PATTAYA — A foreign man has sparked widespread outrage in this beach resort city after a video emerged showing him allegedly abusing a small monkey by forcing it to drink alcohol and smoke a cigarette, prompting calls for immediate police intervention and raising urgent questions about wildlife protection in Thailand’s tourist hotspots, according to reports on social media.

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The video, which has been widely circulated across social media platforms, captures a heated argument between foreigners, during which one man is seen swinging a small monkey and attempting to stuff the distressed animal into his shorts pocket. Concerns over the animal’s well-being have mounted due to the man’s visibly rough handling of the creature throughout the footage.

The situation gained further attention when a Pattaya local who claims to work at a nearby bar came forward, reporting that she witnessed the foreign man and his companion forcing the monkey to smoke an e-cigarette and consume alcohol. When confronted about his behavior, the man reportedly insisted that the monkey was his pet and claimed he had every right to do as he wished with it. Another resident mentioned encountering the same man on a different occasion, and that he similarly identified the monkey as his personal property.

The incident has ignited public indignation, with residents and animal welfare advocates alike calling for police and government intervention to rescue the monkey from its alleged abuser. Sathit Pratchaya-ariyakun, director of the Thai Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, stated that the monkey is believed to be a pig-tailed macaque, a species classified as protected wildlife under Thai law. He emphasized that keeping such an animal without official permission is illegal, and that the actions seen in the video constitute clear abuse under the country’s animal cruelty statutes.

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Despite the mounting public outcry and the circulation of clear video evidence, local authorities have yet to locate the foreign man or take any official action regarding the incident. Animal welfare groups have urged police to step up their efforts, warning that failure to act could encourage further abuse of wildlife in an area already struggling with the dark side of its tourism-driven economy. For now, the monkey’s fate remains unknown, and concerned residents are left hoping that the viral attention will translate into a rescue before it is too late.

-Thailand News (TN)