IS IT SAFE FOR A FOREIGNER TO MARRY A THAI? – Love can be a dangerous thing; emotions can run high and when there’s money involved some people will go to any lengths to get their hands on it. According to the FBI some 3 per cent of all murders in the U.S involving spouses are for the sole purpose of obtaining a payout from a life insurance policy. This very fact makes it clear that Thailand is not unique when it comes to wives or husbands bumping off their spouse for cash. So what about Thailand? How many foreigner nationals have been murdered by their Thai spouses with the intent on getting their hands on his assets? Thailand appears to have developed a notorious reputation on the Thai based forums and blogsphere; with countless cases of foreigners being scammed or at worse murdered for their assets. All countries have crime and certainly Thailand is not unique in that aspect. However it might often appear to have a more sinister side due to the lack of transparency in reporting from the Thai authorities. Suicide appears to be the favourite conclusion of the Royal Thai Police and whilst it can be accepted that many people bow out due to the pressures of life this doesn’t detract from the fact that suicide appears maybe just a little too prevalent. Many expatriates, from what I’ve read, feel that the Thai police use suicide as a way to avoid a full investigation. Is this assertion true? That’s anyone’s guess but it is certainly appears to be an easy way for the Thai police to end an investigation and close the matter swiftly. There is one element here that disturbs me the most and that is transparency. I asked a couple of sources inside for their take on the situation; “Ed, you have to realise that Thailand is a country that operates on the belief that ‘saving face’ is the be all and end all. Thais find it difficult to admit their failings and they are certainly some way behind western civilization in terms of transparency. The perception is that it is easier to sweep things under the carpet; not because they are incapable but because they don’t want to look bad in the eyes of the world.” On another differing opinion we got; “Over the last 15 years transparency has gotten better. With widespread use of the internet the Thai officials have realized that they simply cannot hide everything – the Ostrich effect if you like where heads are buried in the ground hoping the danger will pass is beginning to deteriorate. It is perceived that Thailand is desperate to keep the tourists flocking in and therefore the conspiracy theory is that many cases of crime are largely covered up in order minimize damage to the tourist industry.” Trying to find statistics on the number of foreigners who have been murdered in Thailand by their spouses, through a Thai Government source, is almost impossible; it’s like it never occurs. The only way I could find anything was to trawl past western news reports and within seconds we picked up dozens; here just four instances… Case One Ian Beeston, a 69-year-old retired design engineer, was beaten and stabbed to death at his home in a village in the north-eastern Thai province of Roi-Et. His body was found on Saturday. Yesterday, his wife Wacheerawan, 42, and her Thai lover, Somchit Janong, 48, were arrested and charged with murder. Ian Beeston with his wife Wachareewan Ian Beeston with his wife Wachareewan – read full story Case 2 Briton Toby Charnaud, a gentleman farmer aged 42, was beaten to death, barbecued and his body fed to the tigers in Kaeng Krajan national park in Thailand after he divorced his Thai wife and removed her from his will. She was later charged and convicted with other relatives. Case 3 Raymond Hyde, a British expatriate from Cheshunt, Herts, was beaten to death in his own home in Hua Hin, Thailand. Hyde’s wife Bunnag, 38, was remanded in custody on charge of conspiracy to murder her 68-year-old husband. Case 4 A 44-year-old Thai woman was arrested by Udon Thani police, after the body of her 70-year-old Austrian husband was found in the forest behind their house, with suspicious bruises and injuries. The couple reportedly had violent quarrels, and the wife also had an overseas German lover. What was surprising is that a few cases involved the Thai wife and her Thai lover; which turned out to be a police officer. In these cases the Thai police officers was the person directly responsible for carrying out the murder and attempting to conceal the body. As an outsider; that is someone who lives outside of Thailand, I am more than a little perplexed as to why some foreigners appear to put themselves in harm’s way. In all the cases I looked at almost 98% involved money; that is the Thai wife simply wanted rid of her foreign husband so that she could take his assets, which consists mainly of property. Something doesn’t quite add up here. Foreigners know, or should know, that they are unable to purchase land in Thailand; so why on earth would they do it. For many people paying rent seems like a waste of money and foreigners are offered a route to owning property in two ways. 1. They can set up a Thai Company 2. They can sign over the land title deeds to their Thai spouse Given the two options, and the number of cases where foreigners have been murdered for their property, I can only conclude that option two has to put the foreigner at greater risk. It is plainly obvious that with the foreigner out of the way the Thai spouse is free to liquidate the asset and enjoy the spoils of her ill gotten gains. So what about option one? On the face of it this might seem like a sensible option however Thai law clearly states that no foreigner may own land. The law is circumvented by the creation of a Thai Company; legally the company is a Thai entity (person) and therefore may own the property. The tricky part here is that if a foreigner creates such a company he or she may only own 49% of that company. This effectively means that a foreigner is handing over 51% of their assets to Thai. Here comes the really astounding part which I find completely incredulous. According to Thai lawyers the 51% Thai shareholders never really have access to the assets or any profits from such. This practice is referred to as a ‘Thai Nominee’ company. From the sources we spoke to this practice of owning property is widespread; however it is also highly illegal and would almost certainly involve the assets being confiscated if the Thai officials ever bothered to enforce the law. I am beginning to think that foreigners living in Thailand like to live on the edge. Let’s just recap to clarify: 1. Foreigners appear to be content, in many cases, to sign over their assets to their Thai spouse or; 2. Hand over 51% of the asset to an unknown group of Thais (the Nominees) that is clearly illegal. Are foreign nationals barking mad? I’m beginning to wonder if I am missing out. Maybe I should take a trip to Thailand and have a chat with a few expatriates because it appears that they would be more than easy to convince in handing over their assets; or at least 51% of them. I have to ask the question; if a complete stranger asked you for 51% of your property would you just hand it over? The obviously question to that, providing you are not heavily medicated and have no history of being completely insane is ‘no’. That now leads to my second question; why on earth do foreigners buy property in Thailand considering the risks; which could ultimately cost their lives? Again, I’m an outsider so maybe there is something I am missing here. Maybe there is something mystical going on in Thailand were foreigners get off the plane and simply lose all form of rationale. One of the darkest aspects of Thailand appears to be its overwhelming pursuit of money; the Thais seem obsessed by it. This may not come as much of a surprise when you look at how Thai society is structured. Thailand is a classic class based society where money is the supreme ruler and therefore everyone covets it and most will do anything to obtain it. Is this a fair reflect and assumption as to how Thai society works? That of course is debatable for every country has its own unique set of problems but certainly in part this appears to be the case and therefore puts any foreigner in peril when dealing with property. With the number of widespread cases of foreigners being scammed and at worst murdered; the question has to be asked… Is it safe for foreigners to marry a Thai? According to statistics; and these are flimsy, there are approximately 300,000 to 400,000 foreign national living in Thailand. The actual number of murders, that involve Thai spouses murdering their foreign husbands, is unclear; due to the lack of statistical information available. However, it would be safe to assume that not every Thai girl or lady is simply out to get their hands on their foreign husband’s assets and the practice of murder for such purposes is clearly not unique to Thailand. There is of course one solution foreigner should consider and that is to refrain from buying property and that renting simply removes any element of greed that may exist in the relationship. youtu.be/ZawsuJzwwCg
Posted on: Thu, 12 Sep 2013 03:28:50 +0000
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