Worn out woman opts for penal retreat

KHON KAEN: A woman caught shoplifting from a 7-Eleven told police she committed the crime because she was bored with her life and wanted to go to jail.

Wipha Chanachuen, 53, said she was tired of working for a living and wanted to rest in an old people’s home – but jail was the next best option.

Khon Kaen City Police arrested Ms Wipha on December 8 after being alerted to the crime by the manager of the 7-Eleven branch at Khon Kaen Central Hospital.

Ms Wipha, who has been charged with theft, was caught in possession of a stolen bottle of skin lotion (69 baht), a packet of coffee (30 baht) and a packet of Coffee Mate (17 baht).

Ms Wipha lived alone in a 700-baht-per-month rental room in Khon Kaen City. Working as a cleaner at the Department of Medical Technology and Khon Kaen University, she earned just 4,500 baht a month.

With no husband or living siblings, she was bored of the people around her and tired, she told police. She didn’t want to “fight” any more, she said.

Ms Wipha said she wanted to live in a retirement home but didn’t know who to contact.

So she decided to go to jail, where she would at least be able to get a little rest, she said.