Singaporean man’s Bangkok airport mix-up leads to arresting headlines

The Singaporean man arrested at Don Mueang International Airport in Bangkok for allegedly stealing the belongings of a German man insists it was all a mix-up.

Teo Yu Xuan Kenny was trying to board a plane home when Immigration Bureau officers swooped to apprehend the Singaporean for the alleged theft of 100,000 baht in cash, a laptop, and a passport belonging to a German tourist staying in the same Pattaya hotel. Kenny said it was a mistake on behalf of the hotel. Staff had reportedly mixed up room numbers 614 and 416.

Kenny and his three friends had flown to Thailand on Thursday, July 6, and planned to return home on Monday, July 11. The mix-up occurred when Kenny’s friend, known as Chee, checked out of his room. While Chee and two other Singaporean friends left the hotel at 11am on Monday, Kenny decided to stay in his room a little longer.

Kenny said

“The hotel staff tried to contact Chee to collect items that he supposedly left behind in Room 614 but failed to reach him, so they asked me to collect them instead. I went down to the reception and collected a laptop and a small sling bag.”

Unbeknownst to Kenny, the bag contained 86,000 baht and 150 euros (6,000 baht) in cash, as well as a BMW car key. Kenny stated that he did not check the bag and simply assumed it belonged to his friend, as the T Pattaya Hotel staff had assumed as well. Kenny’s friend, Daniel Oei said…

“Kenny did not think much of it because he had noticed Chee with a laptop on their trip.”

On Monday, as the Singaporean friends were about to board their flight at the Bangkok airport, Kenny was unexpectedly arrested by airport police.

The German tourist staying in room 416 had filed a complaint with the Pattaya Police regarding the alleged theft. Kenny was detained by both the immigration police and the tourist police in Pattaya for 20 hours. Recounting his experience, Kenny said…

“I was arrested around 4.35pm on Monday and held at the airport until midnight on Tuesday.”

Afterwards, Kenny was taken back to Pattaya, a two-hour drive away, where he was kept in a holding cell until 1pm before giving his police statement. Two of his friends returned to Singapore first, while one of them stayed behind to post bail for him. Kenny’s passport was withheld during the ongoing police investigations, but it was returned to the Singaporean at noon on Thursday after the case was dropped. The police dismissed the case as a misunderstanding. Oei said…

“The police investigation confirmed, after reviewing CCTV footage provided by the hotel, showing the hotel’s staff calling my friend and asking him to retrieve the items. The victim’s room was at 416, and my friend was at 614.”

Kenny revealed that he had spent approximately 70,000 baht in legal fees and an additional 17,000 baht for two extra nights of hotel accommodation and his flight home. He said…

“This whole incident has been a nightmare and very disruptive for me. My plans at work have all been held back.”

The news reports primarily relied on a Facebook post by the Thai Immigration Police, which stated that they had arrested a Singaporean man for “robbery or receiving stolen goods” on Monday.

Kenny mentioned that the hotel apologised to him and provided free-stay vouchers as compensation. However, the hotel has not responded to the story.

Original story:

Immigration Bureau officers acted swiftly to arrest a Singaporean man at Don Mueang International Airport in Bangkok after he stole belongings and 100,000 baht in cash from a German man. It took officers less than an hour to apprehend the thief who tried to flee the country with his stolen haul.

Immigration officers received a complaint about the Singaporean thief, Teo Yu Xuan Kenny, from a hotel in Pattaya yesterday, July 10. According to the hotel, a German guest had entrusted them with his valuables, including 100,000 baht in cash, a laptop, and his passport.

The Singaporean thief approached the hotel staff, deceitfully claiming ownership of the items, and managed to walk away with everything before checking out of the hotel.

Officers discovered that Kenny was travelling to Don Mueang Airport to return to Singapore. At 4.35pm on the same day, officers managed to arrest Kenny. All of the stolen assets were seized and returned to the German victim.

The Superintendent of the Chon Buri Provincial Immigration Office, Parinya Klinkaysorn, commended the effectiveness of the operation, emphasising that it took only 50 minutes from the time the complaint was filed to the arrest of the suspect.

Parinya also took the opportunity to inform foreign tourists in Thailand that they can reach out to immigration officers through the hotline number 1178 if they encounter any difficulties or become victims of crimes.