Stranded in Thailand: a tourist with no money to return home

An American tourist has asked the people of Krabi province in southern Thailand for help because she does not have enough money to return home.

The owner of a cannabis shop near Ao Nang beach in Krabiposted the story of the foreign woman on Facebook on Thursday 11 May.

He said that the woman had bought cannabis in his shop and asked him to tell the police because she wanted to go to Phuket and fly back to the United States.

Which is a rather strange request, the police station in Ao Nang is easily found, near the beach and the policemen speak English, why not go by herself?

The foreigner told the cannabis shop owner that she only had 300 baht (8 euros) in cash on her.

Apparently, some days she only had 40 baht, which she earned by begging near the shop.

Sometimes she asks for food from the local restaurant.

Her sister reportedly transferred US$10,000 to her, but she says she cannot withdraw the funds.

This is where it gets tricky, if his sister can transfer such a large sum of money to him, she can also send him a smaller sum by Western Union or by one of the many payment methods that exist today.

It is important to know that there are travellers, both tourists and expatriates, who tell similar stories to earn money while travelling.

See : Scam in Thailand: the desperate tourist's trick

A member of staff at the cannabis shop, Cherdsak Boonmark, 20, gave an interview to Channel 3 about the American woman.

He said the woman showed him her wallet, which contained only 20 baht in cash.

She asked him for help to get to Phuket and back home.

Another inconsistency is that it takes less than 300 baht to get from Ao Nang to Phuket, which is easy to get for a tourist panhandling.

According to Cherdsak, the woman sometimes asked foreign tourists in the area for money.

Cherdsak stated that he also gave her food and snacks.

He didn't know where the woman was staying, but she went to the area near his shop every day.

Channel 3 revealed that he had reported the problem to the provincial immigration office in Krabi and asked them to investigate the woman's identity and provide assistance.

Many Thai netizens have expressed concern about the foreign woman, and many others have suggested that she seek help from her country's embassy in Thailand.

Real story of a traveller in a difficult situation or a scam?

We will know more, perhaps, soon...

Source: The Thaiger