PATTAYA, THAILAND – A 37-second video showing a homeless couple in an awkward scene outside a Beer Bar on Soi Buakhao went viral, thrusting a local bar owner into the centre of an online controversy and prompting a rapid response from city authorities.
Clip circulated widely and sparked outrage
The short clip, filmed in the busy heart of Pattaya, was recorded on 15 October 2025 at about 10:50am. Although the video lasted barely half a minute, it spread quickly across TikTok and Facebook, attracting thousands of comments and being shared in multiple groups. Many viewers asked how people in a city known for tourism and luxury could apparently be left without help in such a public place.
Bar owner said she bore no responsibility
The video focused attention on Aomsroy Matwiset, 44, widely known as “Sister Aom”, the owner of the bar outside which the footage was taken. She told reporters the bar had been closed at the time and the gate was down. “The gate was down, no customers, no staff, nothing,” she said, adding that her phone number had even been visible in the clip. “Afterwards my phone did not stop ringing. I was completely surprised and saddened by the false impressions.”
Sister Aom went to the police when the clip circulated. Investigators concluded the bar had not committed any wrongdoing and said responsibility lay with the two people in the video and whoever uploaded it. She did not file a formal complaint and said she wanted the matter to rest, though the publicity continued.
City emergency team intervened within minutes
Later the same day, when Sister Aom returned to the area and saw the couple a few metres away from her premises, she called the municipal hotline 1337. Minutes later Pattaya’s rapid response team arrived. Officials spoke with the pair and escorted them away without resistance, observers said. “The city acted very quickly,” Sister Aom told reporters.
Authorities arranged social care and assessed needs
Authorities said the couple appeared confused and disoriented. The man showed signs that suggested possible mental health problems, while the woman was unable to give clear answers to questions. Pattaya officials handed the pair to social services so they could be assessed and offered help, a municipal spokesman said, underlining that the city intended to pay more attention to public order and welfare in tourist areas such as Soi Buakhao.
Video deleted but questions remain
The viral clip has since been deleted, but it has continued to prompt debate about homelessness, mental health and public safety in Pattaya. The bar owner said she wanted to move on and hoped the episode would prompt constructive change. “It was a sad misunderstanding,” she said. “But maybe it will open our eyes.”
City officials said they would review procedures for dealing with similar incidents in the future, balancing enforcement of public order with the need to provide social and medical assistance to vulnerable people frequenting tourist districts.
The episode underlined how a brief piece of footage can rapidly reshape public perception and force a local administration to act, even when the premises shown are closed and the business not implicated in the original scene.