Austrian man and Filipina woman arrested for 'working as illegal tour guides' in Thailand
Published date: Tue, 10 Sep 2024 16:09:12 +0700
An Austrian man was arrested for allegedly working as an illegal tour guide in Thailand.
Guenter Mayerhofer, 44, reportedly provided illicit tour services on Koh Pha Ngan island in Surat Thani province.
He was nabbed following police reports from local tour operators that a foreigner was moonlighting as a tour guide - a job reserved for Thai locals.
Police Lieutenant Colonel Winit Boonchit of the Tourist Police Division 3 said Guenter was detained at a restaurant on September 5.
Cops seized his white Toyota Hilux Revo pickup truck, which he used as a shuttle to take tourists around the holiday island.
Gunter allegedly admitted to running the tour business for two years and charging each client 2,000 THB (45 GBP).
During questioning, two of his clients claimed they had met him on Facebook Messenger. They said they were referred to him by their German friends living on Koh Pha Ngan island.
The tourists added that Guenter picked them up at the Buri Rasa Village Hotel. Their itinerary consisted of a tour to the Hin Plawarn Rock, the Than Sadet Waterfalls, the Yang Na Yai Tree farm, German Bakery by Achim, Wat Samai Kongka temple, and the Koh Raham restaurant.
He was charged with 'being a foreigner working as a tour guide without permission (tour leader)' and ‘being a foreigner working without a permit'.
Tourist police said they also nabbed Filipina woman Kathelyn Celestre, 47, for similar offences.
Officers raided her home and found on Koh Pha Ngan and found tour package receipts and customer records. They charged her with 'operating a tour business without permission' and 'being an alien working outside of her rights (operating a tour business)'.
She was taken to the Koh Phangan Police Station for legal proceedings.
Police Lieutenant General Saksira Pueak-am, Commander of the Tourist Police Bureau, said: 'Tourist Police Divisions 5, 2 and 3 are cracking down on illegal tour guides and tour businesses in key tourism hotspots to keep migrant workers stealing jobs from Thais.'
On May 30, police arrested British national Jabran Elahi, 25, allegedly working without a permit as a foreign tour guide on Koh Pha Ngan.
He was reported to have charged customers around 70,000 THB (1,582 GBP) for 18-day tour packages around various sites in Bangkok, Phuket, and Chiang Mai provinces.
Being a tour guide is one of 22 occupations that are strictly forbidden to foreigners under Thailand's Foreign Business Act.
Violators may be fined 5,000 to 50,000 THB (107 to 1,070 GBP) and may face deportation to their home country. They will also be banned from seeking a Thai work permit for two years.
