The Royal Thai Police are coordinating with the Chinese Embassy to check the backgrounds of 48 Chinese nationals, including 18 women, who were arrested during a raid on an entertainment venue in Bangkok’s Huai Khwang early Friday morning.
Police found several controlled narcotics, including cocaine, ketamine, Ecstasy and Happy Water, as well as drug paraphernalia in the venue which, according to police, offers karaoke rooms complete with DJs and waitresses. Drugs were also found in some of the six cars parked outside.
The raid was jointly carried out by immigration and anti-narcotics police and officers from the Child and Women Protection Division.
According to the police, the venue is exclusive for high-end Chinese customers. It has four karaoke rooms and charges range from 6,500 baht to 15,000 baht per night, depending on the size and services used from 8pm until the closing time at 2am, excluding food and drinks,.
Police said that the most expensive karaoke rooms can earn up to 80,000 baht a night, mostly on food and beverage sales.
Pol Maj-Gen Atthaporn Wongsiripreeda, commander of 1st division of the Metropolitan Police Bureau, said that they will ask the Huai Khwang district chief officer whether construction or renovation of the entertainment venue has been licensed.
The venue has been operational for about a month and is located in a building reportedly leased to a massage parlour owner.
Former massage tycoon Chuwit Kamolvisit, meanwhile, claimed that the raid of the entertainment venue, which he identified as “Diamond KTV”, stems from a conflict among police officers over the sharing of bribes paid by the operator of the venue.
It was observed that Huai Khwang police were not involved in the raid, despite the premises being under their jurisdiction.
Chuwit also claimed that the venue is owned by a Chinese businessman and is operated like the infamous Jin Lin pub in Yan Nawa district in October last year, in which over 100 customers, including 99 Chinese, were arrested, several of them testing positive for drugs. The raid eventually led to a crackdown of Chinese “grey” businesses in Thailand and the arrest of a key figure, Chaiyanat Kornchayanant.
