Following the incident, Tourist Police Commander Pol. Maj. Gen. Saksira Phueak-am ordered officers in the area to work alongside the Northern Region Tourism Business and Guide Registrar to investigate and assist the victims.
Initial inquiries revealed that the victims knew the suspect personally and had been recruited into a group booking on the promise that larger numbers would bring cheaper prices. The group grew to more than 30 people, each paying 24,000 baht for the package — bringing total losses to over 800,000 baht. The group included children and elderly travellers who had chartered a bus from Chiang Rai in the early hours of the morning to make the flight.
Police say the company had used the tour licence of an unrelated, legitimate business to lend itself credibility. Payments had been made directly into the suspect’s personal account, and the suspect’s own company turned out to be a defunct shell with no tour operating licence in either a personal or corporate name — meeting the legal definition of an illegal ghost tour operation.
Officers from Tourist Police Division 2, together with Chiang Mai tourist police and the tourism registrar, arrested the suspect — who had travelled to the airport with the group — and charged them with operating a tour business without a licence under Section 15 and Section 80 of the Tourism Business and Guide Act B.E. 2551.
Tourist police are urging the public to verify a tour company’s licence status before purchasing any package through the Department of Tourism website at www.dot.go.th.
