The outgoing President of a Pattaya Rotary Club reacted with vengeance today after allegations that he scammed scores of foreigners out of their homes, and cheated them on rents.
63-yr-old Richard Haughton ordered water and electricity to be cut off from residents from his Lake Villas project in Pattaya and also the removal of water and electric meters.
The residents had refused to pay maintenance and other fees for Haughton’s company, Thailand Property and Media Co.Ltd., – TPME. They claim little maintenance has been carried out and they had a meeting planned for December 3rd to vote him out of the project – and out of their lives.
Haughton, they said, had demanded that they pay all of next year’s maintenance fees up front.
The Chairman of the Lake Villas Owners Associaton Ramesh Lal said from the UK: ‘This is obviously an act of desperation on Haughton’s behalf.’
Not all the residents are involved. Police attended the scene early today and left after saying there was nothing they could do.
Ironically one of those affected was the administrator of Haughton’s Thailand and Property Media Exhibition Co. Ltd website, who commented earlier on this site.
Residents say that there are several children among the families affected, who were renting the properties through Pattaya Realty Co. Ltd.
Les Bonner, the Pattaya representative of the LVOA said: ‘We are looking at the legal aspects of what he has done. ‘
Cutting off water and electricty is a common ploy used by dodgy foreign developers in Thailand, who after they sell the properties try and retain control over the projects through the management committees and often charge extra high fees for water and electricity, which they control through their own metres.
A master at this trade was Dingeman Hendriske a Dutch developer. You can read about him here at ‘Gangland Britain in Thailand’.
The Pattaya Consumer Protection Office has asked Haughton to report to them or a warrant will be issued for his arrest.
Meanwhile Richard Haughton is also demanding a 25,000 reconnection fee. Not a bad profit for his thugs who would bel lucky to have earned 1,000 each. In this case the residents say they had bought the metres themselves. If that is the case Haughton is on the wrong side of the law.
Resident of Lake Villas and Representative of Lake Villa Owners Association to Richard Haughton:
Dear Richard,
Having checked all of my paperwork this morning I have a receipt from you showing that I purchased meters from you.
They are my own personal property and they have been stolen by your staff on your instructions.
This is making a very difficult situation considerably worse and could,in fact,spell the end of Lake Villa.
I am speaking entirely for myself here and I would ask you to reconsider before this business 
escalates out of control.
Richard Haughton Lake Villas Owners Association:
The time has run out for dialogue, your LVOA has not made any effort to encourage it members to respond to the payment of outstanding fees. The reconnection charge will be 25,000 Baht plus the full 2011/2012 maintenance fee in advance. You may take what ever action you want but the fact remains you owe these sums and with the advent of recent communications via your association you have further undermined your own position.
Richard Haughton
Comment:Mr.Haughton plays the role of an English gentleman. The letters above however seem to suggest otherwise.
Original letter sent by Ramesh Lal:
Well for once i can comment on one of Andrews items without fear of a backlash from him.
Lake Villas is at war.
during this day what we belive to be goverment electric meters (we make this assumtion as bills are direct from the goverment and paid at 7/11 ) have had there wires taken out of the meter and over 10 have been removed completely leaving nothing but bare wires.
many apartments and bunglaows have also had there water meters removed.
This is a strong arm tactic being used as many of the residences are let out to tenants who know little of the on going saga. the response from staff on site is that management fees have been withheld by the owners so they have been instructed to do this.
earlier there was a scene where residents prevented one of the site staff cutting thru a bunglows water pipes, no blows were exhanged but the thai member of staff ran off and called the police.
some residents are in fear of violence from the thai staff.
this tactic of Richard Haughtons is affecting the lives of family with young children as tonight as darkness falls the whole village is without water and many without electric.
Has Mr Richard forgoten that in his home country that cuttign off water and electric like this is illegal . perhaps he has been in thailand a little to long.. If anyone from the local newspapers are reading this then now there is some real reporting to be done on the suffering he is causing to innocent tenants and young children
Shame on you Richard Haughton.
This cannot be so. At just about every police station in the country there is a statue of figurine of a police man with a child in his arm and another holding his hand. Police did nothing. Impossible
It's illegal in Thailand too.
If the services are paid directly to the providers and not as part of management fee, then the managers have no legal right to discontinue the service.
Mind you, getting any form of legal redress could take a long time….
I think Mr Colov owns two apartments in this development.
Did he just get cash flow problems and foolishly attempt to keep going hoping that new project investments will pay off the old projects or was it more sinister than that? Did he not get out in time with every baht he could muster?
In the latest development unless its a coincidence of course the wifi internet on the village seems not to be working tonight either. water, electric, internet. one assumes the staff finished there communication with the almight haughton and recieved new stalinist instructions.
this is more like he is trying to drive the residents out !. .. perhaps mr colov would like to involve himself and win a little favour from the residents.
Maybe its should be known that there are at least 5 Rotary Clubs in PTY. It would be prudent to write ""Rotary Club of Jomtien Pattaya"". And by the way this guy is a disgrace for this particular Rotary Club as there are some outstanding citizens member as well.
Has this man paid taxes in Thailand or in the UK? There is a liability and if he hasn't paid anything in Thailand and is still domiciled in the UK then he's certainly worthy of significant scrutiny. It's all pressure and generally folk such as Haughton or either too thick or too lazy to address the problem.
Worth looking at.
Lee: Yes. Many of the owners at Emerald and Lake view had been victims of earlier collapses. This does not look like incompetence though that's what I would be claiming.
Drummond said…'Many of the owners at Emerald and Lake view had been victims of earlier collapses'…WTF ? these people went back for round 2 ?
Sam. They had no choice. Their investments were transferred to Emerald.
PS: Thanks for letting me correct those dates btw
Andrew,
A couple of the points do not tie up here.
Are these fees already due and not paid for 2011 or fees being demanded for 2012 that are not yet due?
Either way this sort of action will lead to another abandoned estate.
Jules; Residents have been withholding payments because there has been no upkeep of the estate so they WILL be in arrears. Thus Haughton has demanded all payments be made 12 months in advance. As they plan to oust him at a meeting on December 3rd they will not want his so called 'services' in future.
Great work with the video guys! Keep it coming. Really impactful stuff and there's nothing like video for doing the rounds. Will really maximise the reach.
One year's maintenance upfront isn't so bad as the conman who demanded 3 years up front out in Takientia. Some guys paid it, even though t was not to be paid until chanotes changed hands. Chanotes were supposed to change hands in late 2006/early 2007. Guess what? Still no chanotes
Forget about the police helping you here. Firstly, they will just let expats v expats fights dawdle along to their conclusion. Secondly, money will determine who gets police help, bet Mr Rotary will have someone in his pockets if he has continued his scams for years. Thirdly, looks as if the police will just say ""civil, not crimial case"" and look the other way. Some particularly violent people here in Pattaya, the cutting off of services is spreading. At least one Thai developer I know has threatened it when someone took him to court. Luckily, he was thwarted at the last minute. One last thing. I feel terrible about those stuck in this village with no electricity tonight, shame on this thug
Oh dear. These lower class oiks who reinvent themselves in the Hogarthian fantasy world that is Pattaya all seem to betray their humble origins in the end, don't they?
This Haughton creep is quite over reaching himself. Intimidation and theft in response to legitimate concerns is hardly what one would expect fom the former president of a Rotary club but then I suppose the Pattaya – Jomtien branch is in truth just a shabby imitation of the real thing.
Perhaps the residents should recruit their own security and protect their interests accordingly.
Rotary's best-known motto is ""Service above Self"", and its secondary motto is ""They profit most who serve best"".
Rotary International is an organization of service clubs known as Rotary Clubs located all over the world. The stated purpose of the organization is to bring together business and professional leaders to provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards in all vocations, and help build goodwill and peace in the world.
It has already been mentioned that there are some excellent members of the RC.. I wonder how quickly they would like to disassociate themselves from the obvious undesirables.
With my for bares having to live under a virtual British Military dictatorship prior to self rule in the formulation and proclamation of the Commonwealth of Australia, a place where Britain sent nutter naval officers {Bligh} as governors and human garbage in chains, I am left thinking that there is not a lot between modern day Thailand and say 19th century Australia. Both have had to suffer an invasion of Britons “best� examples of criminality and human effluent.
Wow, Taylor Wayne. I guess something has been building up in you that needed letting out!
For bares? Four candles, surely?
Got it!! Fork handles, totally classic, it's on You Tube…
Arab Spring Uprising at Lake Villas imminent!!
Regime must change 3rd December 2011
Richard Houghton will come out of his hiding place in the Gutters!!