While the cats away the inmates will play. Songkran is the time when millions of Thais are given some time off work or simply don't turn up at all to travel upcountry to participate in the drenching of relatives, friends and even people who are not friends oh and yes consuming copious amounts of alcohol.
There are some whoever who choose not to return home by committing offences and spending this holiday season as well as sometimes many holiday seasons locked up in jails.
Chonburi police were called in to investigate a smuggling operation at Chonburi prison. Prison guards had stopped a Toyota Vigo pick-up truck carrying cucumbers going into the prison and rummaged through the veggies on display. The cucumbers looked succulent and freshly picked - however amongst the innocent merchandise were a number of mobile phones that would fetch good money on the prison black market certainly more than the cucumbers for sure.
The inmates were obviously upset at not being able to go home for Songkran so of course all they needed was a chance to call home.
Chonburi Prison is a hive of iniquity - yes there are a lot of criminals inside and the true use of the mobile devices was more than likely to arrange lucrative drug deals. And why were Chonburi police called in. Well appears many of the prison staff had gone upcountry and they were severely short handed.
