A major crackdown on illegal taxis and unlicensed guides will be conducted at Suvarnabhumi airport starting July 28, according to a notice put up by the Airports of Thailand Plc in the airport on Wednesday.
The crackdown will be jointly carried out by AoT, which is the airport operator.
It is enlisting the Land Transport Department and Special Operations Division, provincial police from Samut Prakan and tourist police to help.
The move came after Transport Minister Sohpon Zarum made an inspection trip to the airport and ordered the AoT to step up measures to prevent extortion gangs preying on foreign air passengers.
Mr Sohpon managed to avoid any comment on worldwide reports of an organised gang operating from duty-free shops, whose members have reportedly cheated tens of thousands of baht from foreign tourists.
The reports claim that the gangs, apparently operating in collusion with shop employees and rogue policemen, intimidate and browbeat accused foreign shoplifters and thieves into paying large “fines” in order to escape lengthy incarceration and trial and return to their own countries.
At least one European country has warned its citizens not to shop in the duty-free area of Suvarnabhumi at all, and the alleged cheating has been featured in reports by the BBC, among others.
The duty-free scams are in addition to the longtime Bangkok airport problems of so-called “black-licence taxis” which have no authorisation to carry passengers, and airport touts who try to steer naive arriving tourists to unwanted hotels and shady businesses.
Bron: Bangkok Post
Theo