A recent video clip showing a group of tourists being held at gunpoint at a hill viewpoint in Pattaya has turned out to be a hoax, and the Myanmar workers who participated in the prank now risk imprisonment, according to Pattaya police.
Two Myanmar men, aged 25 and 22, were arrested at a convenience store on Wednesday afternoon, and a pistol-shaped cigarette lighter and clothing seen in the video clip were seized from them, police said on Thursday.
During questioning, one of the suspects, Kaeo Saw, told police that a group of tourists saw them while they were resting at the Sor Thor Ro 5 hill viewpoint on Tuesday.
When the group saw him using the pistol-shaped lighter, they asked him to act like a gunman holding them hostage and demanding money from them, the suspect said.
The tourists also asked his Myanmar friend to use their phone to record the act because they wanted to post it on social media.
Police said that the Myanmar men could be charged with spreading false information, carrying a jail term of up to one month and/or a fine of up to 10,000 baht.
If the content creators are found to have intended to damage the image of Pattaya, police can press a computer crime charge, which carries a jail term of up to five years and/or a fine of up to 100,000 baht.
