Thai girl reunited with family after abduction by drug addict
Thai police collaborated with armed forces in Myanmar to rescue a 10 year old Thai girl abducted by a drug-addicted Thai woman and taken to Myanmar via the border in Mae Sot district in the northern province of Tak.
A 40 year old Thai mother, Khamporn Onkate, filed a complaint at Mae Sot Police Station yesterday, January 14, after her 10 year old daughter, Thammaporn Onkate, went missing from their home on January 10 with a 36 year old woman named Danaiporn.
According to Khamporn, Danaiporn was her neighbour. Members of the community were aware that she used drugs and had later developed a mental illness as a result of her substance abuse.
Police later found Danaiporn’s scarf and bicycle on the banks of the Moei River, at the border between Thailand and Myanmar. However, there were no signs of either Danaiporn or the girl at the scene.
Khamporn informed the police that Danaiporn previously asked her for 200 baht in cash but she refused. She believed that this refusal, coupled with Danaiporn’s disappointment and anger, may have led to Thammaporn’s abduction.
Khamporn was also concerned that Danaiporn might take her daughter to the headquarters of call centre scam gangs in Myanmar. She feared her daughter could become a victim of child labour.
Officers from Mae Sot Police Station sought the cooperation of armed forces and residents in Myanmar living along the border. The armed forces reported to the police that they had detained Danaiporn and the girl upon their arrival.
Both of them were returned to Thailand. Upon their arrival in Thailand, the police escorted Danaiporn to the station for questioning, while the girl was reunited with her family.
Danaiporn claimed that soldiers in Myanmar had detained her and punished her by beating her, although the girl was unharmed. She further claimed that she had only intended to take the girl on a trip to Myanmar.
Police have charged Danaiporn with abducting a minor under the age of 15 from her parents or guardians. The offence carries a penalty of three to 15 years’ imprisonment and a fine ranging from 6,000 to 30,000 baht.
Latest Thailand News
