WARNING.......... Watch out for this guy.

Be advised that an American by the name of Raymond Lacy aka Lacy is hiding out in the Udon area somewhere and if spotted please post me here or contact me at mikeinthailand@hotmail.com. If allowed I will post my number here 0849037172.

I am in possession of his passport, given to me by him with the Tourist Police knowledge as collateral for funds I advanced to him to keep him out of jail..

He's got a good story and will try to get your sympathy due to his plight.

He was here on his second 2 month overstay in 4 months and he was about to go to jail. I assisted him with renewing his visa.
He was beaten by his new wife and family for trying to skip on the debt he incurred under their name.
The first wife had the same problem and he skipped on her.

Approx. 5-10 sandy hair and pink nose. He looks innocent and a bit of a pu$$y. He now walks with a badly injured right knee and as of yesterday was stil on crutches due to the beating he took by the second wifes family.

He owes a lot of people here money and as he had (has) a scam going with false sugar crops and has collected large amounts of money from friends in the US and abroad. He was terminated from KBR (houston) from his position in Iraq as an electrician.

Please conact me at the above adresses or on my cell.

All of this can be verified by the Tourist Police here.

It would be in everyones best interest if he is not given anymore more money here, you'll never see any of it again

Thanks for your help

Sounds like a " Nice Guy " That needs a Good seeing to....

Do you have a photo you can post?

If you look on page three of the passport, you'll see this notice: This passport is the property of the United States government.

Passports are not to be used as collateral.
I don't believe any real policemen anywhere would allow another person to "hold" another's passport irrespective of conditions.

The whole deal sounds shady to me. You should give him back his passport.

Tex, Well bahtman says The TOURIST Police have full knowledge of him holding his passport.....Therein lies you answer...( Real Policemen )

Sorry to disappoint, but tourist police are often volunteers with a very rudimentary knowledge of law, and zero legal authority.

Police know that a non-resident alien (legal or illegal) can be forced to produce his passport upon demand.
If the OP is holding this guy's passport hostage ...

Baht Man wrote:I am in possession of his passport, given to me by him with the Tourist Police knowledge as collateral for funds I advanced to him to keep him out of jail.

He could go to the embassy and tell them the passport was lost or stolen and get another one.

Not real good for collateral.

The passport is better than nothing, the OP only has to notify the US embassy that he has it and maybe send it to them. The owner will have to show up there sooner or later then the law can take it's coarse.

IMO the OP should not post his email or phone number on a public forum. - Use the PM system.

It is often the case that the Tourist police ( those who are real policemen, like Jimmy the Boss), do allow the passport to be used as collateral and held by a thrid party.
We all know what could happen, however in this case it would appear that a solution to a foreigners plight has been sorted out.

My concern would be that the man in question could quite easily go to Bangkok, obtain another passport and leave the country, Bahtman has no legal recourse to get his money back in this country and definitely not in any other country either.

Two things will happen here, either he survives although how remains to be seen, or we will find him lying somewhere having met yet another person who does not like him, only this time there will be NO recovery.

Morale: lend nothing to anyone if you do not know them, I only lend to friends who I know for a very long time . Which means here in Thailand I lend to no-one.

I knew a Brit in Pattaya (bf of my gf's cousin) that stayed at a Thai run bar/hotel and charged everything to his room (at least 85,000B) and gave them his passport for security. Tried to charge some things at my place too but that was a no go. He just did like KP said and went to BKK, reported his passport lost, got issued a new one and skipped the country. Funny thing was I heard about it from the ex Thai wife (she was out looking for him) of another Brit I knew that was connected to the debt that had taken her ex Brit hubby to the cleaners for a bar and everything he had. Man, you talk about mad, she was ballistic! Swindlers and thieves get really offended when they get taken!

Texpat wrote:The whole deal sounds shady to me. You should give him back his passport.

Since this man has disappeared how do you propose he returns his passport?

Funman wrote:reported his passport lost, got issued a new one and skipped the country.

As I said he can't report the passport lost if the embassy has it or knows where it is!

Good move Baht Man - give money to a guy with severe debt problems because he's broken the law and wants to stay out of jail. What were you thinking? He was going to suddenly change and treat you differently than everyone else?

That passport should be great comfort. But, thank you for the warning! Hope I never see this guy.

At the time of the loan, I did not know he was slime with severe debt problems. In fact I thought the roughing up by the Thai's made it even more legit. .... I thought I was just helping a countryman out of a jam. Guess I need to be a bit more jai yen in the future.

lepidoptra wrote:

Texpat wrote:The whole deal sounds shady to me. You should give him back his passport.

Since this man has disappeared how do you propose he returns his passport?

Thanks Lep...at least you get it.