about 9pm to go and have a tattoo done in town on the side of the beach, close to the pier.
''I left the tattoo place at about 10pm and we walked through the town to the other beach,'' Mr Thomas said. ''I sat outside a bar watching the fire show.
''A waiter came over and asked us what we'd like to drink and offered us a bucket. My wife said No, but I twisted her arm and said Yes.
''I think I was probably OK for about a further 20 minutes or so, but I can't be sure.
''I remember going to the toilet, which is based behind the bar in some bungalows, then it all becomes hazy, then nothing for me.
''My wife apparently asked for a beer as she didn't like the bucket, then at some point soon after she went to the toilet.
''When she came back, I had gone. She apparently waited for a little while before going back to the hotel alone to see where I had gone, but I wasn't there.
''She asked the hotel staff for help and they then came down onto the beach with her looking for me.
''I have no recollection past this point, but they found me back towards the pier, asleep in a shop doorway, having been robbed, at about 4am.
''However, at this point I didn't realise [I had been robbed], as I still didn't have a recollection of this. My wife walked me back to the hotel and she was pretty angry as she didn't know what had happened.
''I started to come around and have a patchy recollection of walking back to the hotel where I went straight to bed.
''At some point over the next 30 minutes, my wife asked me what time it was, and I realised my watch had gone. By this time it felt like I was awakening from a deep sleep and just starting to properly realise where I was.
''I said my watch had been taken, then noticed my ring had gone and checked my shorts, and my wallet had been taken as well.
I also had some small scrapes on the front of my shins and wrists. We went down to Phi Phi police station and had to wait for about 30 minutes as no one was there.
''They asked me what had happened and I explained and they took a statement. I then went back to the hotel, cancelled cards etc over the phone and arranged a transfer of money.
''We went back down to the bar at some point during the day and tactfully asked what they knew. But we understood our presence wasn't welcome and we left.
''Early evening I had heard nothing from the police, so I went back down alone to the police station, but I was starting to feel pretty unwell: very thirsty, walking up and down steps was making my heart race, me sweat, faint.
''The police said they had been to the bar and asked them but the owners said they knew nothing. I asked for a drink of water at the police station and actually now remember asking the police man where the hospital was as I was starting to feel sick.
''He did say 'You need a doctor now' and I can't remember what I said, but he filled in a crime report, asked me what I had lost, was quite interested in what everything was worth, but didn't actually put any values on the crime report as far as I can tell, and that was that.
''We went back to the hotel and I lay down and sometime over the next hour or so I started to feel very ill indeed, started throwing up, dry mouth, couldn't hold water down, my back-kidney area started aching, I was roasting and sweating one minute then shaking the next.
''I couldn't seem to concentrate on anything and was having bizarre thoughts flying in and out of my head and I started to get quite confused.
''This went on all night, but when my wife fell asleep I started getting panic attacks, was thinking someone else was in the room.
''My wife told me to wait until the morning then we could go to the hospital. I had a horrible evening like this and was waiting for it to get light so I could go to the hospital.
''I was feeling paranoid about going out in the dark alone, not just after what had happened, but my mind had started playing tricks on me due to whatever was now wrong with me.
''I went down to the hospital at about 8am on Sunday morning where they did a blood test, blood pressure test, temperature and urine test.
''The doctor said my blood pressure was high, I had a temperature and the only unusual thing in my blood was I believe he said my platelets were low. He kept asking me if I had a sore throat but I didn't.
''And that was that, really. I started feeling a lot better Sunday evening, having drunk a lot of the rehydration sachets that had been prescribed, but we didn't really leave the hotel again after that before we left on the Tuesday.
''I know what the islands are like in Thailand and most people know each other and I felt like we'd kicked up a stink so both me and my wife felt uncomfortable thereafter.''
Mr Thomas said he emailed the British, American and Norwegian embassies but received no response.
A young American, Jill St Onge, and a young Norwegian, Julie Bergheim, died in mysterious circumstances on Phi Phi in May.
Phi Phi's most senior police officer, Inspector Prasit Yoodthong, told Phuketwan today that without more evidence, it was difficult to pursue Mr Thomas's allegations.
''We questioned the bar staff,'' Inspector Prasit said. ''If we had had the bucket, we would have been able to check a sample.
''One problem we have on Phi Phi is fraud, where people claim they have been robbed to get the insurance. There are not many robberies like this one.''
For Mr Thomas, there will probably be no going back. ''I think my wife would rather forget it all, but sadly she does not ever want to return to Thailand, despite the fact that we actually met in Thailand while she was working there as a teacher in Bangkok.''
The latest British Behavior Abroad Report, released today, showed 812,000 British visitors to Thailand in the year to March, 41,000 British residents, 54 arrests involving drugs from a total of 202, 288 deaths, three rapes, 843 consular cases and 774 passports lost.
A total of 198 Britons were hospitalised. A previous report made the point that as a proportion of visitors and residents, Thailand showed the highest rates of hospitalisations.
As a proportion of the number of visitors, Britons were most likely to be arrested for drug offences in Thailand, United Arab Emirates, Cyprus and Pakistan.
There are currently 22 Britons facing capital charges worldwide.
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His efforts to warn other tourists about the dangers of being targetted for a robbery come as statistics reveal the wide extent of robberies, mishaps and deaths of Britons worldwide.
''I guarantee it was something I drank in Phi Phi that triggered all this off and I believe I was targeted,''.Jeremy Thomas, 37, told Phuketwan.
While he was unconscious, Mr Thomas believes he was stripped of his expensive dive watch, wallet, cash and a ring.
''I think some people on Phi Phi are probably doing this to see who they can catch out or who it has the worst effect on, and that they are adding things to drinks,'' he said.
''Bucket'' drinking is popular on Phi Phi, with purchasers mixing large quantities of spirits, soft drink and energy drink to taste and sucking the combination through a straw, carrying the bucket with them wherever they go.
Back home in Shropshire, Mr Thomas, a computer consultant, provided details of what happened after he and his wife arrived on Phi Phi on Wednesday, August 5.
Two evenings later, he left their hotel about 9pm to go and have a tattoo done in town on the side of the beach, close to the pier.
''I left the tattoo place at about 10pm and we walked through the town to the other beach,'' Mr Thomas said. ''I sat outside a bar watching the fire show.
''A waiter came over and asked us what we'd like to drink and offered us a bucket. My wife said No, but I twisted her arm and said Yes.
''I think I was probably OK for about a further 20 minutes or so, but I can't be sure.
''I remember going to the toilet, which is based behind the bar in some bungalows, then it all becomes hazy, then nothing for me.
''My wife apparently asked for a beer as she didn't like the bucket, then at some point soon after she went to the toilet.
''When she came back, I had gone. She apparently waited for a little while before going back to the hotel alone to see where I had gone, but I wasn't there.
''She asked the hotel staff for help and they then came down onto the beach with her looking for me.
''I have no recollection past this point, but they found me back towards the pier, asleep in a shop doorway, having been robbed, at about 4am.
''However, at this point I didn't realise [I had been robbed], as I still didn't have a recollection of this. My wife walked me back to the hotel and she was pretty angry as she didn't know what had happened.
''I started to come around and have a patchy recollection of walking back to the hotel where I went straight to bed.
''At some point over the next 30 minutes, my wife asked me what time it was, and I realised my watch had gone. By this time it felt like I was awakening from a deep sleep and just starting to properly realise where I was.
''I said my watch had been taken, then noticed my ring had gone and checked my shorts, and my wallet had been taken as well.
I also had some small scrapes on the front of my shins and wrists. We went down to Phi Phi police station and had to wait for about 30 minutes as no one was there.
''They asked me what had happened and I explained and they took a statement. I then went back to the hotel, cancelled cards etc over the phone and arranged a transfer of money.
''We went back down to the bar at some point during the day and tactfully asked what they knew. But we understood our presence wasn't welcome and we left.
''Early evening I had heard nothing from the police, so I went back down alone to the police station, but I was starting to feel pretty unwell: very thirsty, walking up and down steps was making my heart race, me sweat, faint.
''The police said they had been to the bar and asked them but the owners said they knew nothing. I asked for a drink of water at the police station and actually now remember asking the police man where the hospital was as I was starting to feel sick.
''He did say 'You need a doctor now' and I can't remember what I said, but he filled in a crime report, asked me what I had lost, was quite interested in what everything was worth, but didn't actually put any values on the crime report as far as I can tell, and that was that.
''We went back to the hotel and I lay down and sometime over the next hour or so I started to feel very ill indeed, started throwing up, dry mouth, couldn't hold water down, my back-kidney area started aching, I was roasting and sweating one minute then shaking the next.
''I couldn't seem to concentrate on anything and was having bizarre thoughts flying in and out of my head and I started to get quite confused.
''This went on all night, but when my wife fell asleep I started getting panic attacks, was thinking someone else was in the room.
''My wife told me to wait until the morning then we could go to the hospital. I had a horrible evening like this and was waiting for it to get light so I could go to the hospital.
''I was feeling paranoid about going out in the dark alone, not just after what had happened, but my mind had started playing tricks on me due to whatever was now wrong with me.
''I went down to the hospital at about 8am on Sunday morning where they did a blood test, blood pressure test, temperature and urine test.
''The doctor said my blood pressure was high, I had a temperature and the only unusual thing in my blood was I believe he said my platelets were low. He kept asking me if I had a sore throat but I didn't.
''And that was that, really. I started feeling a lot better Sunday evening, having drunk a lot of the rehydration sachets that had been prescribed, but we didn't really leave the hotel again after that before we left on the Tuesday.
''I know what the islands are like in Thailand and most people know each other and I felt like we'd kicked up a stink so both me and my wife felt uncomfortable thereafter.''
Mr Thomas said he emailed the British, American and Norwegian embassies but received no response.
A young American, Jill St Onge, and a young Norwegian, Julie Bergheim, died in mysterious circumstances on Phi Phi in May.
Phi Phi's most senior police officer, Inspector Prasit Yoodthong, told Phuketwan today that without more evidence, it was difficult to pursue Mr Thomas's allegations.
''We questioned the bar staff,'' Inspector Prasit said. ''If we had had the bucket, we would have been able to check a sample.
''One problem we have on Phi Phi is fraud, where people claim they have been robbed to get the insurance. There are not many robberies like this one.''
For Mr Thomas, there will probably be no going back. ''I think my wife would rather forget it all, but sadly she does not ever want to return to Thailand, despite the fact that we actually met in Thailand while she was working there as a teacher in Bangkok.''
The latest British Behavior Abroad Report, released today, showed 812,000 British visitors to Thailand in the year to March, 41,000 British residents, 54 arrests involving drugs from a total of 202, 288 deaths, three rapes, 843 consular cases and 774 passports lost.
A total of 198 Britons were hospitalised. A previous report made the point that as a proportion of visitors and residents, Thailand showed the highest rates of hospitalisations.
As a proportion of the number of visitors, Britons were most likely to be arrested for drug offences in Thailand, United Arab Emirates, Cyprus and Pakistan.
There are currently 22 Britons facing capital charges worldwide.
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Unfortunately this was of your own doing. I think falangs "robbed" you. You did not have to drink, but you did and now you pay for your sins. Don't blame us residents or locals. If your wife does not want to come back, so what, many many other people do want to come and visit Phi Phi. They don't drink till they flop, so they leave with happy memories and happy snaps. What did you learn ,not to be a duh and drink buckets, moderation kiddo.
Now you learn Phi Phi lesson.
Posted by Mouse on August 25, 2009 13:18