Blues Factory – jamming session in Pattaya (01/08, from 20:30);
Pattaya Expats Club – Grand Sole Hotel on Second Road (01/08, from 10:30);
Planet Football Trials – Siam Country Road (07-08/08, 10:00 – 16:00);
Queen of Thailand’s Birthday – all over Pattaya (12/08, all day);
Fireworks Competition – Seafront by Soi 4 Pattaya Beach Road (14/08, after dark);
Darts Tournament – Town-In-Town Hotel, Central Road (14-15/08, all day)

August 01: Pattaya Expats Club
When: from 10:30
Where: Grand Sole Hotel on Second Road
Expats living in Pattaya meet up to share a few drinks and laughs. Great food also on offer from one of the area’s best loved eateries.

August 01: Blues Factory
When: from 20:30
Where: Soi Lucky Star off Walking Street
Sunday jamming with Mary and Snowman, Lam Morrison Show, Blues Machine Band and Rock Machine Band. A great time to be had for all Pattaya music fans.

August 07-08: Planet Football Open Trials
When: 10:00 – 16:00
Where: Planet Football Grounds, Siam Country Road
Help with the Pattaya-wide search to find the best football players aged between 10 to 14 years for the academy team. Successful applicants will receive sic months FREE training twice a week plus kit provided. Email name, age and prefered playing position to info@pattayafootball.com

August 12: Queen of Thailand’s Birthday
Where: All over Pattaya
When: all day
The Queen’s birthday also marks National Mother’s Day when alms-giving ceremonies take place at temples in the morning and many different parties honouring Her Majesty the Queen of Thailand later on.

August 14: International Fireworks Competition
Where: Seafront area around Soi 4, Pattaya Beach Road
When: after dark
Watch some fantastic fireworks displays sponsored and arranged by local businesses which will light up the night sky overlooking Pattaya Beach.

August 14-15: Pattaya Mayor’s Open Darts Tournament
Where: Town-In-Town Hotel, Central Road, Pattaya
When: all day
Pattaya Mayor’s Open Darts Tournament is for all budding arrows throwers to come and compete and have a great time.

A team of Pattaya Police, responding to a call, went to South Pattaya’s Tony’s Pub. Behind the bar they found Mr Hadi Asai, 21, who had a bad head wound, which later required 25 sutures.

The Pattaya Daily News reported, that in his statement, given after hospital treatment, the victim claimed he had been beaten up and robbed by nationals from his own country.

Mr Asai said he had been walking at the back of Tony’s Pub, when he met Miss Elmira Nazminiya, 20. Mr Asai told police he knew the young woman and had once lent her a sum of money.

Mr Asai alleged that while he was distracted by Miss Nazminiya, two men came up and cut his head with a knife, and then stole a Sony camera and US$1,700 cash from him.

The victim knew one of the men, who he named as 21-year-old Mr Amir Emany, but not the other. Police searched for and found the two known assailants. The pair were duly arrested and confessed to assault, but denied robbery.

The duo also named the missing attacker as Mesum, family name not known. They say that the man stole Mr Asai’s cash and camera, before fleeing the scene of the crime.

Police are looking for the individual known as Mesum. Miss Nazminiya and Mr Emany have been charged with the mugging and are being held, pending a court appearance.

The controversial decision to let him leave the kingdom, in the face of the seriousness of the allegations, had angered anti-paedophilia protestors, who doubted he would come back to face charges.

Mr Mikhail Pletnev, 53, was detained on July 6 at Pattaya’s Jomtien restaurant, of which he is a part owner. Police arrested him after a Thai national, detained 24 hours earlier, alleged that he had frequently supplied young boys to Mr Pletnev.

A search of the musician’s house produced pornographic films and photos, but none that showed under-age children.

Mr Pletnev was allowed to leave Thailand to accompany the Russian National Orchestra to a concert in Macedonia. The presiding judge ruled that as he was a long term resident with property here, he was not a flight risk.

In an interview with the Russian press at Moscow airport, Mr Pletnev refuted all accusations and said that no evidence had been found that would link him to any crime of this nature. In Pattaya today, Mr Pletnev reiterated that he had never raped a young boy.

The charges against Mr Pletnev are in keeping with the country’s ongoing crackdown on offences of this kind. If convicted, Mr Pletnev could be imprisoned for 20 years or fined 40,000 Baht.

Mr Pletnev is the Russian National Orchestra’s founder and conductor. In 2005 he was awarded a prestigious Grammy for a version of the ballet Cinderella.

Mr Suthiwat Konjanket, 25, a security guard at the Beverly Hills Plaza Hotel, told police that the two unnamed men had gone to their room, on Thursday evening, with a Thai woman.

Mr Suthiwat added that, in keeping with hotel policy, he had taken the woman’s ID card before admitting her to the hotel. Mr Suthiwat handed the card over to police. The card belongs to 26-year-old Miss Netnapha Janthorn.

Friends of the victims had gone to room 507 of the Phratamnak Road hotel to check on their whereabouts. They found the pair unconscious and called police.

Major Kriangklraiwut Buakla led the police team that attended the scene of the crime. Investigations revealed that two gold necklaces and a ring, two mobile phones and cash had been stolen. Soap on one of the men’s fingers showed that the gold ring had been slid off.

The victims were taken to Pattaya Memorial Hospital, by Sawang Boriboon Foundation’s rescue volunteers, who also attended the call to the hotel.

At the weekend, police officers were waiting for the victims to make a full recovery before questioning them. Police were also examining footage taken from the Beverly Hills Plaza’s CCTV cameras to try and get a better insight into the events of Thursday evening and Friday morning.

Mr Jacobs, 50, was held by Thai police acting on a request from Belgian authorities. The Belgian government allege that Mr Jacobs tried to scam money from Belgian citizens and that he impersonated both Belgian police and diplomatic staff.

After Thai authorities received the request from Belgium, Mr Jacobs was put on the Immigration Black List. Information received led an arresting team to the Malee House apartment block last Thursday.

The raid was headed by Colonel Athitsawad Kamonrat, the head of Chon-Buri Immigration Police. Further investigations showed that Mr Jacobs had been staying in Thailand illegally since the start of this year.

At the time of arrest, a quantity of official documents was in Mr. Jacob’s possession. These included a diplomatic card and other government identification cards. Police claim that these were fake and used to perpetrate scams on fellow Belgians in Thailand.

The Belgian government allege that Mr Jacobs is guilty of a number of frauds and deceptions as well as imitating Belgian officials. They further contend that he impersonated a Belgian police officer, both here and in his home country, after leaving the force.

Mr Jacobs served for eight years in Belgium’s police force and left in 2008. When his crimes were disclosed, he fled to Thailand. The Belgian government is expected to request that Mr Jacobs is extradited.

The arrest of Mr Jacobs is seen as another step in the crackdown on foreign and trans-national criminals who see Thailand as a safe haven.

Flower Fair – Pattaya Floating Market (04/07, all day);
Blues Factory – jamming session in Pattaya (04/07, from 20:30);
Futsal Games – Lan Po Park in Naklua, (11/07, all day);
Pattaya Expats Club Finland – lunchtime get-together, Jomtien (04/07, from 11:00);
Pattaya Marathon – All over Pattaya (18/07, all day)

July 03: Pattaya Expats Club Finland
When: from 11:00
Where: Canary Bay Restaurant, Soi 4, Jomtien
Expats from Finland meet up to share a few drinks and laughs. Great food also on offer from one of the area’s best loved eateries.

July 04: Flower Fair
Where: Pattaya Floating Market
When: all day
Come see the wonderful blooms in association with Eastern Plants and Flowers Association of Thailand which is aiming to promote Pattaya Tourism and its plants and flower Industry.

July 04: Blues Factory
When: from 20:30
Where: Soi Lucky Star off Walking Street
Sunday jamming with Mary and Snowman, Lam Morrison Show, Blues Machine Band and Rock Machine Band. A great time to be had for all Pattaya music fans.

July 11: Futsal Games
When: all day
Where: Lan Po Park in Naklua
Fans and talented competitors get together to discover who is truly the best futsal player in the entire Pattaya region.

July 18: Pattaya Marathon
Where: All over Pattaya
When: all day
Each July, competitors from a number of countries compete in three races including a full marathon of 28 miles, a half marathon and a quarter marathon. Pattaya is said to be one of the Kingdom’s toughest marathon courses with many hills and steep inclines so come along to cheer on those brave runners.

Last Thursday, Indian national Mr Uma Dhar Kesarwa, 46, was riding a jet-ski with his daughter, Sakshi Kesarwani, 14, when it was involved in a collision with another jet-ski. Mr Kesarwa and the girl were pulled out of the sea by jet-ski owners, who witnessed the accident.

Medical personnel from Pattaya Memorial Hospital, who responded to an emergency call, arrived at the beach opposite the Royal Garden Plaza Shopping Centre to find Mr Kesarwa barely conscious. Mr Kesarwa passed away on the way to the hospital.

When police arrived at the beach at 19:00, they found that Mr Kesarwa and his daughter were already on their way to hospital. Witnesses told police officers that the two were travelling on a yellow and white jet-ski when it was hit by a red and black one.

The rider of the second jet-ski, who the witnesses said appeared to be unscathed, fled the scene of the crash. According to the witnesses, the man looked Indian or Middle-Eastern.

Police officers have a picture of the unknown man and would like to question him. They would also like to speak to the owner of the second jet-ski involved in the incident.

Mr Kesarwa’s wife and the owner of the yellow and white jet-ski, 52-year-old Mrs Maew Khamharn, went to the police station and gave statements.

Mr Kesarwa, along with his wife, two daughters and son, had arrived at the beach at about 17:00. They hired Mrs Khamharn’s jet-ski and took it in turns to ride it until the accident occurred.

In the early hours of last Wednesday morning, Mr Abrahim, 40, an Iranian citizen, was distracted by two Thai trans-sexuals who picked his pockets.

Police, responding to a call, arrived at 04:00 outside Pattaya Shoe Department Store, on Pratamnuk Road, to find the victim and one of the two alleged robbers.

Khun Akaratasanai, 28, was nabbed by members of the public at the scene while his accomplice escaped. A search of the trans-sexual turned up US$500 and 8,000 Baht in cash.

The money was given back to Mr Abrahim. The man said that he was talking to his Iranian friend when they were approached by Khun Akaratasanai and his partner.

The two Thais supposedly engaged the two Iranian tourists in conversation, to distract them, while they picked Mr Abrahim’s trouser pockets.

Khun Akaratasanai confessed and added that it was easy to rob foreigners. He also said that in the future he would continue to prey on foreigners. He went on to say that he had been released only two weeks earlier, after serving a sentence for a similar offence. Khun Akaratasanai has been remanded in custody.

There have been several theft incidents recently in the town. Later in the day, Mr Pierre Viguier, a 65-year-old French tourist, told Pattaya Police that his bag had been snatched.

Farther along Pattaya Beach, police apprehended Khun Pitakpong, 34, who had Mr Viguier’s bag. Police returned the bag, which contained a passport, cash and personal articles, to the victim.

When questioned, Khun Pitakpong said that he and a friend had been drinking whisky. He added that he stole the bag to buy more whisky.

The tiny shield bugs, or stink bugs as they are generally called, do not usually go to towns but inhabit tropical forests and feed on sap from plants.

The stink bugs were first seen by Satawat Huanaworn. He was playing in his aunt’s garden in Kittawee Runreung Village, north of central Pattaya, when he saw the group of five insects on some flowers.

Satawat called his mother and neighbours. A group of people soon gathered to view the strange bugs which clearly show a smiling mouth and eyes on their backs. Some of the neighbours described the stink bugs as having angel like faces.

The insects are referred to as shield bugs because if they feel threatened they release a rancid liquid from their thoraxes. Although stink bugs have sharp mouths they are not dangerous and do not bite humans. As well as plant sap stink bugs occasionally eat other insects.

Even though stink bugs are generally harmless when they gather in a swarm they can be a nuisance. Stink bugs are immune to most kinds of pesticides.

Neighbours who saw the stink bugs said later that they had recently seen the creatures on national television but did not believe they existed until they saw them with their own eyes.

The Pakistani nationals were waiting for a bus to Bangkok at North Pattaya Bus Terminal when they were approached by a smiling lady.

She offered to buy them a drink but when they consumed the coca cola were became extremely drousy and could only watch as she emptied their wallets of all cash.

A witness noticed what happened and called emergency services.

Police officers arrived at the scene to find Fasin Eaud, 27, in an absolute state of unconsciousness and Wasif Muhammad, also 27, drowsy and having difficulty trying to explain the situation.

Investigating officer Pattaya Police Lieutenant Colonel Klitsakorn Thongin told the media that the perpetrator may be the same person guilty of many similar offences.

The victims were admitted to Bangkok Pattaya Hospital for treatment and are continuing to help police with their enquiries including providing description of the offender.