The accusations were made by the administrator of the ‘Spotlight Thailand’ Facebook page, Thammarat Suwannaphisri, who has had a public feud via social media with one of the performers at the event for a while – chart-topping rapper ‘YoungOhm’.
The event in question was Australian surfing and sportswear manufacturer, Rip Curl’s 50th-anniversary beach party held at Kudo Beach Club in Patong on Friday (Mar 29).
Mr Thammarat attended the event in search for evidence to condemn the rapper and posted a video on his Facebook page that shows him walking through the venue during the event and speaking to a group of young boys and girls sitting at a table.
When he asks their ages, one replies “14” and another “15”.
He then asks who the beer on the table belongs to, and they reply that it is not theirs.
Mr Thammarat then called the police, informing them that there were minors at the event drinking alcohol and people taking drugs. Patong Police turned up at the event and shut it down whilst searching for illegal activity.
Nothing illegal was found, although police did want to question the venue operators about the presence of minors and the licences held for putting on the event.
Patong Police Chief Col Anotai Jindamanee called the manager of the beach club into the station for questioning on Sunday (Mar 31).
The manager, Ms Chamaiporn Ratanamongkol, who was accompanied by a lawyer, explained to police that about 150 people attended the event on Friday night. A designated area was sectioned off for the Rip Curl event, preventing people who were using the rest of the venue from entering the area between 8:30pm and 11:30pm.
Like many similar venues on the island, Kudo attracts and welcomes families and teenagers, she said, so minors are often there but alcohol is never sold to them.
The venue’s lawyer, Mr Nithat Prasertnetikul, explained that adults who bring their children to the venue may drink alcohol and leave it on their table, but the venue does not serve it to minors, nor does it allow minors to drink alcohol on the premises.
The accusation of drug abuse at the venue was firmly rejected.
Col Anotai confirmed that upon inspecting the venue, there was no evidence of drug abuse. He said it is a very open venue where drugs are not typically seen.
Mr Thammarat recently offered B1 million to any girl under the age of 18 who has had sexual contact with rapper YoungOhm and is willing to file a complaint with police.
He also offered B1 million to anyone with evidence of the rapper evading taxes.
Patong Police confirmed that representatives of Rip Curl will be invited in for questioning regarding the event.