Vietnamese Men Busted in Bangkok for Pick-Pocketing German Tourist

BANGKOK – Pol Maj Gen Surachate Hakparn the new Immigration Bureau chief, told a press briefing today that two Vietnamese men have been arrested on charges of stealing a wallet containing €2,300 (87,000 baht) from a German tourist at a Bangkok shopping mall.

Thanh Phuoc Le, 38, and Van Ty Nguyen, 36, were apprehended at Terminal 21 shopping mall on Friday, said Pol Maj Gen Surachate Hakparn, acting chief of the Immigration Bureau, at a media briefing on Saturday.

The arrests came after a German tourist filed a complaint with Lumpini police that a pickpocket gang had stolen his wallet and €2,300 at Terminal 21. The wallet was also said to have been worth about 13,000 baht.

Police examined closed-circuit television footage from the mall, in which the two suspects could be seen picking the victim’s pocket.

Investigators said the suspects often preyed on foreign tourists at crowded shopping malls and train stations. They apparently chose foreigners because many did not file complaints.

Meanwhile, in Pattaya a hotel cashier has been arrested on charges of stealing €2,000 (75,600 baht) from the safe of a Finnish guest and 10,000 baht from her employer.

Sureeporn Soonthaisong, 23, of Buri Ram, was apprehended at a rented room in the Thepprasit area of the resort city.

The thefts took place on Tuesday at the Thepthip Hotel in the Khao Phra Tamnak area of South Pattaya, said Pol Col Apichai Krobphet, chief of the Pattaya police.

The suspect was taken for a crime re-enactment and confessed to the charges, claiming she was in dire need of money to pay debts.