Thief gets carted away: Salt-and-battery in Bangkok bust
Police in Bangkok’s Nong Chok district arrested a Thai man along with his trusty red tricycle cart. The suspect had been masquerading as a salt seller while secretly breaking into unattended homes in the area to steal valuables.
Police officials received a report today, October 4, from the local community that homes were being robbed during the day when residents were away at work. The stolen items included jewellery, cash, mobile phones, and branded clothing. The thefts had left the neighbourhood in a state of distress.
Police began investigating the incidents and reviewed CCTV footage from various locations. The footage consistently showed a red tricycle cart roaming through the neighbourhood, ostensibly selling salt, before items went missing from the homes.
The investigative team from Nong Chok Police Station decided to intensify their efforts to identify and apprehend the suspect.
A key break in the case occurred when a resident, identified as Nuay, reported her mobile phone missing. She had left it in front of her house, which also serves as a small shop. Witnesses mentioned seeing a man with a limp, matching the description of the suspect, who had been selling salt in the area at the time of the theft.
This led the police to suspect Yutthachai, who was known for his distinctive limp and had been previously linked to similar thefts in the Nong Chok and Suwinthawong areas.
Thief identified
Upon showing Nuay a photograph of Yutthachai, she confirmed that he was the man who had entered her shop. Police then searched various locations where he might be hiding but initially failed to locate him. Eventually, a tip-off led them to a makeshift shelter in a forested area near Soi Yuwittaya 11, where they found Yutthachai with his red tricycle cart.
During the search, police found a blue Vivo Y76 mobile phone, valued at approximately 10,000 baht, hidden in the shelter. Yutthachai admitted that he had stolen the phone from Nuay. He also confessed that whenever items went missing in the neighbourhood and CCTV footage showed a man on a red tricycle cart, it was indeed him. He explained that selling salt, at 5 baht per packet, did not generate enough income, prompting him to resort to theft.
“I knew the police were onto me, and I had to hide. Selling salt doesn’t make enough money, and I turned back to stealing.”
The police have charged Yutthachai with theft involving the use of a vehicle to facilitate the crime, to transport the stolen property, or to evade capture. He has been handed over to the investigators at Nong Chok Police Station for further legal proceedings, reported KhaoSod.
