Swiss man sexually assaults 14 year old Thai boy off Patong Beach in Phuket
Police arrested a Swiss man in Phuket yesterday, July 21, after he sexually assaulted a 14 year old Thai boy in the sea off Patong Beach.
The boy’s mother sought assistance from the Paveena Foundation for Children and Women on July 18 after reporting the child sex abuse to Patong Police Station.
The mother told the foundation that he incident occurred on July 10. She was concerned for her son’s safety because the accused allegedly knew where the family lived. She feared he might attempt to contact the boy again if the investigation was delayed.
Paveena Hongsakul, founder of the foundation, accompanied the boy and his mother to Patong Police Station on July 20 to follow up on the investigation. Police later arrested the suspect the following day and identified him as a Swiss national but have not released his name.
According to the boy’s account, he had accompanied his mother to her workplace in the Patong area before spending time on Patong Beach alone while his mother was working.
The boy alleged that the Swiss man approached him, started a conversation and asked to take a selfie together. The foreigner then exchanged contact details with the boy and asked about his home address before inviting him to go swimming.
According to the complaint, the foreign man offered to teach the boy how to swim but instead sexually assaulted him in the sea. The boy told investigators he was too frightened to resist or call for help.
The mother said she noticed her son appeared distressed after returning home and later learned about the assault after speaking with him.
She also told investigators that the accused continued contacting her son through the LINE messaging application, asking to meet him again. The conversations were provided to police as evidence.
Police told Channel 7 that investigators recovered photographs and other information related to the case from the Swiss man’s laptop and mobile phone. Authorities have not disclosed further details as the investigation continues.
The foreign suspect has been taken to Phuket Provincial Court for temporary detention while police continue gathering evidence. Investigators said they intend to present additional evidence to oppose any request for temporary release.
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