Kings Roman - the Lao Vegas & Sin City
Copied from
Houei Xai & entering Laos @ FB4 / Friendship Bridge 4 from Chiang Khong.
From Houei Xai it is 56 kms upstream to the Lao Vegas KIng's Roman casino entertainment.
The road is generally narrow bumpy asphalt / concrete with a few trailer trucks that you should take care of.
The turn off to Ton Phueng, the "service town" a few kms downstream from King's Roman.
Ton Phueng used to be the sleepy little village opposite Chiang Saen.
In 2023 though it is the scene of a building frenzy & booming with kms of pubs, restaurants, karaoke, phone & beauty shops, servicing the masses working / visiting the Kings Roman Megalopolis.
Outside the main attraction, the Kapok Star wonder hotel.
In 2010 it all looked likethis:
The old road from Houei Xai:
In 2023 the road from Houei Xai:
2010
2023
The change is unbelievable & a bit frightening.
I never imagined there would be such a fully developed, functioning city behind the casino facade you see from across the river in Thailand; but indeed there are apartment blocks, shopping malls, pubs, restaurants, karaoke, phone, shoe & beauty shops. It is amazing & deserves more exploration - I need to return & check it all out!
Some Chinese tourist attractions.
It should be noted that generally in the heat of the day there are few people out & about.
Hence there are few people in these photos.
Then at dusk the punters start coming out like thousands of termites after a shower of rain.
I would have liked to stay longer, to witness the night scene, but time was up for the day.
Some night time images from the Thai side:
Not sure what is going on - some info - how the hell could this happen!
The GTSEZ is run by a Chinese-born gangster-tycoon Zhao Wei, who in 2007 secured a 99-year lease for kms of prime paddy land on the Mekong River, basically stretching from Ton Phueng to the Golden Triangle.
Zhao Wei was born Liaoning, China on 16 September 1952.
Starting as a timber trader he moved to Macau in the 1990s & invested in casinos & gambling.
In 2001 then Zhao moved to Mong La on the Myanmar / China border and founded a casino franchise, Landun Entertainment.
In 2005, this complex ran foul of the Chinese authorities who imposed a travel ban to Mong La following reports of officials gambling & losing state funds. The travel ban caused the casinos to shut down.
The same also happened with the casinos at Boten on the Laos / China border, where China state officials, gambled away government money, ran up debts & were detained until they paid their debbts, or were even killed!
In 2007 Zhao Wei popped up again with a new casino biz - the 99-year King Roman lease. Construction soon started & has proceeded at a frightening pace ever since.
More info
truecrimethailand.substack.com
en.wikipedia.org
www.aljazeera.com
www.asiasentinel.com
As crooked as he is, laundering money, he has great influence in the area; and has secured 2 more long term leases. One near the Plain of Jars and one near the Vietnam border in Saravan.
www.washingtontimes.com
Perhaps the most famous incident related to the GTSEZ was the 2011 murder of 13 Chinese Sailors on a boat loaded with drugs, that was "highjacked."
Yesterday, ASTV Manager Online, that has for years been reporting on news in the Golden Triangle, presented a clearer (but still incomplete) picture of what happened to the two Chinese cargo ships and their crew last October.
According to the report, the two ships were seized by Naw Kham, “the freshwater pirate”, who has been running a protection racket in the area since 2007, on 4 November. One of the crew women had then made a call to Thailand’s Chiang Saen to inform about what had taken place. This had sealed the fate of herself and the rest of the crew, it says.
On the next day, the two boats were stormed and taken by the Thai Army’s Pha Mueng Task Force.
On 6 October, Pha Mueng and the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) officials held a press conference to explain the previous day’s events.
According to them, Pha Mueng received information at 06:00 on 5 October about the hijacking of the two boats and had accordingly organized a team to intercept them.
At 10:30, the two ships turned up and seeing the Thai officials trying to head them off, the unidentified armed men on the ships fired at the officials and later escaped in a speedboat. The catch, Pha Mueng and ONCB said, included 1 dead armed man and 920,000 pills of “yaba” (methamphetamines).
On 7 October, the dead crewmen and women started floating up on the river one after another.
On 28 October, Thai police summoned 9 Pha Mueng officers to face two charges: killing of 13 Chinese crewmen and women and concealing evidence, which the officers had promptly denied.
However, there are still two Jigsaw pieces missing, the report says: two well known men living in the nearby Maesai district: “Uncle N” and “Mr S”, who is Uncle N’s relative. (A source in Maesai told SHAN “Uncle N” was none other than Olarn Somphongphan aka Chamras Phacharoen, a known “Chao Paw” (Godfather) in the district.
Due to the disappearance of the two who are believed to have gone underground, at least three questions remain unanswered:
Where did the drugs originate?
Who seized the boats and killed the crew?
Who would be the recipient of the drugs?
A local who wished to remain anonymous said one way to find it out is to look at the year’s events that had made headlines in the area and piece them together:
4 April 2011
A ship belonging to Kings Romans Casino on the Laotian side of the Mekong seized and 19 crewmen abducted. Zhao Wei, the casino owner, was reported to have paid a hefty B 22 million ($730,000) ransom to Naw Kham
21 September 2011
Burmese and Laotian security forces attacked Naw Kham’s men at Sri Dorn Mee island, 25 km north of the Triangle. 20 of his men were said to have been killed, while 4 of the wounded came to Chiangrai for medical treatment
26 September 2011
Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister announced that Kings Romans was raided and 20 sacks of yaba pills were seized
5 October 2011
Pha Mueng seized two cargo ships, one either belonging to Zhao Wei or his associate Ah Ming
Updated (1 December 2011)
According to ASTV report, 30 November, there were 4 boats manned by an unknown armed group escorting the two cargo ships into Thai waters on 5 October. 9 Thai officers who are under investigation meanwhile say they had only fired warning shots.
www.bangkokpost.com
www.bangkokpost.com
It remains unclear who killed the Chinese crewmen on board the Hua Ping and Yu Xing 8 boats on Oct 5.
But nine army personnel of the 3rd Army Region's Pha Muang Task Force came under suspicion and have since been charged with the murders.
One initial account says the soldiers intercepted the Hua Ping and Yu Xing 8 as they entered a stretch of the Mekong and found 920,000
methamphetamine pills and one dead body on board one of the boats.
Other bodies were later retrieved from the river. Most were blindfolded, tied up and had bullet wounds.
The nine soldiers have denied the charges, blaming a drug trafficking gang from Shan State in Myanmar led by Nor Kham, who they said had hijacked the cargo boats.
A source at the northern branch of the Office of the Narcotics Control Board said criminal violence along the Mekong mostly involves drug
trafficking gangs betraying each other.
The source said there are four criminal groups with vested interests in trading, drug trafficking and protection money along the Mekong which is
the principal transport route for cargoes from Xishuangbanna through to ports in Myanmar, Laos and Thailand's Chiang Saen. There are 13 trade
ports dotted along the route.
See also
www.gt-rider.com
Enjoy, there is a lot of interesting history in the top North.
Read up on it a bit & it makes the ride a lot more rewarding.
Copied from
Houei Xai & entering Laos @ FB4 / Friendship Bridge 4 from Chiang Khong.
From Houei Xai it is 56 kms upstream to the Lao Vegas KIng's Roman casino entertainment.
The road is generally narrow bumpy asphalt / concrete with a few trailer trucks that you should take care of.
The turn off to Ton Phueng, the "service town" a few kms downstream from King's Roman.
Ton Phueng used to be the sleepy little village opposite Chiang Saen.
In 2023 though it is the scene of a building frenzy & booming with kms of pubs, restaurants, karaoke, phone & beauty shops, servicing the masses working / visiting the Kings Roman Megalopolis.
Outside the main attraction, the Kapok Star wonder hotel.
In 2010 it all looked likethis:
The old road from Houei Xai:
In 2023 the road from Houei Xai:
2010
2023
The change is unbelievable & a bit frightening.
I never imagined there would be such a fully developed, functioning city behind the casino facade you see from across the river in Thailand; but indeed there are apartment blocks, shopping malls, pubs, restaurants, karaoke, phone, shoe & beauty shops. It is amazing & deserves more exploration - I need to return & check it all out!
Some Chinese tourist attractions.
It should be noted that generally in the heat of the day there are few people out & about.
Hence there are few people in these photos.
Then at dusk the punters start coming out like thousands of termites after a shower of rain.
I would have liked to stay longer, to witness the night scene, but time was up for the day.
Some night time images from the Thai side:
Not sure what is going on - some info - how the hell could this happen!
The GTSEZ is run by a Chinese-born gangster-tycoon Zhao Wei, who in 2007 secured a 99-year lease for kms of prime paddy land on the Mekong River, basically stretching from Ton Phueng to the Golden Triangle.
Zhao Wei was born Liaoning, China on 16 September 1952.
Starting as a timber trader he moved to Macau in the 1990s & invested in casinos & gambling.
In 2001 then Zhao moved to Mong La on the Myanmar / China border and founded a casino franchise, Landun Entertainment.
In 2005, this complex ran foul of the Chinese authorities who imposed a travel ban to Mong La following reports of officials gambling & losing state funds. The travel ban caused the casinos to shut down.
The same also happened with the casinos at Boten on the Laos / China border, where China state officials, gambled away government money, ran up debts & were detained until they paid their debbts, or were even killed!
In 2007 Zhao Wei popped up again with a new casino biz - the 99-year King Roman lease. Construction soon started & has proceeded at a frightening pace ever since.
More info
New Lords of Asia: Zhao Wei
There is a thin line between a fool and a great man. Allow me to properly introduce Zhao Wei.
truecrimethailand.substack.com
Zhao Wei (gangster) - Wikipedia
The ‘lawless’ playgrounds of Laos
Has the Asian gambling enclave become a ‘semi-lawless’ zone where gambling, prostitution, and illicit trades flourish?
US Busts a Chinese Golden Triangle Billionaire
For some it is a playground where one between gambling sessions can order stir-fried pangolin, an anteater-like endangered species that has been called the most trafficked animal on earth. For others, it is an alternative way to develop Laos' northeast.
www.asiasentinel.com
Golden Triangle Gambling Zone the World’s ‘Worst’ SEZ, Group Says
The Golden Triangle SEZ has been credibly accused of involvement in human trafficking, narcotics smuggling, and the trade in endangered wildlife products.
thediplomat.com
Inside Southeast Asia’s Casino Scam Archipelago
Special Economic Zones and self-governing statelets across the Mekong region have become conduits for human trafficking on a massive scale.
thediplomat.com
As crooked as he is, laundering money, he has great influence in the area; and has secured 2 more long term leases. One near the Plain of Jars and one near the Vietnam border in Saravan.
Chinese Casino Magnate’s Empire Set to Expand in Laos
The businessman Zhao Wei has established close relationships to Laos’s communist elite.
thediplomat.com
Shadowy Chinese casino magnate eyes a business empire in Laos
Southeast Asia’s crime-infested Golden Triangle, the lightly governed area where the borders of Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet, is best known perhaps as Afghanistan’s only rival in the production of opium for the world’s illicit drug markets.
www.washingtontimes.com
Perhaps the most famous incident related to the GTSEZ was the 2011 murder of 13 Chinese Sailors on a boat loaded with drugs, that was "highjacked."
Yesterday, ASTV Manager Online, that has for years been reporting on news in the Golden Triangle, presented a clearer (but still incomplete) picture of what happened to the two Chinese cargo ships and their crew last October.
According to the report, the two ships were seized by Naw Kham, “the freshwater pirate”, who has been running a protection racket in the area since 2007, on 4 November. One of the crew women had then made a call to Thailand’s Chiang Saen to inform about what had taken place. This had sealed the fate of herself and the rest of the crew, it says.
On the next day, the two boats were stormed and taken by the Thai Army’s Pha Mueng Task Force.
On 6 October, Pha Mueng and the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) officials held a press conference to explain the previous day’s events.
According to them, Pha Mueng received information at 06:00 on 5 October about the hijacking of the two boats and had accordingly organized a team to intercept them.
At 10:30, the two ships turned up and seeing the Thai officials trying to head them off, the unidentified armed men on the ships fired at the officials and later escaped in a speedboat. The catch, Pha Mueng and ONCB said, included 1 dead armed man and 920,000 pills of “yaba” (methamphetamines).
On 7 October, the dead crewmen and women started floating up on the river one after another.
On 28 October, Thai police summoned 9 Pha Mueng officers to face two charges: killing of 13 Chinese crewmen and women and concealing evidence, which the officers had promptly denied.
However, there are still two Jigsaw pieces missing, the report says: two well known men living in the nearby Maesai district: “Uncle N” and “Mr S”, who is Uncle N’s relative. (A source in Maesai told SHAN “Uncle N” was none other than Olarn Somphongphan aka Chamras Phacharoen, a known “Chao Paw” (Godfather) in the district.
Due to the disappearance of the two who are believed to have gone underground, at least three questions remain unanswered:
Where did the drugs originate?
Who seized the boats and killed the crew?
Who would be the recipient of the drugs?
A local who wished to remain anonymous said one way to find it out is to look at the year’s events that had made headlines in the area and piece them together:
4 April 2011
A ship belonging to Kings Romans Casino on the Laotian side of the Mekong seized and 19 crewmen abducted. Zhao Wei, the casino owner, was reported to have paid a hefty B 22 million ($730,000) ransom to Naw Kham
21 September 2011
Burmese and Laotian security forces attacked Naw Kham’s men at Sri Dorn Mee island, 25 km north of the Triangle. 20 of his men were said to have been killed, while 4 of the wounded came to Chiangrai for medical treatment
26 September 2011
Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister announced that Kings Romans was raided and 20 sacks of yaba pills were seized
5 October 2011
Pha Mueng seized two cargo ships, one either belonging to Zhao Wei or his associate Ah Ming
Updated (1 December 2011)
According to ASTV report, 30 November, there were 4 boats manned by an unknown armed group escorting the two cargo ships into Thai waters on 5 October. 9 Thai officers who are under investigation meanwhile say they had only fired warning shots.
Suspect in murder of Chinese sailors admits guilt
A gang leader accused of masterminding the murder of 13 Chinese sailors on the Mekong River last year has pleaded guilty at a trial in southwest China, state media said Saturday.
Outlaws on the Mekong
The brutal murders of 13 Chinese crew members of two Chinese-flagged boats on the Mekong River on Oct 5 last year are discouraging many sailors who fear they could be the next victims.
It remains unclear who killed the Chinese crewmen on board the Hua Ping and Yu Xing 8 boats on Oct 5.
But nine army personnel of the 3rd Army Region's Pha Muang Task Force came under suspicion and have since been charged with the murders.
One initial account says the soldiers intercepted the Hua Ping and Yu Xing 8 as they entered a stretch of the Mekong and found 920,000
methamphetamine pills and one dead body on board one of the boats.
Other bodies were later retrieved from the river. Most were blindfolded, tied up and had bullet wounds.
The nine soldiers have denied the charges, blaming a drug trafficking gang from Shan State in Myanmar led by Nor Kham, who they said had hijacked the cargo boats.
A source at the northern branch of the Office of the Narcotics Control Board said criminal violence along the Mekong mostly involves drug
trafficking gangs betraying each other.
The source said there are four criminal groups with vested interests in trading, drug trafficking and protection money along the Mekong which is
the principal transport route for cargoes from Xishuangbanna through to ports in Myanmar, Laos and Thailand's Chiang Saen. There are 13 trade
ports dotted along the route.
See also
ON THE TRAIL OF A MULE - A Drug Run Through The Golden Triangle.
INTRODUCTION In riding through The Golden Triangle I am struck by the lack of information at ground level about "The Golden Triangle". A little research may even suggest that such lack of information is clearly designed. The Golden Triangle merits more detail on the characters & places that...
www.gt-rider.com
Enjoy, there is a lot of interesting history in the top North.
Read up on it a bit & it makes the ride a lot more rewarding.
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