Udon Thani lottery thief returns stolen tickets and begs for forgiveness
Desperate suspect says informal debt push him into lottery theft
A thief returned 23 out of 51 stolen lottery tickets to a vendor in the Isaan province of Udon Thani and promised to pay for the remaining tickets within three days.
The lottery stall owners, 68 year old Boonmee Bootpho and 43 year old Wannaporn Bootpho, lodged a complaint at Nong Wua So Police Station on Tuesday, August 12, after losing 51 tickets to the thief.
Security camera footage showed the thief swiftly selecting 50 tickets and asking the vendor to help him find the numbers he wanted. He then scanned a QR code to pay for the tickets, worth 5,000 baht, and presented a transfer slip to Boonmee.
Trusting the customer, Boonmee did not closely inspect the slip and even gave the suspect an additional ticket for free due to the large purchase.
In addition to filing the complaint, the owners shared the footage on social media, hoping to pressure the thief into surrendering and to encourage anyone with information to contact them.
ThaiRath reported that another lottery vendor, operating a stall at a petrol station in the Kumphawapi district of Udon Thani, later contacted the victims. She revealed that the same man had visited her stall on the same day, using the same trick to steal lottery tickets.
Fortunately, this vendor quickly realised the money was not transferred to her account and managed to retrieve the stolen tickets. She confronted the suspect and warned him not to repeat the act.
On August 14, the victims told ThaiRath that the suspect, later identified as 25 year old Sila, contacted them to apologise. He reportedly cried and begged for their forgiveness.
Sila then met with the victims and returned 23 of the stolen tickets, explaining that he had already sold 28 tickets online. For the remaining tickets, valued at 2,700 baht, Sila promised repayment within three days.
He claimed that debts of between 40,000 and 50,000 baht owed to loan sharks drove him to commit the crime, pledging to change his behaviour and work hard to clear his debts.
The victims and the suspect signed an official agreement in the presence of police. Officers warned that an arrest warrant would be issued immediately if Sila failed to honour his promise.
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