Just when Phuket thought it was about to revive its crippled tourism economy, the recent murders, thefts, and taxi ripoffs on the Island province are scarring its public image. The most high profile event of all was the murder by two hitmen of deported Canadian gangster Jimi Sandhu at a resort.
The murder made a lot of international headlines and poor publicity for the southern island, so Thailand’s senior police flew to Phuket to review the investigation.
But it’s not just the story of Jimi Sandhu that’s tearing Phuket up. The province’s bad press dates back to August when a Swiss tourist was found dead and half naked at a waterfall. A man had sexually assaulted her, and drowned her when she fought back. He then covered her in a plastic sheet and robbed 300 baht from her. The brutal murder happened just one month after Phuket had reopened to tourists in July.
To top off…
