Curry con! Food delivery driver spices up with bogus food order
Victim gutted as thief nicks bag of loot and vanishes mid-shift
A slick scammer posing as a food delivery rider cooked up a brazen heist at a humble curry stall in Pattaya, vanishing with a bag of cash after placing a fake order for nearly 30 meals.
The early-morning con unfolded at 5.06am yesterday, July 21, when 30 year old Anirut Thiamtha was manning his family’s Chef Basil Curry Rice Shop on Jomtien Second Road.
The smooth-talking suspect rolled in wearing a delivery uniform and ordered 28 takeaway boxes, offering to help pack them as Anirut whipped up the cheap eats, sold for just 35 baht a pop to help struggling locals.
But while Anirut was busy in the kitchen, the bogus biker struck, swiping a shoulder bag stuffed with 6,000 baht, a gold ring, and a sacred temple amulet.
“He said he had to refuel his bike,” Anirut told Pattaya police officers. “I’m heartbroken to fall victim to this scam.”
To make matters worse, the thief did a runner without paying for the food, leaving the shop more than 1,000 baht out of pocket.
Anirut reported the theft to Police Sub-Lieutenant Wuthinan Kongdee at Pattaya City Police Station, pleading for justice before more small vendors are duped.
Officers are now reviewing CCTV and tracking the scammer’s escape route.
Meanwhile, in a separate bust worthy of a Netflix drama, Thai police smashed a teen-led motorcycle theft gang in a cassava field just outside town.
The 17 year old ringleader, dubbed “Little Tycoon,” was caught red-handed in Soi Takhian Tia, Bang Lamung, on July 16 as he and an accomplice allegedly prepared to smuggle six stolen motorbikes to Laos.
The dramatic 2.30pm sting, carried out by Bang Lamung and Nong Kham police, ended with both suspects in cuffs and the stolen bikes recovered.
The mopeds, all reported missing from across Pattaya, are believed to be part of a wider racket headed by the teen crime boss, who had reportedly been making a fortune flogging the hot wheels across the border.
Police say investigations are ongoing and more arrests could be on the cards.
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