A man was arrested at the Phuket Vegetarian Festival after officials ruled that shooting and balloon-dart games, where players paid for chances to win prizes, amounted to gambling.
Officials inspected the event area in Mueang Phuket district at around 10.20pm yesterday, October 10, following complaints about suspected gambling being run among festival activities.
They found both shooting and balloon-dart games in which customers paid for ammunition or darts and could win dolls or other prizes if they completed the challenge successfully.
Officials determined that the games amounted to gambling for property without permission.
One man was arrested for allegedly operating the shooting game as unlicensed gambling, while equipment used in the activity was seized as evidence.
He was taken to the Mueang Phuket district office for the arrest to be recorded before being transferred to Phuket City Police Station for further legal proceedings.
District officials said inspections were being carried out to prevent gambling and other inappropriate activities around shrine grounds during the annual Vegetarian Festival.
In a separate operation, a card game in a small Patong shop ended with four arrests after police raided the premises and found the group allegedly gambling with “Kang cards”.
The arrests were made inside a local shop, which had reportedly been doubling as an underground casino. Police said the premises had been carefully modified to avoid detection, with lookouts and a quiet entry system designed to prevent outsiders from stumbling across the operation.
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The story Man arrested after Phuket officials deem festival games gambling as seen on Thaiger News.
