Briton's anger after being jailed for three weeks for swearing at Thai airport officials

A British holidaymaker told of his anger today after being jailed for three weeks for swearing at airport officials in Thailand.

Simon Burrowes, 45, insulted immigration officials who accused him of having a fake passport when he travelled to Phuket on holiday.

Mr Burrowes, from Wembley, west London, said he feared for his life after being warned he could spend up to a year in jail for the offence. He was held in prison for 21 days before being fined 500 bhat, about £10, by a Thai court.

On 31 January, Mr Burrowes was held in Phuket Airport, missing his flight home, after travelling to Thailand for a Thai boxing holiday. He admitted swearing but said he had been infuriated at the allegations, and that no-one would listen to his requests to see a supervisor or police officer.

The British Embassy in Thailand confirmed his passport was real the following day, but the Londoner was not released from prison until late February. He said the conditions in jail were "subhuman" and prisoners were locked in shackles.

He said: "I kept asking myself why have they done this? It was as though they couldn't get enough of punishing me. One minute I'm on holiday, the next I'm thinking if I do what's right and stick up for myself my life will be in danger.

"It's general knowledge that the level of corruption is rife in the Thai authorities. I'd never been locked up in my life and then found myself in the most terrifying Thai jail. I couldn't bear the thought of another hour in there."

After paying £2,000 for his bail, Mr Burrowes was told he was not allowed to leave the country until his trial date.

Friends, relatives and even old school friends set up a Facebook group to lobby for the charges to be dropped.

Around 500 members joined and Mr Burrowes has vowed to write to each well-wisher individually to thank them for their support.

He was finally told by the court he could return home last month after admitting insulting an immigration official.

"People have been more charitable to me than I could ever have dreamt," he said. "I had no money and people let me stay with them. People go to Thailand for sun and sand but I saw a very different side. If it goes wrong, it can go horribly wrong."

A spokesman for the Foreign Office confirmed they had provided assistance to Mr Burrowes, and that the "legitimacy" of his passport had been resolved with the Thai police.

He added: "on 27 April Mr Burrowes pleaded guilty to the charge against him and released."