AN Iranian man who together with his accomplice used a ruse to pickpocket a Chinese tourist at MRT Phra Ram 9 station was arrested by Immigration Police for both theft and overstaying his visa, Amarin TV said this afternoon (Jan. 26).
The unidentified Chinese tourist said in filing a complaint at Huai Khwang police station that while waiting for a train at this station a man appearing to be of Middle Eastern descent approached him and struck up a conversation about wanting to travel to China and asked to see Chinese yuan banknotes, as he had never seen them before.
The victim took out some yuan notes from his wallet and showed them to him. The suspect then distracted him by continuing the conversation in the midst of which the victim did noticed someone walking behind him and after the suspect returned the banknotes and walked away, he searched for his wallet and found it missing. Stolen was 30,000 baht in Thai baht and Chinese yuan.
Police went through a surveillance camera clip which showed that the man who got close to the Chinese tourist also appeared to be of Middle Eastern descent, and he quickly walked away after pickpocketing his wallet.
Investigation identified one of the suspects as Mr. Ghassan (pseudonym), an Iranian national, and he was arrested at a condominium in central Bangkok on charges of “Two or more persons jointly committing theft at night in a public place, specifically a train station.”
Furthermore, an examination of Ghassan’s passport also revealed that he had overstayed in Thailand and he was handed over to Huai Khwang police station for legal proceedings.
Investigation revealed that similar incidents have occurred multiple times, causing significant damage to tourists’ assets and negatively impacting Thailand’s image with the Immigration Bureau currently chasing this suspect’s accomplices.
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Top and Front Page – Iranian suspect arrested for stealing from a Chinese tourist. Photos – Amarin TV
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