Snatch-and-go robbers grab gold

PHUKET TOWN: Two men on a red Honda Dream snatched a gold chain from a woman’s neck on Thursday as she rode a motorcycle with her husband. The couple, Jian Boontiem, 68 and his wife Kiat Saetan, 68, told police they had been shopping at the market on Ranong Rd and were returning along Soi Phuton about 9 am when the men struck. The two men rode up alongside, snatched K. Kiat’s gold necklace, valued at 20,000 baht, and sped off. The couple sustained minor injuries when their bike fell over. The robbery was unusual in that it occurred in broad daylight. In addition, snatch-and-go robbers have in the past targeted only women riding alone. Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, Superintendent of Phuket Town Police Station, told the Gazette, “Police will pursue the case but unfortunately the couple were not able to get the license plate number of the motorcycle.”