Thai man abandons family in roadside hut in Udon Thani
A Thai man deceived his family by promising to buy a birthday cake, only to abandon his wife and four children in a roadside hut. The local villagers, unable to leave the family in distress, stepped in to help and transport them back to their rented home.
Local officials received a report at 5pm yesterday from Parida Prasomsri, a member of the Koksung Subdistrict Municipality Council, that a mother and her four children were found in a hut along the Ban Dong Rueang-Ban Muang Nadee road in Phang Ngu subdistrict, Nong Han district, Udon Thani province. Villagers discovered the family after the husband had left them there, claiming he was going to buy cigarettes but never returned.
The wife explained that she, her husband, and their children rented a house in Ban Na Baek, Kumphawapi district, where they barely made ends meet by fishing in the Nong Han. They paid 2,000 baht per month for rent, often struggling to make the payment.
The husband had convinced her that they would visit relatives in the Chaiwan district to ask for money to buy a birthday cake for their youngest daughter. They travelled together on a motorcycle but upon reaching the hut, the husband told them to wait while he went to buy cigarettes. He never returned.
The wife recounted how they waited from early morning until evening, with no sign of the husband. Villagers who found them reported the situation to the local police in Nong Han. The wife suspected that her husband might have gone to buy drugs, as he had a history of leaving the family for extended periods.
Ban Yen Ongart, the village head of Ban Dong Rueang, and Rosita Haowhan, the assistant village head, felt sympathy for the mother and her three daughters, aged nine, four, and two years old, respectively. Despite not knowing their names, the villagers were moved by their plight.
The villagers initially contacted the police, hoping they would take the family to the station, but were advised to take them to the village hall instead. Concerned about the family’s well-being, the villagers decided to drive the mother and children back to their rented home in Ban Na Baek, Kumphawapi district, reported KhaoSod.
“It was heartbreaking to see the mother and her young children stranded by the roadside. We couldn’t just leave them there,” said one villager.
