Police arrest 7 men for robbery of Chinese man’s house in Pattaya

Police arrested seven Thai men over the robbery of a Chinese man and his Thai wife’s house in Pattaya earlier this month. The suspects said they were hired by three Thai men who believed the Chinese man was keeping 200 to 400 million baht inside the house.

The robbery occurred on the night of December 11 at the couple’s house in Land and House Village in Pattaya’s Bang Lamung district.

Nine burglars broke into the house and tied up the hands and feet of the Chinese man and his wife and seized their mobile phones.

The assailants attacked the Chinese man until he revealed the password to his safe. The thieves took 700,000 baht in cash, 210,000 baht’s worth of gold necklaces and a 11-calibre pistol and fled the property.

After the couple filed a police complaint, police investigated and issued arrest warrants for nine men: Sorranan Pratuang, Suthep Tubehom, Ekkachai Nim-anong, Akkaphan Phupha, Pattarawat Thammarak, Kritsada Meethom, Naruenart Choojit, Somchai Kongkaew, and Boontawee Kongkaew.

The police arrested all but two men – Somchai Kongkaew and Boontawee Kongkaew – in different areas including Pattaya, elsewhere in Chon Buri province, Chachoengsao and Sa Keao.

The officers seized the suspects’ cars (a white Toyota Fortuner SUV, a white Toyota Yaris, a white BMW, and a white MG sedan), stolen gold necklaces, and the leftover money amounting to 5,000 baht.

Police reported today that three Thai men – Toon, Muek, and Jo – hired Kritsada to rob the house. The men told Kritsada that the Chinese man had 200-400 million baht’s worth of cash and assets in the house.

The men told Kritsada he could keep 15 million baht of the stolen goods as a reward if he successfully acquired all 200-400 million baht in assets.

Determined for his cut, Kritsada rounded up eight more thieves to help commit the crime. The men planned the burglary together and assigned different roles to one another.

However, the burglary didn’t go as well as hoped, and the gang left with only a gun, gold and 700,000 baht in cash. The men handed over the stolen goods to their “employers” and went on the run for about one week until seven out of nine were arrested.

Five suspects are still on the run including Somchai Kongkaew, Boontawee Kongkaew, and the three men who hired the gang to commit theft.

Police are still investigating the case.