Bangkok: Iranians nabbed in Yaowarat robbery drama
Two Iranian nationals were arrested after allegedly robbing a Vietnamese tourist of 150,000 baht in a brazen street-side theft in Bangkok’s bustling Yaowarat district.
The drama unfolded yesterday evening, January 6, when a 27 year old Vietnamese tourist approached police near the Hotel Royal Bangkok, claiming she had been attacked and robbed. According to her account, she had just withdrawn 150,000 baht in cash, stashing it in her waist bag before sitting down to relax. Moments later, two men and a woman approached her under the guise of conversation, but things took a sinister turn when they demanded to see her money.
“I showed them the cash but suddenly they snatched it. I managed to recover 100,000 baht, but they strangled me, grabbed my collar, and lifted me off the ground before fleeing with the rest.”
Phlapphla Chai 2 Police Station officers, led by Police Lieutenant General Siam Boonsom and other senior commanders, acted swiftly. They caught two suspects, 34 year old Amer Hossein Niazifar and 35 year old Safieh Latif Davoud, after a brief chase. Both are Iranian nationals who reportedly couldn’t communicate in Thai, prompting police to bring in an interpreter.
While the suspects denied all charges, the victim identified them as her assailants. Officers charged the pair with joint robbery and launched legal proceedings, reported KhaoSod.
Police are now working to recover the missing 50,000 baht and bring the third suspect to justice.
The theft reportedly had ties to the victim’s rival. The 31 year old Russian victim filed a complaint at Karon Police Station yesterday, January 6, following the theft, which occurred at a hotel in the area at approximately 3.21am on January 5.
In other news, a Thai woman and her foreign husband in Phuket sought help from the police after losing 3 million baht in cash and gold during a home robbery on New Year’s Eve, December 31.
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