A young man who caught a betta fish from a pond brought it home and placed it in a container, only to be shocked when the dark brown fish transformed into a brilliant golden color. After posting about it on Facebook, he received offers of 10,000 baht but refused to sell, believing the fish would bring him luck with the lottery.

On May 14, 2026, a Facebook user posted a photo of a golden betta fish in a well-lit glass aquarium with a striking golden hue, captioning it "Golden betta fish calling for wealth as the lottery draws near."

Reporters visited a residence in Mab Po sub-district, Phan Thong district, Chachoengsao province, and met with Suwat, 39, the homeowner and original poster. He showed them the golden betta fish floating gracefully in the glass tank, which weighed 500 grams. Suwat explained that he had caught the fish from a pond and purchased it. When he brought it home and placed it in a water container, the fish surprisingly changed to a brilliant golden color, unlike its companion which remained dark brown. He separated the golden fish into a glass aquarium and posted it on Facebook. After the post went viral, someone offered him 10,000 baht for it.

"I haven't sold it because I believe it will bring me luck, and with the lottery drawing near, I want to try my luck using the fish's weight and my house number, 40/33. I plan to keep raising this golden betta until it naturally passes away," Suwat said.

On May 14, 2026, Phumtham Wechayachai, a core member of the Pheu Thai Party, posted a message with images on his Facebook page (Phumtham Wechayachai) stating that on May 14, 2026, Associate Professor Dr. Thanaporn Sriyakul contacted him to apologize for previously giving an interview in which she had criticized him quite severely regarding the Thai-Cambodian border conflict during his time as Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister.

In my view, political criticism and oversight from various commentators are sensitive matters, particularly regarding security and international relations issues, which involve military secrets, troop safety, and risks to border residents. While serving in a government capacity, policy communications must be made with clear responsibility and not arbitrarily. Information disclosure on certain sensitive matters requires careful consideration of potential consequences. On that occasion, dissatisfaction was expressed with strong language, forcing me to rely on legal mechanisms. However, when Dr. Thanaporn contacted me to meet and apologize for the incident due to misunderstanding certain information, I appreciate Dr. Thanaporn for engaging in thoughtful discussion and demonstrating maturity by acknowledging that perspectives can change when one receives complete information. For me, what matters more than winning intellectual arguments is working together to protect the country's interests and move the nation forward. This is a responsibility that yields better results for all parties than holding onto conflicts. Therefore, I have decided to drop the charges against Dr. Thanaporn based on this understanding and reasoning.

I would like this incident involving me to serve as a reminder to political commentators that criticizing with different viewpoints is not wrong, but one should study information and facts correctly and thoroughly so that critiques are constructive rather than merely rhetorical discourse aimed maliciously at destroying others or winning arguments.

A Chinese man has been blacklisted and permanently banned from entering Thailand following an incident at Suvarnabhumi Airport where he kicked and damaged an Automated Border Control gate, then verbally abused immigration officers. On May 13, 2025, at approximately 2:00 PM, Li Wei Zeng, a 30-year-old Chinese national, was processing through the automated passport control gate in the departure area. When he failed to follow the correct procedure and placed his boarding pass incorrectly on the document reader, the machine malfunctioned and the first door did not open.

Frustrated, Li Wei Zeng kicked the transparent glass door of the machine, damaging it. He then attempted again, incorrectly placing his passport, and when the machine failed to operate, he kicked the door a second time and forced his way through without completing the inspection process. When immigration officers attempted to detain him, he verbally abused them in Chinese and English using obscene language and tried to physically assault them, though his wife intervened to prevent further escalation.

Immigration officers and airport security personnel took Li Wei Zeng into custody and transferred him to Suvarnabhumi Airport Police Station. He faces charges of property damage, carrying a penalty of up to 3 years imprisonment, a fine not exceeding 60,000 baht, or both. He is also required to pay 450,000 baht in damages for the automated passport control gate.

Additionally, he faces charges of insulting a civil servant in the performance of duty, which carries a maximum penalty of 1 year imprisonment, a 20,000 baht fine, or both. Investigators will file the case with Samut Prakan Provincial Court on May 15.

Based on this incident, the Airport Authority of Thailand's director ordered the revocation of Li Wei Zeng's visa and his addition to the immigration blacklist as a person posing a threat to society, with a lifetime ban from entering Thailand. Upon completion of legal proceedings, he will be deported. Immigration authorities also issued a warning to foreign tourists, emphasizing that while Thailand welcomes visitors from all nations who respect Thai people and the country, any misconduct—whether criminal or moral—will result in visa revocation and immediate deportation without exception.

At the Toyota Thailand Open 2026, a World Tour Super 500 badminton tournament held at Nimibutr Sports Building on May 14, 2026, Thailand's third-ranked mixed doubles pair Bass (Dechapol Puavaranukroh) and Fame (Supissara Peavsumpran) faced off against fellow nationals M (Supak Jomkoh) and Mook (Ornichcha Jongsathapornpun), ranked 66th in the world. Bass-Fame dominated the match, winning decisively 21-14, 21-7 in straight sets to advance to the semifinals, where they will face Chinese Taipei's Ye Hongwei and Nicole Gonzalez Chan, ranked 10th in the world.

On May 14, 2025, Natural Resources and Environment Minister Suchart Chomklin issued urgent orders to subordinate agencies that appeared in recent news reports—including the Pollution Control Department, Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plants, and Royal Forest Department—to expedite fact-checking and submit detailed clarification reports. This came after the public release of data identifying government agencies with "the highest average bribery values" based on a corruption survey. The report cited findings by Thanawuth, which ranked the top ten agencies with the highest average bribe values, including the Pollution Control Department, Port Authority, Revenue Department, Revenue Code Department, justice sector, Food and Drug Administration, Department of Highways, Department of Public Works and Town Planning, Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plants, and Royal Forest Department.

Minister Suchart emphasized that the ministry takes good governance, transparency, and anti-corruption efforts seriously. Any allegations or complaints regarding official misconduct must be investigated thoroughly to build public confidence. He instructed all subordinate agencies to strictly adhere to legal requirements, regulations, and ethical standards, while fully cooperating with fact-checking investigations and promptly reporting results to the ministry for further action.

Suchart reaffirmed that the ministry will not overlook any matters affecting public trust and will take decisive action if any wrongdoing or inappropriate behavior by officials is found.

At 3:30 p.m. on May 14, 2569, Police Lieutenant General Phaanumaas Bunnyalak, commander of the Immigration Bureau, along with Deputy Commander Police Colonel Prinyaa Linklaekaet of Region 3 and other immigration officials from Nonthaburi Province, ordered an operation to investigate and apprehend illegal foreign nationals following a tip received via the immigration hotline 1178. Officers discovered a 29-year-old Nigerian national illegally residing in a 17th-floor condominium on Bangkok-Nonthaburi Road in Bang Khen subdistrict, Muang district, Nonthaburi Province.

Document checks revealed the man had entered Thailand on April 13, 2566 on a tourist visa, which he continued to extend until his last extension on June 6, 2567. He then remained in the country illegally for approximately 1,069 days—nearly three years. According to the investigation, he arrived during the Songkran festival to celebrate and met a Thai woman, with whom he began a romantic relationship. He rented a condominium as his residence and attempted to convert his visa to a student visa through an educational institution in Nakhon Ratchasima Province, but was denied. He then reverted to extending his tourist visa instead. The man has not worked, relying on his Thai girlfriend for support.

Immigration officials have charged him with entering and remaining in the Kingdom without proper authorization under the Immigration Act B.E. 2522, Section 81. He has been handed over to Muang Nonthaburi Police Station for further legal proceedings.