Indian passenger robbed by Chinese man on flight to Bangkok

Suvarnabhumi Airport Police Station officers arrested a Chinese man for stealing cash and a Rolex watch worth over 500,0000 baht from an Indian man on a flight from India to Bangkok.

The airport’s security centre and Suvarnabhumi Airport Police Station received a report of the theft from Vistara airline on March 7. The crime took place during flight UK 123 from Bombay City in India to Bangkok in Thailand.

The Indian victim, Hasad Panduran Chawan, reported that his Sea-Dweller Rolex watch and cash amounting to US$2,800 (99,000 baht), disappeared from his backpack.

Police questioned all the cabin crew and checked the security cameras until they found the suspect, a 48 year old Chinese man named Yi Xiangyang. The crew reported that Yi opened the storage compartment above the victim’s seat and quickly took the money and watch from the bag.

The CCTV cameras at the airport showed that Yi rushed out of Gate E2 and left the immigration checkpoint to catch a taxi at the 10th door on the fourth floor of the passenger terminal.

Officers tracked him down and discovered the Chinese man checked in to the Nice Hotel Ratchada in the Huay Kwang district of Bangkok. Police managed to arrest Yi at the hotel and found the stolen items in his bag. The arrest was made only five hours after the crime.

Yi was charged under Section 335 of the Criminal Law: committing theft within an airport. The penalty is imprisonment of up to one to five years and a fine from 20,000 to 100,000 baht.

Kittipong Kittikachorn, the Director of Suvarnabhumi Airport, assured passengers of enhanced security measures during interviews with various news agencies yesterday, March 11. He highlighted the airport’s extensive security infrastructure, boasting over 8,000 CCTV cameras, which have proven instrumental in resolving numerous incidents in the past.

Furthermore, Kittipong issued a stern warning to potential criminals, stating that perpetrating crimes at the airport would be challenging and that any suspects would swiftly face arrest with no possibility of escape.