Five Chinese men and two Thai toilet attendants were detained following a violent confrontation at a street food market in Pattaya, Thailand, after a dispute over a cleaning fee of 150 baht (around S$6).
The altercation reportedly left two Chinese men with head injuries after one of the Thai attendants allegedly used the handle of a modified BB gun to strike them.
According to local media reports, the incident happened at around 11.15pm on 30 October at a market along Pattaya Second Road in Na Kluea.
Tourists Allegedly Left Toilet In Disgusting Condition
One of the toilet attendants, identified as 30-year-old Nattakan Boonprasom, said he was working alongside his colleague, 30-year-old Kritsadawut Saisaeng, when a group of around five Chinese men entered the public toilets.
Nattakan claimed that the men appeared heavily intoxicated.
After they left, he allegedly discovered urine on the floor, unflushed toilets and footprints on the toilet seats.
The facility reportedly charges customers a cleaning fee of 150 baht if they leave the toilets excessively dirty.
Nattakan said he called the group back to show them the condition of the facilities and explain the additional charge.
However, one of the Chinese men allegedly became aggressive and shoved him in the chest, causing him to stumble backwards into a wall.
Fight Escalates As BB Gun Handle Allegedly Used As Weapon
The disagreement soon developed into a physical confrontation outside the toilets.
Nattakan claimed that the Chinese group eventually grew to around seven or eight people, who allegedly attacked him and his colleague.
During the fight, Kritsadawut reportedly retrieved a BB gun that was unloaded and used its handle to strike members of the group on their heads.
Two Chinese men sustained head injuries during the confrontation.
Security personnel and members of the public eventually stepped in to separate those involved before Pattaya City Police arrived to control the situation.
Police subsequently brought all five Chinese men and the two Thai attendants to the police station for questioning.
All Seven Face Charges Following Investigation
According to local reports, all seven individuals were charged in connection with the brawl.
The five Chinese men faced charges relating to jointly participating in a physical fight and were fined during the police investigation.
Kritsadawut faced an additional firearms-related charge after authorities discovered that the BB gun had allegedly been modified to fire live ammunition.
Under Thai firearms law, the weapon was reportedly classified as a homemade firearm.
The weapon was seized by police and reportedly contained no ammunition when recovered.
Kritsadawut was later released on bail and was reportedly recovering at home from injuries sustained during the altercation.
The incident has drawn attention to how a seemingly minor disagreement over a S$6 cleaning fee escalated into a violent confrontation involving seven people.