Police today arrested a 49-year-old Australian man today after uncovering his alleged sex tour operation in Pattaya, where he’s accused of organizing Thai women to have sex with foreign men on a boat.
Stephen Carpenter was nabbed at about 2am this morning at a house in Saraburi province, where police said he was hiding from an arrest warrant issued on Saturday, reported T News.
Not particularly discreet about his illegal business, police claimed that Carpenter posted a Craigslist advertisement on Dec. 6 promoting his “wild boat orgy” service complete with a plentiful supply of prostitutes.
As part of a sting operation, a police office recently answered the ad through messaging app LINE, and asked Carpenter to arrange the boat orgy for June 14. The Aussie then allegedly demanded a 50 percent deposit on the total charge THB38,000 (US$1,188) and police issued a warrant for his arrest after they transferred the deposit.
In addition to the prostitution and sex tourism charges, police also claim to possess evidence of Carpenter smuggling cocaine in golf clubs and bags from Thailand to Australia.
Police added that Carpenter had also overstayed his visa. To be fair, that seems like the least of his problems now.
Carpenter reportedly has refused to cooperate during intergotations. If found guilty of organizing prostitution, Carpenter faces anywhere from seven to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to THB40,000 (US$1,200). Meanwhile cocaine smuggling could see him imprisoned for another 5 years or for a lifetime, with a fine of up to THB500,000 (US$15,200).
