Pattaya, November 18th, 2025, Immigration police in Chonburi province raided a suspicious house in central Pattaya last night, detaining 17 Indian men, 15 of whom were found to have overstayed their visas.
The operation was carried out under an intensified nationwide campaign against illegal foreign workers and those on overstay ordered by Pol. Maj. Gen. Songprod Sirisukha, Commander of Immigration Division 3, and Pol. Col. Hrit Ekuru, Deputy Commander of Immigration Division 3, in line with directives from the Royal Thai Police and the government.
Acting on intelligence reports of unusual activity, a team led by Pol. Col. Naphasphong Khosit-suriyamanee, Chief of Chonburi Immigration, and Pol. Lt. Col. Kawinwat Arayasuriwong, Deputy Chief, searched a residential property in Soi Sukhumvit-Pattaya 57 on the night of November 17th.
Officers observed several Indian men emerging from the house in a suspicious manner and immediately entered the premises. Inside, they discovered the group scattered across various rooms. Although no illegal items were found, the living conditions and large number of occupants raised strong suspicions that the house was being used as a staging point for undocumented migrant workers.
Initial checks revealed that 15 of the 17 men were overstaying their permitted stay in Thailand (“overstay”), while the remaining two still held valid tourist visas. The two with valid visas are being questioned to determine any connection to the overstayers or if they are working illegally and not genuine tourists.
One of the workers told police through an interpreter that an Indian job broker had brought him and others into Thailand with promises of employment in the Pattaya area. The group was housed together in the property until their visas expired.
Immigration officials suspect the house served as a “waiting shelter” used by brokers to temporarily hide foreign workers before dispersing them to jobs across the resort city.
Chonburi Immigration Police have initiated deportation procedures for the overstaying individuals and plan to expand the investigation to identify and apprehend the brokers behind the operation. As for the two Indian nationals not on overstay, if police determine they are not genuine tourists and seek employment illegally, they will also be deported and their visa canceled.
