Chinese citizen arrested after 'lavish birthday party' in Phuket A Chinese citizen wanted for fraud was arrested in…

Chinese citizen arrested after 'lavish birthday celebration' in Phuket. A Chinese citizen wanted for tax evasion was arrested in Thailand at the request of his home country. The man, who lived in Bangkok, was taken into custody after he returned home from celebrating his birthday in Phuket. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CIB) announced the arrest of "Mr. Wu" on Friday, February 27. According to the CIB's statement, Beijing requested assistance from Thailand when it discovered that the tax evader was living in the Kingdom. At the time of his arrest, Mr. Wu had been on the run for two years. It is unclear how much of that time he spent in Bangkok, but the CIB stated that he "created a new identity" and frequently changed addresses to avoid detection. "After establishing that Mr. Wu had flown from Bangkok to Phuket to celebrate his birthday with his partner, the Immigration Bureau revoked his visa and developed a plan to apprehend him upon arrival at Don Mueang airport," the CIB's press office said, without specifying the type of visa the Chinese citizen held in Thailand. Since the arrest is at the request of China, Thai authorities will not need to go through the extradition process. The suspect can be deported as a person without a valid permit to stay in Thailand. "During the initial interrogation, the suspect denied guilt and stated that he was a director of a company in China, but was unaware of the existence of an arrest warrant," Thai authorities added. Over the past few months, Thailand has methodically (although without radical steps) tightened its visa regime and border control. The Immigration Bureau has been more closely monitoring the visa history of foreign nationals entering the country, checking compliance with requirements for visa-free entry. In February, a review of visa-free regime provisions was announced, which was confirmed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs during a recent trip to Phuket. The grounds for tightening the screws are cited as the fight against criminal elements, individuals abusing visa-free status and tourists violating public order. Photo: CIB, FM91 Trafficpro For readers: When planning a trip to Thailand, ensure that your visa corresponds to the purpose of your visit and does not violate immigration rules.