Bangkok: Two Australians were among 32 ageing Westerners arrested and detained for 12 hours for playing bridge in Pattaya, a Thai seaside resort city renowned for its seedy nightlife.
More than 40 police, soldiers and local officials disrupted the genteel afternoon session in what they portrayed as a swoop on illegal gambling.
But police later conceded they found no evidence of money changing hands in the second-floor Jomtien and Pattaya Bridge Club that has been holding bridge sessions since 1994.
Club organiser Jeremy Watson said on Friday that police had decided to drop all charges.
"They finally came to believe they had been misinformed about what we were doing," he said.
Mr Watson said the club would continue after applying for a different licence.
He said the players were upset by the accusation they were gambling.
When police arrived club members refused to have their session interrupted and kept playing for about an hour while the police watched.
One German woman in her 60s refused to post bail money and spent an entire night at the police station.
"She was incensed. She stood her ground," he said.
The gathering violated a 1935 Playing Cards Act that prohibits the possession of more than 120 playing cards at any one time, they said.
Seized decks of cards also lacked official government excise markings, police said.
Computers and books with the results of the bridge games were also seized.
Video of the raid showed the players looking confused as they sat at tables with cards in their hands.
It also showed the detainees, including an 84-year-old Dutch woman with a walking stick, climbing into an open-sided police van.
The players were released from Pattaya police station at 3am after paying the equivalent of $194 bail.
"It was a thoroughly nasty experience," one of the detainees said.
A representative of the Contract Bridge League of Thailand travelled to Pattaya on Thursday to try to convince police not to pursue charges.
Police have not yet referred the cases to court, pending further discussions.
Gambling is illegal in Thailand but Thai bridge enthusiasts told police the group's members were playing only for points.
Since seizing power in 2014 Thailand's military-appointed Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha has vowed to crack down on corruption, social ills and domestic and foreign criminal networks.
Raids have been conducted on some of about 900 bars and clubs in Pattaya where prostitution is rife but almost all remain open.
The Bangkok Post reported on Wednesday that Mr Prayuth's regime, concerned over its international image, has tightened rules on foreign media working in Thailand, prompting denial of work permits for about five foreign journalists.
But video of the bridge club raid went viral on the internet, prompting a flood of angry comments from across the world.
The bridge club's website says players meet at 1pm every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
"A friendly club with a zero [or near-zero] policy. Troublemakers are quickly ejected and beginners welcome," it says.
Players are asked to pay a small fee for each session.
A sign posted on the website on Thursday said the club is "temporarily closed whilst we get a new licence to have cards on the premises".
"All problems have been solved with the understanding by the authorities."
Caught up in the raid was the club's British founder Barry Kenyon, a former British honorary consul more used to helping foreigners who get into trouble in Pattaya.
"They just would not believe we would play for fun and points no matter what," he told reporters.
One raiding officer said: "I see. You put it all in the computer and settle up later."
No food was provided for the accused at the Pattaya police station although a 7-Eleven shopkeeper was allowed to deliver.
Police kept the players aged from 50 to well into their 80s under surveillance at the police station, with an officer insisting on escorting them to the toilet.
As well as the Australians, those arrested included 12 British nationals, three Norwegians, three Swedes, a German, a Dane, a Canadian and a New Zealander.
Pattaya is a popular retirement destination for Western foreigners.
But the city also has a reputation for go-go bars and being a haven for foreign criminals.
In November an Australian former Hells Angels member was abducted from his Pattaya villa in broad daylight.
His naked and brutalised body was found a few hours later in a grave outside the city.
