Thanks for zeroz for the link. From the article:
After the police dispatched undercovers to investigate, they arrested 2 men and 3 women (33 to 65 years old) and 4 Thai women (21 to 28 years old) believed to be key members of the prostitution syndicate in the hotel yesterday. After investigation by the police, it is believed that the prostitution syndicate, through an intermediary in Thailand, arranged for the four arrested Thai women to come to Hong Kong with tourist visas and extended their visa validity due to the epidemic.
Looking at the DB, it seems clear that "Thai Roy" aka "TR" was the one who got the hooks. Which is a shame as he has always been polite, speaks English, and has brought wonderful talent to HK, typically WGs from northern Thailand. I don't know how many times I've been to one of the hotels he used in TST/Jordan, but I could namecheck some WGs, could even link reports if anyone's interested.
The situation's complex: Thais are still being repatriated from all over the world. Whatever arrangement TR had going on didn't anticipate an overstay of months-on-end, and operations continued--perhaps that was considered a "breach of contract"...who knows how these things work, I certainly don't.
I hope the four Thai nationals have been/will be allowed to return to Thailand on one of the repatriation flights. It only seems reasonable.
Here in Thailand, many are beginning to realize there will be no tourists for the rest of the year or longer. Some business continues, but without international tourists, revenues for Thais dependent on that sector have fallen off a cliff. It's apocalyptic for some.
JtB | |
