British husband's wife complains to police about karaoke bar where he spent thousands of pounts
A British husband complained to police as he lost thousands of pounds in an alleged karaoke bar scam in Thailand.
The man, identified only as Marcus, was enjoying a night out with his British friend when they visited a karaoke bar in the old city area of Chiang Mai.
The pair were said to have called over bar girls to drink with them before deciding to go home in the early hours of June 28.
But the husband later found he had been charged a staggering 150,000 baht 3,330 GBP) on his credit and debit cards.
His Thai wife has lodged a report with the Chiang Mai station on July 13, claiming the transactions were excessive and suspicious.
She said: 'Could two tourists really spend almost 150,000 baht in just five hours? My husband and his friend were so heavily intoxicated that they were barely conscious.
'Why were there multiple credit card transactions for different amounts instead of a single payment? Why wasn't the full amount swiped at once?
'My husband's credit card had a 50,000-baht limit, yet he somehow paid more than that. Why was my own card, which was with my husband, also used to withdraw cash?
'We later discovered the money didn't just go to the shop but was also transferred into personal accounts.'
Speaking in the video alongside a lawyer, the wife presented bank records that allegedly showed consecutive money transfers to two accounts within just 30 minutes.
She added that her drunk husband had hailed a tuk-tuk to drop off his friend at a hotel before asking to be taken home, but he allegedly took him back to the same karaoke bar.
The wife claimed the driver was part of a tourist scam. She submitted phone data to police showing her husband was driven around Chiang Mai before being returned to the bar.
The bar owner said the British men had hired nearly all of their female staff to drink with them until morning, explaining the hefty bill. He said each woman was 3,500 baht for the five-hour drinking session.
Officers said the the venue agreed to refund the full amount to the couple after reaching a settlement.
Police Colonel Pratchaya Thisla said: 'Authorities have ordered the closure of the two karaoke venues involved in the case.
'Police have charged the operators with running entertainment venues without the required licences and selling alcohol beyond the legally permitted hours.
'Police will also recommend that provincial administrative authorities order the businesses closed for five years.
'We are also tightening enforcement against hired drivers, including tuk-tuk drivers, who allegedly receive commissions for taking tourists to entertainment venues.
'We are also stepping up inspections and enforcement to prevent similar incidents from happening again and to protect visitors to Chiang Mai.'
In March, French tourist Kevin Dias Teixeira, 35, was allegedly assaulted and overcharged 30,000 baht at a karaoke bar in Chiang Ma, in a bill dispute following a night of drinking with hostesses.
Police said the bar later refunded the money, while officers charged the venue and staff with assault, operating without a licence and other offences, and proposed shutting the business down.
Some nightlife businesses in Thailand target unsuspecting tourists with inflated prices, handing bloated bills with services far higher than advertised.
Thai authorities claimed they were clamping down on the practice, but the scams remain prevalent in the country, which has a bustling tourism sector.
