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Biometrics and immigration chief are the stars! But reports vary widely


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Biometrics and immigration chief are the stars! But reports vary widely

 

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Picture: INN

 

Two reports in the Thai media painted differing pictures of recent immigration arrests at Bangkok airport.

 

But there was no doubt about the stars of the show - biometrics and the chief of immigration Lt-Gen Sompong Chingduang.

 

He even went so far as to claim that the new system had flagged up 40,000 overstaying foreigners since June netting the country 90 million baht in fines.

 

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Picture: TNA

 

This despite claims by his disgraced predecessor Lt-Gen Surachate Hakparn that there were few, if any left in Thailand, notes Thaivisa. 

 

Both INN and TNA reported that biometrics was great. INN repeated what it said on an immigration vinyl board that the system had "done it all again" (jat nak eek laew). TNA said it was wonderful (jeng). 

 

Both said that three foreigners had been arrested at Suvarnabhumi airport recently thanks to the new system. 

 

INN said they were all people with fake passports or using others' ID coming into the country. 

 

They agreed on a 47 year old Iranian who was stopped with a fake passport. TNA went further and said he got the fake travel document at a French railway station for 520 Euros (17,500 baht) and was intending to go on to Japan. 

 

INN reported that the second was a man who no one knew where he was from and was aged about 57. TNA were more sure - they said he was Chinese and had paid an agent in Rangoon 1,250 baht in local currency for the passport.

 

The third case was of a Kenyan woman (about 28) who INN said was arrested coming into Thailand with a fake passport. TNA said she was going out with a fake stamp. 

 

TNA said she had been living in Thailand since June 2017 and was on overstay of 715 days. They said she had sent her passport to Kenya for a fake stamp so she would be able to leave. For this she had paid the sum of 10,000 baht. 

 

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Picture: TNA

 

INN quoted Lt-Gen Sompong talking about national security keeping Thailand safe from law breaking foreigners and repeated numbers to call, a website and even a room number at Suan Phlu immigration where people could report offences.

 

TNA went further in claims about the success of the biometrics system. They quoted the immigration chief as saying that the system introduced in June had resulted in 40,000 foreigners being flagged up as overstaying and had netted the country 90 million baht in fines. 

 

They also quoted Sompong as saying that the biometrics system was of international standard and as good as any in other countries and great for security. 

 

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Pictures: TNA

 

Thaivisa notes that the story followed several this week in which both the chief and a leading deputy defended biometrics after a serial fraudster who ripped off a woman in a marriage scam was able to slip out of the country to Hong Kong. 

 

They offered excuses for the 2 billion baht system on that occasion. 

 

Sources: INN | TNA

 

 
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-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2019-10-10
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16 minutes ago, webfact said:

He even went so far as to claim that the new system had flagged up 40,000 overstaying foreigners since June netting the country 90 million baht in fines.

 

This despite claims by his disgraced predecessor Lt-Gen Surachate Hakparn that there were few, if any left in Thailand, notes Thaivisa.

And both claims are lies. Amazing Thailand. 

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Immigration police use biometric system to nab 3 fake passport holders

By THE NATION

 

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Sompong

 

Pol Lt-General Sompong Chingduang, the Immigration Bureau commander, announced on Wednesday (October 9) that a total of three foreigners were stopped at Suvarnabhumi Airport in September after the biometric system revealed they had committed passport fraud.

 

“In the first case, immigration police arrested an Iranian man aged about 47 years holding a French passport and travelling from Germany to Thailand,” he said. “The biometric scanning showed only a 19-per-cent match between his face and passport photo, so we took him into custody.”

 

The man later confessed that he had bought the fake passport at a train station in France for 520 Euro (Bt17,300) to travel to Thailand and later to Japan to find a job.

 

The second case happened on the night of September 25, when the police arrested an unidentified Chinese man aged around 57 years holding a Myanmar passport. “The biometric scan identified that his passport’s Machine Readable Zone (MRZ) had been altered,” Sompong said. “The suspect later confessed that he bought the counterfeit passport from Rangoon for MMK 25,000 (Bt500) to travel to Thailand.”

 

The third arrest was made on September 30 when immigration police stopped a Kenyan woman aged 28 years as she was trying to leave the kingdom. “The biometric system alerted officials that she had overstayed in the country for two years. Her original visa allowed her to stay until September 15, 2017, and a fake stamp was used to give a new expiry date,” said the commander. “She later confessed that she sent her passport to Kenya to have it altered at a cost of Bt10,000.”

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/news/30377262

 

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-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand 2019-10-10
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those 3 arrests in a month (out of some 5mln foreign travellers) is very insignificant to justify 2bln investment and risk of extended immigration ques to take data. 

the system will pay itself in some 5.5 years (30mln in fines in a month, 360mln in a year), but it will also cost to run it (software upgrades, smoothing out program glitches, exchanging fingerprint scanners every  couple of years due to wear, etc)

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just another unneccessary headline about foreigners. 

They make it look like the major problem of the country are the foreigners.

Like foreigners are the most dangerous species in Thailand.

 

As if they wouldnt have overwhelming problems with their own population (high prisoner percentage e.g.)

 

This is to say the least very politically in correct. 

Even more of a witch hunt.

 

I wonder how many illegal foreigners are arrested in first and second world countries. Why is it we don't see those headlines and fotos of triumphant immigration police with their prey there (Like hunters with their hunting)? They are probably aware of more important problems to tackle.

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3 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

It wasn't plugged in.

It wasn't turned on.

Operator manual not in Thai. 

Farang all look the same.

The instruction manual said: "To start, press any key...", but there wasn't an "Any" key...

 

Also, he didn't do a TM30!

He didn't do his TM28s either.

He hadn't signed up for health insurance.

There are just too many foreigners, and no time for IOs to practise their game-playing skills anymore.

 

Those foreigners speak in tongues! Claiming that "'English' is spoken around the world..." - What's next? IOs having to learn Klingon?? Or stopping at zebra crossings, or being polite and smile at foreigners??

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Do you not get the feeling, that the police / immigration etc., are publicising all and sundry, so as to show that Thailand has a major problem with many "aliens." Thus this warrents all the ridiculous "security measures," needing to be implemented. A bit like job justification, whether it be man power or equipment.

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1 hour ago, kidneyw said:

Do you not get the feeling, that the police / immigration etc., are publicising all and sundry, so as to show that Thailand has a major problem with many "aliens." Thus this warrents all the ridiculous "security measures," needing to be implemented. A bit like job justification, whether it be man power or equipment.

You're spot on!

 

They want to show that:

a) there are many dangerous foreigners.

b) We can catch and deal with them.

c) Look at us. We're so great!

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9 hours ago, londonthai said:

those 3 arrests in a month (out of some 5mln foreign travellers) is very insignificant to justify 2bln investment and risk of extended immigration ques to take data. 

the system will pay itself in some 5.5 years (30mln in fines in a month, 360mln in a year), but it will also cost to run it (software upgrades, smoothing out program glitches, exchanging fingerprint scanners every  couple of years due to wear, etc)

They MUST protect the kingdom! The 3 pesky foreigner are more than the 170,000 illegal Thais in South Korea or thousands of whores in Singapore!

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43 minutes ago, HeyHeyHey said:

They MUST protect the kingdom! The 3 pesky foreigner are more than the 170,000 illegal Thais in South Korea or thousands of whores in Singapore!

Seems, that you do not get it. What you are talking about is South Korea´s and Singapore´s Immigration problem. Here they were talking about people that was illegally trying to enter Thailand.

Or maybe it was just your very poor try to excuse the foreign bad reputation in Thailand?

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7 hours ago, HeyHeyHey said:

They MUST protect the kingdom! The 3 pesky foreigner are more than the 170,000 illegal Thais in South Korea or thousands of whores in Singapore!

I love Thai whores, very cheap and get a new one every time ????

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21 hours ago, webfact said:

He even went so far as to claim that the new system had flagged up 40,000 overstaying foreigners since June netting the country 90 million baht in fines

As he's very publicly posted on his vinyl score-board each and every person caught I doubt very much that the numbers add up to what he now claims !

I think his self proclaimed celebrity status is now clouding his vision somewhat !

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7 minutes ago, soalbundy said:

So the Iranian bought the false passport in France and had no trouble travelling into Germany but was stopped in Thailand. Thai biometrics not same same European biometrics.

Nope, totally different. In this country we have stand up straight Immigration personal that is always alert and awake to control and owatch the system. In other countries these people are almost asleep or nowhere to be found. ????

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30 minutes ago, soalbundy said:

So the Iranian bought the false passport in France and had no trouble travelling into Germany but was stopped in Thailand. Thai biometrics not same same European biometrics.

Last time I was in the EU you just drove through most of the borders. Things may have changed since then I admit.

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47 minutes ago, soalbundy said:

It came with an affirmation of correctness written on the back of a cigarette packet.

I reckon what gave it away was the fact you could still see a bit of the big chicken from the cereal box inside the back cover.

This was also found folded in the back pages.

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