Phuket snatch bandits strike again

PHUKET: A pair of Phuket snatch bandits have robbed no fewer than five people in the same part of Phuket in the past 30 days, according to one of the most recent victims.

The victim, a woman who asked that her name not be revealed, lost over 30,000 baht to the bandits when they pounced on her in front of Wat Thepnimit on Chao Fa East Road on Monday evening.

Another woman had her gold necklace stolen in an attack early this morning, Monday’s victim told the Phuket Gazette today.

The latest attack took place in front of the Shell service station on Chao Fa East Road, a few hundred meters from where Monday’s snatch theft happened.

The woman robbed on Monday said a local fruit vendor, a man in his 40s, was robbed twice last month by a man matching the description of the man who snatched her handbag.

These thefts also took place in front of Wat Thepnimit, she said.

“The man said he lost over 10,000 baht each time. A few other women reported being robbed in the same area before my bag was snatched,” she added.

“It seems there is one lookout who spots potential victims and calls his friends, who then carry out the thefts.

“We always see one guy with a motorbike without a license plate parked on the soi next to the Wichit Municipality offices,” she said.

She expressed dismay that the police have been unable to collar the criminals, especially given their lack of creativity and geographical range.

“Their robberies have been successful, so they continue doing them. I would love for them to be arrested, but the police don’t seem to be doing very much to stop them,” she said.

— Atchaa Khamlo