Finnish man accused by neighbours of insulting Thai people

A Thai woman in the Isaan province of Chaiyaphum claims that her Finnish husband was attacked by more than 10 neighbours on April 14. The neighbours admitted to attacking the foreign man but insisted that they did so because he insulted them and the Thai people first.

A 40 year old Thai woman named Aoy took to social media to share the story and seek justice for her and her Finnish husband, Jarae. Aoy said the incident happened during Songkran Festival on Friday, April 14 when she and Jarae went to a local grocery shop to buy alcohol.

The shop’s owners were celebrating outside of their store. Jarae, who neither speaks nor understands Thai, did not engage with anyone. However, Oh, the female shop owner, expressed her displeasure with Jarae and stated that she did not like him.

Aoy reported that she and her husband were unaware of why the shop owner was unhappy with them. However, she suggested that Jarae’s loud speaking might have been misinterpreted as anger directed towards them.

Aoy said Oh abruptly struck her husband with a wooden stick and then requested others at the gathering to join in on the attack. Chaos erupted, and Aoy noticed that one of the attackers had a knife.

Despite her efforts to contain the situation, Aoy was unsuccessful. Finally, she managed to contact the nearby hospital’s emergency team to rescue her husband.

Jarae sustained a laceration near his mouth, a broken jaw, and facial disfigurement. Jarae returned to Finland for treatment because his family was concerned about his safety in Thailand.

Oh, the shop owner, gave an interview with Channel 3 and provided a different account of the incident.

She claimed that Aoy and Jarae wanted to join the party but she did not welcome them because Jarae had a history of getting out of control when he was drunk. She then turned off the music at the party to encourage them to go home.

Jarae later came back to her shop and asked to buy a bottle of alcohol, but he only wanted to pay 60 baht instead of the 70 baht it cost. When she asked him to pay the full amount, he allegedly insulted her by saying…

“F*ck you!”

Oh said he shouted the same word back to Jarae in anger and chased him away from the shop. However, Jarae did not stop and shouted in front of her shop…

“Thailand buffalo! Thailand f*ck you!”

Oh believes Jarae insulted her and the Thai people. She told him to return home but he refused. So, she and her husband attack him. She denied inviting others to join the attack but claimed that her customers were also annoyed and beat up Jarae.

Oh added that her husband used the spine of a kitchen knife to hit Jarae, not the sharp cutting edge. She said she did not know how Jarae sustained his severe injuries. She believed the serious injuries were caused when Jarae fell to the floor by himself.

Aoy filed a complaint with the police against the offending group for attempted murder. The officers visited the community and the shop to investigate and collect evidence, but there have been no updates on the case yet.