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Russian composer Pletnev continues to protest his innocence against the child rape charges laid against him, saying the matter was a “set up”. Pletnev also claimed that: “A big company wants to present me as a criminal, which I am not.” He did not elaborate any further about this claim, fueling further speculation that Pletnev will try to find ways of having the rape charges dropped by making a payment to corrupt officials or the family of the child.

Thai police have dismissed rumours that police were demanding money to drop the Mikhail Pletnev child rape case; however, rumours still abound that a financial settlement will be offered to the parents of the boy to drop the charges. If a settlement is not available, it seems incredible that Pletnev will voluntarily return to Thailand where if guilty he faces up to twenty years in prison.

A world-renowned Russian conductor and composer has been charged with raping a 14-year-old boy in Thailand.

Mr. Pletnev, 53, was arrested in Pattaya, a seaside resort east of Bangkok. The coastal city is a popular destination for many nationalities including Russian tourists and expatriates. It has a thriving sex industry driven by overseas visitors and the domestic market, and is widely regarded as the sex capital of Thailand and south-east Asia.

Feds charge longtime Seattle resident with Thailand sex tourism
Charge: Man paid for sex with 11-year-old, 200+ videos recovered

By LEVI PULKKINEN
SEATTLEPI.COM STAFF

A retiree from Seattle already imprisoned in Thailand is facing federal sex tourism charges on allegations that he bought sex from girls as young as 11.

Glenn Richard Allen, a 63-year-old raised in the Seattle area, was indicted in U.S. District Court earlier this month by a Seattle grand jury.

Federal authorities claim Allen was caught with 200 to 300 DVDs showing himself sexually abusing Thai children at his condominium in the resort town of Pattaya City, located outside of Bangkok.

Thai authorities investigating child prostitution in the country arrested Allen, a Canadian-born U.S. citizen, in 2007 alongside two British men and a Finnish citizen. Several girls identified Allen as having paid them for sex; four victims are identified in charging papers.

Already sentenced to 16 years in a Thai prison, Allen is accused of paying a "procurer" to bring children to him.

"Allen made it clear that he preferred females, approximately 12 years old," an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent investigating the case said in court documents, recounting the statements the "procurer" made to authorities.

Weaknesses in the safety of the Thai education system have been exposed yet again as a second foreign paedophile has been found working for Potisarn Pittayakorn School, a government-owned secondary school in Bangkok, Thailand.

The tabloid British newspaper The Mirror is reporting that Gary Robcoy has been deported and blacklisted from Thailand because of his conviction for child abuse in Britain. Robcoy was arrested at Potisarn Pittayakorn School where he worked as a computer science and EFL (English as a foreign language) teacher.

The following photo was retrieved from Gary Robcoy's hi5 profile. The unverified photo apparently shows Robcoy at an English language conference in 2003 (BE 2546).