Chinese tourist muggers nabbed in Chiang Mai

13 Feb 2012

A Thai couple have been arrested and have allegedly confessed to mugging a Chinese tourist at one of Chiang Mai’s temples. Guangdong resident Liu Siew Hong, 36, had gone to Wat Chedi Luang to watch monks at prayer early on the morning of 25 January.

Outside the main chapel, a couple with a motorcycle came up to her. One of them cracked her over the head with a heavy wooden stick while the other stole her bag which contained a mix of Thai and foreign currencies with a total value of more than 13,000 Baht.

The two muggers have been named as Natthapong Chaithep, 19, and his girlfriend, 21-year-old Nettamporn Insao. Police say the pair were captured on CCTV cameras as they assaulted and robbed Ms Hong and that when they tracked Chaithep to his rented room, they found the jacket he had been wearing and his motorcycle.

Chaithep is also alleged to have admitted that, together with his girlfriend and another as yet unnamed friend, he had carried out around 20 similar muggings on lone tourists. He added that the trio had spent the money on visiting nightclubs and buying drugs.

Ms Hong was badly injured by the blow and spent a week in hospital recovering afterwards. The severity of the beating caused diplomatic staff at Chiang Mai’s Chinese consulate to post an alert on its website warning visitors to be vigilant when visiting the northern Thai city.

A Chinese consular officer said on Saturday that even though police had arrested his compatriot’s assailants, the alert would not be taken off its web pages just yet. He added that the notice would be amended to reflect the suspected offenders had been arrested and Chiang Mai police are clamping down on criminal assaults.

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