PATTAYA – Police officers deployed commandos to help the British man after being informed by his family in England that he was kidnapped and held for ransom But when they arrived, they found that the man had made up a story because he had run out of money, so he thought of tricking his family into sending money to him.
Police Lieutenant General Jirapop Phuridej, Commander-in-Chief of the Central Police Bureau, received a report from Mr. Ian’s family in England via Interpol that Mr. Ian had been kidnapped for ransom in Thailand. As a result, he directed the investigative team to the Crime Suppression Division to rush to help.
When the CIB found out that Mr. Ian was staying in a room in Soi Nong Prue 13, Pattaya City, they sent the special operations team “Hanuman” to the area to help the victim right away on January 26.
However, when the commando arrived, they discovered that Mr. Ian was taking drugs with three other Western foreigners: Mr. Damien, a French national; Mr. Darren, a British national; and Mr. Benjamin, a New Zealand citizen. The law enforcement officers found no evidence of being kidnapped, as alleged. They discovered firearms and drugs in the room.
As a result, an arrest was made on allegations of “jointly possessing category 1 narcotics (methamphetamine), jointly possessing firearms and ammunition, and being an alien whose permission to remain in the Kingdom has expired.”
According to the investigation, Mr.Ian and three other companions lived in Thailand for a long time until they ran out of money. So Mr. Ian made a scam to mislead people at home into believing he had been kidnapped and demanded ransom. He hoped his family would send money to him for his next trip. But the plan had been uncovered beforehand.
The officers then took the suspect to Pattaya City Police Station. Prosecution will continue.
