Dating scam: Thai tomboy arrested for stealing pickup and phone
Police arrested a Thai tomboy in the southern province of Chum Phon for operating a romance scam, stealing a pickup and mobile phone from a woman she met on a dating application.
The victim, identified only as Kuy, filed a complaint at the Chulalongkorn Pratunam Police Station on Friday, December 13, after losing her grey Toyota Vigo pickup truck and blue Oppo mobile phone to a tomboy, 42 year old Kornnipha, whom she met on a dating app.
Kuy explained that she spoke to Kornnipha on the app and later arranged to meet her at her condominium in the Thanyaburi neighbourhood of Pathum Thani province, near Bangkok, on Friday morning.
Kuy invited Kornnipha into her condo, and the pair spent the entire day together. However, Kuy awoke the following morning, December 14, to find that Kornnipha disappeared, along with her vehicle and mobile phone.
Police tracked the stolen pickup truck as it was heading towards southern Thailand. Pathum Thani police coordinated with officers in the south, and eventually, Chum Phon Provincial Highway Police located the vehicle at a petrol station in the Lamae district of Chum Phon.
Officers quickly blocked the vehicle to prevent Kornnipha from fleeing and successfully apprehended her. Kornnipha admitted to the theft and claimed she was driving to visit a friend in Surat Thani province.
Kornnipha was charged under Section 335 of the Criminal Code for committing theft at night. The penalty carries a sentence of one to five years in prison and a fine ranging from 20,000 to 100,000 baht.
A similar incident was reported in November, when a Thai man lost 5,000 baht in cash and his motorcycle to another man he had been dating for three months.
The perpetrator pretended to be trustworthy and wealthy when they first met, which led the victim to trust him and not anticipate the theft and betrayal.
In another case from November last year, a Thai man lost his motorcycle to a woman he met on a dating app after having sexual relations with her.
The victim expressed his disappointment, stating that he overlooked her appearance, which was entirely different from her online profile, only to be deceived and scammed by her.
