Foreigner Arrested After Big Trouble In Thailand Documentary

I’m flying with the eagles,’ says Australian con man,’ but after landing at Bangkok airport he is in police lock-up.

An Australian con-man working with impunity out of Pattaya has been arrested by police, who were about to be criticised by tourists for their inaction, in the television documentary series ‘Big Trouble in Thailand’.
Immigration Police arrested 64-yr-old Lance Frederick Shaw when he arrived back in Thailand early on Tuesday morning on a flight TG996 from Australia.
Shaw, who had allegedly conned people out of hundreds of thousands of dollars in a gold investment scam and who has a history of fraud in Australia dating back over 25 years,  had boasted  to an angry British investor: ”Greed is good! There is no police or lawyers that money can’t buy,’ according to the Bangkok Post.
He also wrote: ‘Investments are risky things, you know. I have enough money to last me two lifetimes and with it I can go where I want when I want and fly with the eagles.’
Furious British investors were filmed making their complaint nearly two years ago, when a pilot programme was made for the series ‘Big Trouble in Thailand.’ A warrant for his arrest was issued in July 2008. But Shaw had been happily living  house number 670/70 in the Rama Gardens estate in Pattaya Naklua.  Investors told the Bangkok Post that although they had paid police 10,000 baht they believed the inaction was because Shaw had connections with police.

When they were contacted nearer the transmission date an angry investor Philip Shields, from Liverpool, who gave Shaw 5,841, 593 (?105,000) said: ‘The Thai police have done absolutely nothing. Neither have our Thai lawyers.’ In the documentary an angry victim is seen banging on Shaw’s gate and ringing the bell – to no answer – without any assistance from Pattaya Police.  Pattaya Court issued a warrant of arrest for Shaw 14 months ago.
It is believed a rough copy of the third programme in the series ‘Big Trouble in Thailand’ was shown to senior police in Pattaya prior to the arrest passed on by a Pattaya Police Volunteer. But an expose by Erika Fry in the Bangkok Post over a month ago may also have been noticed.
The  investors, say they will be watching the development of this case with interest. Meanwhile Shaw has been charged with defrauding Philip Shields, from Liverpool.The programme, the third in an eight part series made by Vera for the Bravo Channel goes out next Monday and is being edited to include the arrest.