Cambodian Woman Held in Trat for Working Without Documents

Cambodian Woman Held in Trat for Working Without Documents

BANGKOK, April 28, 2026 — Thai police have arrested a Cambodian woman accused of working illegally as a hairdresser in eastern Thailand’s Trat province, authorities said.

Police said officers acted on a tip-off on April 27 about a suspected foreign national working at a salon on Tha Ruea Chang Road.

When officers arrived around midday, they found one customer receiving services while another person was waiting inside the premises, police said.

The salon owner initially claimed she worked alone, but officers later identified a 33-year-old woman in the back of the shop as a Cambodian national.

Authorities said the woman, identified as Ms. Praewa Ruangsaeng, was unable to produce a passport or any identification documents and was taken into custody.

According to police, the detainee said she had lived without official documents since birth because her Thai father and Cambodian mother never registered her.

She also told officers she had worked since childhood after both parents died early and was now a single mother raising two children, police said.

Officials said she claimed to be seeking legal status but currently had no proof of identity or residence.

She was processed at Trat City Police Station and authorities were preparing to deport her to Cambodia in accordance with Thai law.