Teen fugitives caught in sugarcane field after detention escape
Two young male suspects, 13 and 14 years old, involved in separate robbery and methamphetamine possession cases, have been caught after escaping from a juvenile detention vehicle in Chaiyaphum province. They were found hiding in a sugarcane field after confessing to a local cattle herder.
The incident occurred on Tuesday, February 11, when the two boys jumped from a juvenile facility vehicle in Chaiyaphum while being transported to Nakhon Ratchasima. The escape took place at a red light on Suranarai Road near Pakham Market in the Sra Phra subdistrict, Phra Thong Kham district, Nakhon Ratchasima province. Despite a search operation, they initially remained at large.
Yesterday, February 12, Deputy Provincial Police Commander of Nakhon Ratchasima, Police Colonel Kachen Sateputta, along with Phra Thong Kham district chief Amnuaysilp Manangan, Phra Thong Kham Police Station chief Police Colonel Ittiphat Sriman, community leaders, and volunteer rescue teams launched a comprehensive search operation.
They utilised six drones equipped with thermal imaging to aid the aerial search. The Kaset Sombun Police Station in Chaiyaphum was also alerted to monitor the suspects’ original neighbourhoods, and the boys’ parents were advised to help persuade them to surrender if they made contact.
By 5pm, a tip-off from a local cattle herder near Wat Pa Wiwek Tham in Ban Nong Hua Ruak, Mab Klad subdistrict, Phra Thong Kham district, about 8 kilometres from the escape site and near Chatturat district, Chaiyaphum province, led to the discovery of the youths.
The herder reported two unfamiliar boys asking for directions to Chaiyaphum, mentioning they “escaped from police in a sugarcane field.” When questioned further, they did not respond and attempted to flee, reported KhaoSod.
Police encircled the area and found the teens in a sugarcane field, visibly exhausted from not eating for several hours. They were promptly taken into custody and returned to the juvenile detention centre for further proceedings.
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