Missing 12 year old Bangkok girl sparks urgent search
A 12 year old girl has been missing for three continuous days under mysterious circumstances. Her distraught mother found a chat conversation between her daughter and a young man, prompting urgent police action to locate her. Concerns for her safety arose when the last CCTV footage of her was found at 10am today at Bang Na Police Station.
Kanthasat Pongpaibulvech, also known as Gun Jompholung, along with the mother of the missing girl, asked Police Lieutenant Colonel Surapong Sukyaem, Bang Na Police Station’s investigation officer, for assistance. They fear the girl has been lured away and could be in danger of exploitation or human trafficking.
Gun Jompholung relayed that the mother reported her daughter missing for three days. She had seen a chat conversation between her daughter and a man, who was persuading and pressuring the young girl to meet him.
CCTV footage showed the girl leaving with a backpack and being taken away on a motorcycle by a man. Upon investigation, it was revealed that this man was the owner of the apartment where they lived.
The girl was deceived by the man from the chat conversation, who then tricked the apartment owner into dropping her off at the Ekkamai bus terminal, claiming she was going to visit relatives in another province. Since then, she has been unreachable, leaving her mother extremely worried.
Furthermore, the mother of the 20 year old man suspected of luring the girl contacted Gun Jompholung, claiming ignorance of the matter and not wanting it to become a big issue. She suggested settling the matter financially, which the girl’s parents firmly rejected, only wanting their daughter returned safely.
Apartment owner suspicion
The mother of the missing girl, A (pseudonym), in a trembling voice, said that when she returned to their accommodation, her daughter was nowhere to be found. All methods of communication were unavailable as her daughter had left without her mobile phone. A check on the CCTV revealed that the apartment owner was the one who took her daughter away.
The apartment owner was questioned and he confirmed that the girl had asked him to drop her off at Ekkamai bus terminal to visit her relatives in Rayong province. The mother had seen the chat conversation between her daughter and a man via a social game on Facebook, which shows that the two have known each other for three to four months.
She had seen his picture, which was different from the one provided by the police, increasing her concerns for her daughter’s safety.
Mrs A stated that her daughter had always been a good student and had never behaved like this before. She was extremely worried, fearing her daughter might have been deceived and was in danger. She confirmed that she will pursue the case to the end and does not want any financial settlement, only the safe return of her daughter, reported Khaosod.
Lt. Col. Surapong stated that the case was of public interest and that the girl’s safety was a priority. After Mrs. A reported the case, preliminary questioning was conducted and sent to the investigation team.
The suspect’s identity is known and the police are in the process of locating him. The apartment owner, who was asked by the girl to drop her off at Ekkamai bus terminal, will be questioned as a witness.
The suspect’s mother, who claimed ignorance of the matter, will also be questioned to determine if she was involved in the crime. The police are preparing to charge the offender with abduction of a minor.
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