Thai man arrested for attempted rape at BTS station (video)

Police conducted a swift operation, arresting a Thai man yesterday after the attempted rape and robbery of a Thai woman at Kheha BTS Station in the Thai Ban Mai district of Samut Prakarn province, near Bangkok.

The 30 year old victim filed a complaint at Mueang Samut Prakarn Police Station at 10am yesterday following the sexual assault. She disclosed that she worked as a beauty advisor at a cosmetic store in the Imperial World Samrong shopping mall and was going to her workplace yesterday, May 7, when the incident occurred.

The victim recounted that she was standing on the escalator and noticed the suspect, later identified as 27 year old Suthat Chuayrod, masturbating at the end of the escalator.

Upon spotting the victim, Suthat approached her and forcibly pushed her to the ground. He kissed her on the cheek and attempted to rip her clothes off and rape her. The victim resisted, prompting Suthat to become enraged and repeatedly punched her on her face.

As another BTS passenger approached on the escalator, Suthat fled the scene. CCTV footage captured Suthat grabbing the victim’s handbag and fleeing toward the direction of the escalator before leaving on his motorcycle parked on the footpath.

Police arrested Suthat at his home in Samut Prakarn province on the same day of the incident at about 4pm. Initially, Suthat denied the allegations, claiming he did not physically or sexually assault the victim.

Drug addiction

However, confronted with clear evidence from the CCTV footage, Suthat eventually confessed that he had consumed ketamine powder before committing the crime. He said he bought it from a night market on Srinakarindra Road in Bangkok at 100 baht per pack.

The powder is a mixture of various drugs, for example, ketamine, crystal meth, and heroin, along with sleeping pills called Roche.

Suthat claimed that he was unable to recall his actions towards the victim because he was under the influence of the drugs. Suthat was charged with three offences including:

• Section 278 of the Criminal Law: sexually assaulting a person aged over 15 years old by threatening or using any violent acts. The penalty is imprisonment of up to 10 years, a fine of up to 200,000 baht, or both.
• Section 295 of the Criminal Law: assaulting another person until it causes both physical and mental harm. The penalty is imprisonment of up to two years, a fine of up to 40,000 baht, or both.
• Section 335 of the Criminal Law: committing theft. The penalty is imprisonment from one to five years and a fine from 20,000 to 100,0000 baht.

Most BTS stations are open and have security guards on duty. Neither the Thai media nor the police report mentioned the presence of security guards at the scene. The incident has ignited criticism of the BTS’s security and anti-drug measures.