Man arrested for stealing Royal Thai Armed Forces bus

Police arrested a man for stealing a Royal Thai Armed Forces (RTARF) bus and driving it to Don Mueang and Suvarnabhumi Airports to pick up some imaginary diplomats. Police reported the thief has a criminal history of drugs but did not reveal the result of his drug test.

An officer from the Support Services Department under the RTARF filed a complaint at Rom Klao Police Station that a green air-con HINO bus disappeared from the parking area near the soldier’s accommodation in Soi Rom Klao 40 in the Lat Krabang district of Bangkok.

The police checked CCTV cameras and witnessed a man driving the bus out of the parking lot at about noon on Friday, December 31, but then lost sight of the vehicle.

At 11pm on the same day, New Year’s Eve, a security guard at Suvarnabhumi Airport notified Rom Klao Police that they found the bus.

The driver, 35 year old Sarayut Thepsila, had a row with the airport security guard because he wanted to park in front of Gate 10 of the passenger terminal, which is a prohibited area. Sarayut claimed that he was picking up some diplomats.

Police arrived at the scene, arrested Sarayut and took him in for questioning.

He admitted that he was not a government official or an RTARF chauffeur. He spotted the bus key behind the driver’s seat and drove it to Don Mueang Airport and then to Suvarnabhumi Airport.

The media reported that Sarayut has been arrested six times for drug-related cases, adding police have yet to release details of whether he tested positive in this theft case.

Sarayut was charged with Section 335 (10) of the Criminal Law: whoever commits theft upon a thing used or processed for public benefit shall be punished with imprisonment for one to five years and a fine of 20,000 to 100,000 baht.