Laundrette looter! Foreign thief caught airing dirty laundry in Phuket
CCTV footage from a 24-hour laundrette in Phuket this week captured a man, believed to be a foreigner, stealing clothes belonging to the shop’s customers.
A Thai man shared footage of the theft, at around 11pm on Monday, March 3, on social media to warn others who use the laundry shop in the Kathu neighbourhood of Phuket. He believed that the thief was a foreigner from another Asian country.
After posting about the incident online, the victim also gave an interview with Channel 7. He explained that he washed his clothes at the shop, left the machine running, and returned to collect his laundry at around 11pm.
Upon his return, he discovered his clothes were missing and decided to request CCTV footage from the shop owner.
The footage showed the foreign man arriving at the shop on a motorcycle. He hurried over to the bags and baskets containing customers’ clothes, selected items he liked, and then left the scene.
The Phuket Times reported that the thief specifically chose well-known clothing brands, such as Adidas and Nike.
Many Thai netizens disagreed with the victim’s assumption that the thief was a foreigner, arguing instead that he was Thai. One Thai woman confirmed that the man was a Thai citizen and previously stole from other laundrettes and convenience stores in the area.
Another Thai man, who owns a laundry shop in Phuket, shared that a similar theft occurred at his business. However, in his case, the thief was later arrested.
A previous laundry theft was reported in Phuket in February last year when a Thai woman was arrested for stealing clothes.
The stolen items were later confiscated from her accommodation. However, she did not disclose whether she had stolen them for personal use or resale.
A similar case also took place in Pattaya in November last year. In that incident, a Thai man stole women’s underwear from a laundrette to satisfy his fetish. His crime went viral on Thai social media, leading him to return the stolen underwear to the shop.
The underwear thief also left 1,000 baht in cash and a letter apologising to the victim in an attempt to avoid legal consequences.
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