Pattaya —
Authorities shut down three foreign-owned herbal shops in Pattaya for allegedly overcharging and operating illegally as well as having aggressive touts trying to get tourists to buy the products by claiming they did things like caused miraculous hair growth and helped with weight loss.
On August 7th, 2024, Mr. Jirasan Mee-Ratthanawat, head of the Chonburi Provincial Public Health Office’s Consumer Protection Division, conducted a joint operation with health officers and Pattaya tourist police. They targeted foreign-owned herbal product shops that were accused of selling products at inflated prices and operating without proper legal licenses.
The investigation followed complaints from the Thai-Indian Community Association about shops deceiving customers with excessively high prices for herbal products. The crackdown also came after dozens of complaints from residents and tourists of aggressive touts trying to sell the products to foreign tourists around Second Road and Beach Road, as we reported here.
The shops also allegedly employed foreigners to lure unsuspecting buyers into purchasing these overpriced products. Health officers and tourist police went to these shops and caught the offenders in the act, Mr. Jirasan told The Pattaya News.
The raided shops were identified by involved authorities as Turk and Thai Natural Herbal Shop, Arab Natural Herbal Shop, and Durani Natural Herbal Shop.
The authorities seized a large quantity of herbal products including soaps, shampoos, hair oils, cosmetics, digestive aids, lotions, and skin oils from the shops. Many of these products were reportedly falsely advertised and not registered under Section 17 of the Herbal Products Act, Mr. Jirasan said. Additionally, four individuals were arrested for soliciting foreigners to buy these products, and one foreign worker was found to be working without a permit.
Health officers handed over the suspects and evidence to the Pattaya Police for further legal action. The suspects face charges for unauthorized production, sale, or importation of modern medicine under Section 12 of the Drug Act, unauthorized sale of herbal products under Section 17 of the Herbal Products Act, and sale of non-registered herbal products under Section 58(4) of the Herbal Products Act. One unidentified foreign worker is also charged with working without a work permit, while the four alleged solicitors face charges for causing a public nuisance.
The names of the suspects and their nationalities were not released by Pattaya police.
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