Police arrested prostitutes in a crackdown on foreign sex workers in Thai Sin City Pattaya.

More than 50 uniformed and plainclothes cops combed Pattaya Beach, a notorious spot for 'freelancers', to round up the illegals on May 8.

They called it 'Operation Coconut Ghosts' after the coconut trees that line the beach and the way prostitutes stand underneath them 'like ghosts'.

Officers arrested seven Uzbek and six Ugandan women, some of whom were found with student permits or expired visas. They were reportedly carrying packs of condoms and lubricant bottles in their bags.

The prostitutes were reportedly known to loiter under the palm trees lining the busy road, where they aggressively offer sex services to passers-by.

Footage shows the women, wearing tight tops that highlighted their ample bosoms, being marched to the Pattaya City Police Station to face charges.

Police Lieutenant Colonel Torlarp Tinamat, superintendent of the Tourist Police Division 4, said the crackdown was carried out 'to suppress crimes damaging the city's tourism reputation'.

However, he did not explain why the thousands of Thai women working on the city's streets, bars, massage parlours and clubs were ignored, despite prostitution being illegal.

He said: 'This operation reflects the strong co-operation among local government agencies. Officers have inspected risk areas along Pattaya Beach, leading to the arrest of foreigners suspected of illegally offering services. Their residency status is also being checked by the Immigration Bureau.'

Officials said the women were charged with 'soliciting or introducing themselves to others for the purpose of prostitution in a public place'. Two of them were additionally charged with overstaying.

Former fishing village Pattaya became popular with American troops on 'rest and relaxation' breaks in the 1950s and 1960s when the US military had bases in Thailand while fighting Communism in Vietnam. Rural families are said to have even dressed their sons as women to cash in on the gold rush.

The handful of bars in the coastal town quickly grew and it is now the world's biggest sex holiday destination, with round-the-clock prostitution and drugs - a modern-day Sodom and Gomorrah rife with crime and debauchery.

Government chiefs have attempted to clean up the city but regular violence, depravity and claims of corruption continue to blight its reputation.