Thai man with mental health issues leaps from Bangkok BTS station
A Thai man with mental health issues jumped to his death off the Royal Thai Air Force Museum BTS Station in Bangkok on Saturday.
Saimai Police Station officers investigated the death of the 25 year old Thai man, Nithi Thipthep, on Pahonyothin Road in the Bang Khen district of Bangkok. Nithi was wearing a dark blue T-shirt, black shorts, and a motorcycle helmet. He sustained a major wound to his head and lay in a pool of blood near the footpath along the road.
A witness informed the police that Nithi bought a ticket to go to Lat Phrao BTS Station at the Yaek Kor Por Aor Station. He displayed suspicious behaviour and immediately ran to the train platform, prompting an officer in the ticket office to ask a security guard to monitor him.
After arriving on the platform, Nithi did not wait for the train like others but jumped onto the railway and ran to the next station, the Royal Thai Air Force Museum Station.
The BTS then cut off the electricity along the railway track and chased after Nithi. When Nithi almost arrived at the Royal Thai Air Force Museum Station, he climbed over the edge of the rail and jumped off.
Nithi’s parents explained that their son has been suffering from mental health issues for years. He often heard voices ordering him to do things, so the family took him for treatment at Bhumibol Adulyadej Hospital.
On the day of the incident, the deceased’s parents accompanied him to AC Market in the Saimai district of Bangkok. Unexpectedly, Nithi fled from his parents and proceeded to run along the footpath beside the road for 3 kilometres. His father followed in a car until they reached Yaek Kor Por Aor BTS Station.
Nithi managed to elude his father by sprinting to the BTS Station and buying a ticket to access the platform. Meanwhile, his father drove to the subsequent station, the Royal Thai Air Force Museum, in an attempt to intercept his son, but his efforts were in vain. As Nithi’s father rushed to the station to intercept him, Nithi leapt off the BTS track.
Despite indications of Nithi’s mental illness, police officers will undertake additional investigations to ascertain the factors behind Nithi’s actions.
If you or anyone you know is in emotional distress, please contact the Samaritans of Thailand 24-hour hotline: 02 713 6791 (English), 02 713 6793 (Thai), or the Thai Mental Health Hotline at 1323 (Thai). Please also contact your friends or relatives at this time if you have feelings of loneliness, stress, or depression. Seek help.
