Britons are charged with sexual abuse of children

TWO British men were arrested on child sex abuse charges in Thailand today.

Malcolm Payne and Robert Horsman were held after a joint operation between Britain's Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre and the Royal Thai Police. They were released after a few hours and walked smiling from the police station.

Payne, 59, and Horsman, 45, both from London, were charged with having sex with minors after a pre-dawn raid of five houses in the resort of Pattaya, 100 miles east of Bangkok.

A German, Fritz Blattner, 66, and an American, Robert Load, 59, were also arrested in "Operation Naga". At least one under-aged child is now in care.

Sudarat Sereewat, secretary-general of Fight Against Child Exploitation, said: "We are glad to see arrests. But we are concerned that these men will just re-offend and will be just acquitted when they get to court."

He said Pattaya had a reputation among paedophiles who believed they could buy their freedom if arrested.

In Bangkok, the protection centre's deputy head Andy Wells said: "Working with the Royal Thai Police we have identified a number of individuals who are suspected of serious alleged offences against children."