Tourist mugged near Big Buddha Viewpoint in Phuket

A tourist was mugged near the Big Buddha Viewpoint in Phuket, prompting Karon Police to launch a manhunt for the assailant. The incident took place yesterday, July 16, at approximately 6.22pm near the Nak-Kerd Seaview Cafe, according to police reports.

A Thai man, identified only as Wirat, witnessed the mugging while driving towards Chalong. He immediately alerted the police by calling the emergency hotline, 191. The witness described the attacker as a man wearing a red shirt. The police report also noted the make and model of the vehicle used in the assailant’s escape.

The victim was robbed of a wallet containing an unspecified amount of money, a yellow shoulder bag, a power bank, and the key to their hotel room in Karon. Further details about the tourist have not been disclosed.

Photographs show a phone displaying the name of a Russian woman, whose connection to the incident is still under investigation, reported The Phuket News.

Karon Police are continuing their efforts to apprehend the suspect and are urging anyone with information to come forward.

In related news, Pattaya police arrested a Thai woman on charges of drugging and robbing her foreign date in Bangkok, making off with a Rolex watch and a gold chain worth over 500,000 baht. The incident, which took place on June 20, came to light after the foreign tourist complained to the Huai Khwang Police Station.

The complaint alleged that the tourist was drugged and robbed of a 430,000-baht gold chain, a 150,000-baht gold bracelet, a luxury Rolex watch, several brand-name clothes, and 800 Singapore dollars (21,600 baht) by a Thai woman he had met on social media. The tourist revealed he had been in a relationship with the suspect for four years.

On June 19, around 10.30pm, the woman visited the tourist at his hotel room in the Thiam Ruam Mit area, Huai Khwang district. While they were chatting and eating, the tourist went to the bathroom. Upon returning, he suddenly felt dizzy, as if he had been drugged, and subsequently fell unconscious.