Police are considering blacklisting a 25-year-old British woman after accusing her of making a false rape claim on Surat Thani's resort island of Koh Phangan at the weekend.
Deputy tourist police chief, Surachate Hakparn, said yesterday he was told on Sunday by the British embassy about an alleged rape case involving a British tourist, Joanna Partridge, at a bungalow in tambon Ban Tai of Koh Phangan district.
He said he told Samui tourist police, who are also in charge of Koh Phangan, to question the woman and take her for a medical check, as well as review CCTV footage near her bungalow.
Footage showed no one had entered her room, Pol Maj Gen Surachate claimed. Medical checks also showed no sign of sexual assault, he added.
Based on the evidence, police concluded the woman had made a false claim, he said.
When Ms Partridge was told of the probe's result, she apologised and expressed regret for what happened, he claimed.
"She said she was semiconscious and did not intend to damage Thailand's reputation," Pol Maj Gen Surachate said.
He praised Koh Phangan police and relevant agencies for investigating the case.
"This should serve as a lesson for travellers who have bad thoughts," he said without explaining what he meant by "bad thoughts".
The woman has been warned and police are considering blacklisting her, according to the deputy tourist police chief.
Deputy police spokesman Krissana Pattanacharoen said yesterday police were alerted to the claim at 6am on Sunday.
The woman said she woke up in her room naked and thought she might have been raped.
She said she was at a party in Hat Rin on Saturday night, where she drank from buckets passed round by other travellers.
Pol Col Krissana said footage showed she returned to her room at 2.51am and turned off the light at 3.13am.
About 20 minutes later, the woman came out of her room and chatted with other guests, he said, adding no one was seen entering her room. Medical checks indicated she was not sexually assaulted and there were no trace of drugs in her body, he also claimed.
Koh Phangan was where a 19-year-old Briton earlier said police refused to accept her rape complaint because it allegedly happened on Koh Tao, on June 25.