PHUKET, Thailand (AP) — When a German tourist refused to surrender his passport as collateral at a car rental stand along a popular beach in the Thai resort city of Phuket, the woman behind the counter pulled out a bag full of passport books to prove he could trust her. But the tourist, Falko Tillwich, was insistent. I said absolutely not ... no way, he recalled, and later handed over his drivers license instead. Tillwichs concern: losing vital travel documents, or worse — having them stolen by criminal syndicates that are exploiting lax law enforcement and corrupt police here to support a global network of human smugglers, fugitives and sometimes, terrorists. Those worries were heightened this week after investigations into Malaysian jetliner that went missing March 8 with 239 people aboard revealed two Iranian citizens had boarded the flight with passports stolen from tourists in Thailand. Investigators say it was unlikely the two men had links to terrorism and appeared to be illegal migrants trying to get to Europe. However, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said Saturday authorities were re-examining the list of crew and passengers after deciding the plane had deliberately changed course after taking off from Kuala Lumpur on the way to Beijing. Passport theft is a very big and critical problem in Thailand, said police Maj. Gen. Apichart Suribunya, who serves as Thailands Interpol director. It is a problem that Interpol, the United Nations and the international community have been trying to solve for years.
Posted on: Sat, 15 Mar 2014 08:03:24 +0000
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