Maybe moving to another country and ask people for money while pretending to be deaf wasn’t part of his original plan, but it’s hard to imagine when it became a good idea.
That’s exactly what police in Phuket arrested a man for last night after a tip from the media. Following several sightings of foreign nationals presenting themselves as disabled and seeking donations at places like Patong and Kata beaches, a Phuket News reader sent that newspaper a video of a similar occurance inside a restaurant at the Central Festival mall.
In the video, a card printed in English and Thai sits on a table, with the words “Hello! I am deaf” legible on the card. A few minutes later, a man appearing to be of European descent approaches and picks up such cards from tables throughout the restaurant. The cards reportedly asked people to buy an Angry Birds keychain for THB100, or make a donation.
After being notified of the footage, Phuket Tourist Police sent officers who arrested a man outside Swensens at 6:30pm.
Under Thai law, it’s illegal for foreigners to solicit funds for charity without a proper license and work permit, and begging is technically illegal, Phuket News reported.
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