10 million baht kidnapping of businessman by Chinese crooks is comedy of errors

The botched 10 million baht kidnapping of a Vanuatu businessman by three Chinese gangsters had the hallmarks of a blockbuster comedy movie stamped all over it.

The hostage and ransom demand situation may not have been funny to the businessman and his girlfriend but the situation was pure slapstick and would not look out of place on the silver screen.

The Vanuatu businessman was abducted on his way to see his girlfriend at a residence in the Rama IX area in Huai Khwang district on Wednesday afternoon. He arrived in his Mercedes-Benz but was snatched by the men and bundled into a Toyota Fortuner right before her eyes.

The criminals demanded he transferred 10 million baht into a bank account. There was a problem however, the businessman didn’t have any means of transferring the money: his phone and laptop were in his car.

Meanwhile, alerted by his girlfriend, district police and agents from the Metropolitan Police’s Investigation sub-division 4, managed to track the suspects using CCTV footage and called one of them.

Spooked, the gangsters dumped the businessman around Soi Wat Lat Pla Duk in Nonthaburi, snatching the victim’s 25-million-baht wristwatch before driving away.

The businessman took a taxi and made his way back to his girlfriend’s place in Bangkok’s Huai Khwang district.

The three alleged kidnappers, 37 year old He Junhui, 36 year old Jinyong Zheng, and 35 year old Heng Yaofeng, 35, were eventually arrested by a joint team of local and immigration police at Suvarnabhumi Airport while trying to board a Qatar Airways flight to Qatar at about 1am on Thursday.

The businessman had his watch returned and the three men were taken to the Wang Thonglang district police office for interrogation.

SOURCE: Bangkok Post