Bang Pa-in: A lone thief who robbed a famous department store in Bang Pa-in, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Province, has been arrested. He confessed that he planned to melt the gold himself, using methods he learned from the Internet.
According to Thai News Agency, 12 gold necklaces with a total weight of 160 baht, valued at over 7,760,000 baht, were recovered by the Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Provincial Police after the robbery on March 23. The arrest was announced by Pol. Lt. Gen. Surapol Prembush, Commander of Provincial Police Region 1, identifying the thief as Mr. Worapot, 43.
Before committing the crime, the thief drove a gray Toyota pickup truck, parking it in the forest along Asia Road, about 2 km from the mall. He walked to the mall, executed the robbery, and then used a motorcycle taxi to return to his vehicle, ultimately fleeing to a building in Sai Mai District. It took police three days to apprehend him, aided by a dashboard camera on Asia Road that traced his escape route.
Upon searching the suspect's room, police found stolen items including the gold necklaces, a .38 revolver, clothes, shoes, and a hat matching those used during the crime, as well as the gray Toyota pickup truck. The suspect admitted that he targeted the large gold chains with plans to melt them, a technique he learned from a YouTube tutorial.
Pol. Lt. Gen. Surapol expressed gratitude to local residents who provided information that led to the arrest. The police revealed that the suspect, originally from another province, acted impulsively to settle debts. In light of the incident, Pol. Lt. Gen. Surapol urged business owners to install security measures like bars and CCTV.
The gold shop owner expressed gratitude to the police by presenting them with flowers. Moving forward, the shop plans to implement preventive measures, including installing bars and CCTV cameras, to deter future thefts.