PHUKET: The two men who provided marijuana to two tourists who suffered adverse reactions to ingesting smoke from the herb at Freedom Beach last Friday (June 16) have been brought in by police for questioning.
The news follows Phuket Tourist Police issuing a public warning for tourists to beware people offering free tokes of marijuana on the beach amid concerns that the people offering the free tokes might well rob the tourists of valuables.
Phuket Tourist Police said the warning was issued after two Thai tourists suffered severe adverse reactions to inhaling marijuana smoke, rendering both of the tourists, a man and a woman on holiday from Chiang Mai, unconscious.
In a public statement issued through the official Phuket Provincial Police Facebook page yesterday (June 19), Phuket Provincial Police reported that on learning of the incident the Superintendent of the Karon Police dispatched officers and brought two suspects in for questioning on Saturday (June 17) to try to determine what had happened to the tourists, named as Thanawit Lamjuan and Nuntini Tanfu
The suspects brought in for questioning were named as Sophon Wandee and Komsan Khongwatmai.
The suspects told police that the couple were walking along Freedom Beach at about 4pm last Friday when they came across the two men, who were inhaling marijuana through bamboo bongs.
The men said that both tourists then asked to smoke. They were not deceived or persuaded in any way, said the statement.
However, both became “extremely intoxicated”, the men said. Neither of the couple had ever smoked marijuana through a bong before, they added.
When recovering at Patong Hospital, it was found that Mr Thanawit did not have his wallet with him, leading to the presumption that it had been stolen. However, the wallet was later found after the couple had returned to their hotel room, police noted.
The police statement specifically noted that Mr Komsan said he was aware that smoking marijuana in public could be construed as causing a public nuisance. The statement made no mention of whether Mr Sophon was aware of the same.
Smoking marijuana in public was made illegal under Section 27 of the Public Health Act following an announcement by the Ministry of Health last year, the statement noted.
People can report incidents to local officials, who can order the perpetrator to cease and desist from causing the nuisance, the statement said.
However, only if the perpetrator refuses to comply with an order can they be prosecuted, the statement explained.
If found guilty, the perpetrator faces up to three months in jail or a fine of up to B25,000, or both, in accordance with Section 74 of the Public Health Act, the statement continued.
However, the statement by Phuket Provincial Police made no mention of whether Mr Sophon or Mr Komsan would face any penalty for smoking marijuana in a public area.
Both Mr Sophon and Mr Komsan acknowledged the potential legal consequences of smoking marijuana in public and were “ready to cooperate for the good image of Phuket tourism in the future”, the statement said.
Of note, the statement was issued as a Facebook post only, with no official named specifically as responsible for issuing the statement.
