There were no problems at the first concert
The Phuket City Court fined members of the Bi-2 music group for organizing concerts without proper authorization. A reporter noted that each musician was fined three thousand Thai baht, roughly 85 USD, about 7,5 thousand rubles. The court session was reported by RIA News from Phuket.
During the hearing, the Bi-2 members admitted their wrongdoing, a fact the judge considered in issuing the sentence. Right after the proceedings, the musicians were escorted to the district police station, according to RIA Novosti, citing Phuket police. The criminal case would be closed here, after which Bi-2 would be handed over to immigration authorities to verify each member’s visa status.
It was suggested that the musicians might be allowed to depart Thailand without deportation or a blacklist, with a temporary ban on entering the country for a set period, as described by the agency’s source.
Bi-2 had performed in Pattaya on January 22 and in Phuket on January 24. Soon after their second show at the Illuzion nightclub, the group was detained. A report by Shot He stated that law enforcement officers entered Leva’s locker room. Because the group could not present the required documents, they were taken to the police station and spent the night there.
According to PureeOne, a fan of the band works at a large law firm and helped obtain a tour permit in Pattaya, but the plan proved illegal in Phuket. Mash claimed that Russian diplomats contacted Thai officials to press for a careful check of the musicians’ documents amid concerns about a stance perceived as anti-Russian.
Why was the concert illegal?
According to TASSSince performing on a tourist visa is prohibited, the musicians did not have permission to hold paid concerts.
In an interview with Euroresident Agency International Programs Director Sofia Defosse-Aksyutina, Kommersant explained that every foreigner entering the country for work must obtain administrative permission, a process that can take one to two months.
Until 2018, foreigners faced prison sentences of five to ten years for this offense. A legal reform later changed the penalty to a fine, typically ranging from 2 to 100 thousand baht (about 56 to 2,8 thousand USD). Sometimes, a deportation to the country of citizenship accompanies the fine, along with a ban from visiting Thailand for at least 3.5 years. Repeat violations could lead to imprisonment.
Attorney Anastasia Burakova, who is known as a foreign agent in Russia, noted that Kommersant closely tracks Thailand’s immigration enforcement. Russians are also subject to checks. There are raids and instances where individuals are identified via facial-recognition cameras in private transport cases. Deportation is a common outcome in such circumstances. Detention leads to a hearing within about 24 hours, then a deportation prison, which is not a standard prison but a temporary holding facility. A ticket is purchased by the person and they are escorted to the airport and handed to the flight crew.
What threatens Bi-2?
Nikita Kalinichenko, Attaché of the Russian Consulate General in Phuket, told RBC that Bi-2 members did not seek diplomatic assistance. He noted that under current immigration law violators are expected to leave Thai territory soon.
Thai authorities may request Bi-2 members depart Thailand or deport them to their country of citizenship. Phuket’s tourist police reported that among Bi-2 members there were six Russians and one Israeli.
Meanwhile, the group founders Leva, whose real name is Egor Bortnik and who is known in Russia as a foreign agent, and Shura, Alexander Uman, returned in 2012 and stated that they are not Russian citizens. They have Israeli citizenship, and Shura also holds Australian citizenship.
A Telegram channel called Shot He claimed the group’s members were pressured to be labeled as terrorists and state traitors and to have their property seized within Russia. Leva had previously stated support for Ukraine. The channel also said that social activists contacted the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Investigative Committee, and the Ministry of Culture to take action against the group’s founders.