On May 13th, a 30-year-old Chinese man lost control of his emotions while trying to exit from Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok, reportedly due to his inability to use the automatic immigration gate. Frustrated, he violently kicked and damaged the expensive sensor gate, and verbally abused the airport police who intervened. The man was promptly arrested by Thai authorities and charged with criminal damage, with a fine of 450,000 Thai Baht (approximately 100,000 RMB), and he has been blacklisted, banned for life from entering Thailand.
According to Thai media reports, the incident took place around 2:35 pm on May 13th. The man, named Liwei Zheng, was scheduled to board Spring Airlines Flight 9C7282 to Shanghai, but he lost control of his emotions when passing through the automatic immigration gate DAE01 in the airport’s second departure area.
Surveillance footage showed that Liwei Zheng entered the automated passport checkpoint but did not follow the machine’s instructions. Instead of placing his boarding pass in the correct position for scanning, he became agitated when the gate did not open. In a fit of rage, he kicked the gate’s transparent glass, causing damage. He then returned to place his passport again incorrectly, leading to further recognition issues. Enraged, he kicked the gate for a second time before forcibly passing through without completing the necessary security check. Security personnel immediately apprehended him.
Liwei Zheng verbally assaulted the immigration officers in both Chinese and English, even attempting physical aggression, while his wife intervened to restrain him. His outburst attracted a crowd of onlookers at the airport.
Subsequently, immigration prosecutors and airport security personnel cooperated to subdue him and hand him over to the North Lankawi Suvarnabhumi Airport Police Station for further investigation.
Law enforcement initially charged Liwei Zheng with “damaging property of others,” which carries a maximum penalty of 3 years in prison, a fine of 60,000 Thai Baht, or both. Additionally, he is required to reimburse the repair costs of the damaged equipment at the airport’s automatic passport checkpoint, amounting to about 450,000 Thai Baht. Liwei Zheng also faces potential charges for “insulting public officials in the performance of their duties,” punishable by up to 1 year in prison, a fine of 20,000 Thai Baht, or both.
On May 15th, the case was transferred to the North Lankawi Provincial Court for trial.
Immigration Bureau Director, Major General Panuma, has instructed the Immigration Bureau’s Second Division to revoke Liwei Zheng’s visa. Due to his harmful behavior to society, he will be blacklisted, permanently banned from entering Thailand, and immediately deported upon the final verdict of the case.