Police in the Thai tourism hotspot of Pattaya are ramping up the pressure on illegal gambling den operators, arresting seven in a raid on a nail salon.
The Thai media outlet Siam Rath reported that Pattaya South police found seven people playing rounds of poker at the salon Chouly Nails in the Nong Prue Subdistrict of Pattaya’s Bang Lamung District.
Police took photographs of the suspects before raiding the address and arresting all seven on illegal gambling-related charges.
The images appear to show seven individuals sitting on customer couches, using a large towel as a betting table.
A large bundle of cash can be seen in the center of the makeshift table. The group appeared to have done little to disguise their activities. The lights were on, with the suspected gamblers playing next to a large, street-facing glass door.
Police said they raided the property at around 2 am on May 19. Detectives said they were acting on a tip-off from a member of the public.
Pattaya Nail Salon: Gambling Suspects ‘Did Not Fear Police’
The informant told officers that “a group of gamblers” was “openly playing cards, without fear of the law” at the salon.
Police said they confiscated a deck of cards and an undisclosed quantity of cash. They then took all seven suspects to Pattaya City Police Station for further questioning.
Upon questioning, one of the suspects reportedly revealed that after closing the shop, employees decided to have drinks together before “starting a game of poker.”
While the arrestees at the nail salon all appear to be Thai nationals, Pattaya police say they have recorded an uptick in gambling-related crimes involving foreign passport-holders.
Earlier this month, three Chinese passport-holders sustained injuries when they jumped from second-floor windows in a Pattaya villa to escape a police raid.
Police said the villa had been converted into an underground VIP betting den.
First aid responders treated the injured men before rushing them to a nearby hospital.
Police have since charged the trio, and several other Chinese nationals, with gambling-related offenses.
Police Monitoring Foreign Nationals
In late 2024, police raided a Pattaya house that South Korean tenants had allegedly turned into an operating base for a $3.7 million online gambling website.
Online casinos are illegal in both South Korea and Thailand.
Police said the group comprised over a dozen “employees” who used the two-story detached house as a makeshift office.
Security was high at the house, which was surrounded by a fence and equipped with CCTV cameras.
Officers said the arrestees provided sports betting and online casino services to more than 20,000 South Korean customers.
Detectives say that entire housing estates in certain districts have become notorious among foreign visitors.
Many rent villas in quieter areas, where some “engage in illegal activities related to call centers and online gambling,” police said.
In Phuket, meanwhile, police raided an illegal poker club that catered exclusively to Russian speakers in February this year.
Chalong police said they discovered a Russian-language Instagram advertisement for the club during a routine web search.
The ad prompted users to join a WhatsApp group that shared the dates and times of upcoming gambling sessions.
Operators reportedly charged would-be poker players around $650 per session.
