3 Frenchmen flee after attacking Phuket food vendor in parking row
Three Frenchmen escaped after gang attacking a Thai food vendor in Phuket on Sunday, January 25, following a dispute over parking.
The owner of a roadside food stall on Soi Na Nai 3 in the Patong sub-district shared CCTV footage of the incident with the news Facebook page Newshawk Phuket yesterday.
The video shows a foreign man wearing a white T-shirt approaching the vendor, who was dressed in a black T-shirt and apron. The two men appeared to stare at each other before two more foreign men joined the confrontation, which quickly escalated into a physical assault.
Thai bystanders who witnessed the incident stepped in to intervene, prompting the three foreign men to flee the scene. The vendor reportedly sustained minor injuries during the attack.
According to Channel 7, the three suspects were later identified as French nationals. The report stated that one of the Frenchmen had parked his motorcycle in front of the food stall.
The vendor reportedly asked him to move the motorcycle, saying it was blocking access to his shop. The foreign man refused and instead contacted his friends, who then arrived at the scene, leading to the group assault.
After the attackers fled, the vendor contacted police to investigate the incident. Officers are now reviewing CCTV footage and gathering evidence to track down the three foreign suspects.
Local residents and nearby business operators expressed concern over safety in the area, urging police and relevant authorities to take stronger action to prevent similar incidents in the future.
It is believed that the food vendor reserves the area in front of his stall for customers to park and enter. However, it remains unclear whether the roadside space is designated for public parking, as multiple vehicles were seen parked there in the footage.
A similar incident was reported in Phuket in August last year, when nearly 20 foreigners attacked a Thai motorcycle rental shop owner. That altercation reportedly began after the shop owner demanded compensation for damage caused to a rented motorcycle.
