Unemployed Thai man claims he sleeps in billboard for safety, not theft
Police arrested a Thai man who hid inside a shopping mall billboard in Nonthaburi province near Bangkok, during an alleged attempted theft. The suspect, however, denied the allegations, claiming he was merely seeking a place to stay due to his unemployment.
A security guard at the shopping mall noticed a suspicious motorcycle parked near the billboard at about 1.30am yesterday, January 20. The chain and lock securing the door to the billboard’s structure were also damaged.
After reviewing CCTV footage, the security guard spotted a man, later identified as 27 year old Tontrakarn, parking his motorcycle, cutting the chain and lock with a metal-cutting tool, and entering the billboard structure.
The security team suspected Tontrakarn intended to steal metal parts or electric wires from the billboard. He might be aware that the security guard noticed him and climbed up the 25-metre-high billboard to hide.
The security team alerted officers from Chaiyaphruek Police Station. Police located Tontrakarn on the billboard and spent over 20 minutes persuading him to come down safely.
Tontrakarn claimed he lost his job, was penniless, and was planning to return to his home province of Suphan Buri, in central Thailand. Despite being found with a metal-cutting tool, Tontrakarn insisted he had no intention of stealing from the shopping mall. He stated he climbed the billboard only to find a safe place to sleep.
Police have not disclosed the charges filed against Tontrakarn, but he is suspected of being charged under Section 362 of the Criminal Law: trespassing and disturbing another person’s property at night. If found guilty, he could face imprisonment of up to five years, a fine of up to 100,000 baht, or both.
In a similar incident in June last year, a foreign man faced criticism on Thai social media after a video of him lying in a hammock hung from an advertisement billboard in Bangkok went viral. It is unclear whether Thai police took legal action against him.
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