A tourist could face up to a year in a Thai jail for feeding bread to fish in the sea
The 53-year-old Russian has been arrested for feeding fish near an ecologically-sensitive coral reef in Phuket
A 53-year-old female tourist has been arrested for feeding bread to fish near an ecologically-sensitive coral reef.
Olga Smirnova, from Russia, is due to appear in court in Thailand following the incident in the popular tourist hotspot of Phuket Island.
The maximum punishment for the violation of the island's strict environmental laws is a year in prison, a £2,300 fine - or both.
Ms Smirnova is being held in police custody in Phuket's Chalong district because she did not have enough money to make bail.
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She was apprehended by officers from the Phuket Department of Marine and Coastal Resources who were carrying out routine checks for illegal activity around Plub Pla Bay.
They say that she was feeding bread to fish close to a coral reef, against the island's strict environmental rules and in defiance of posters erected all over the area.
A Marine and Coastal Resources spokesman said: "We are taking a very strict stance on this. She has to pay the bail and remain in Thailand until her case is processed by a court."
A Russian consulate official said the consul had not received any official notification of the arrest.
But he added: "We managed to talk to officials at the police station where the woman is being kept.
"The Russian citizen did not have the money needed for bail and that's why she is awaiting trial there."
Ms Smirnova has been charged with "feeding fish in a forbidden area or in an area with coral reef", the Russian official said.