PATTAYA — A clash between a Canadian man and a Thai security guard in Pattaya, which resulted in the foreigner falling and sustaining serious head injuries, has become a case requiring careful police investigation and evidence gathering, as the two parties’ accounts differ.
Before the security guard met with the police, Mrs. Nongyao, 56, the Thai wife of Mr. Mark, 65, a Canadian national and former overseas oil company manager, recounted the incident to reporters, seeking justice.
Tearfully, she said her husband was assaulted by a man dressed like a security guard on the evening of July 31. He is currently in the ICU of a private hospital in Bang Lamung district, under close medical supervision.
Nongyao said that night, Mr. Mark went out drinking with friends at a bar in Soi Pattaya 6. She waited at home and became concerned when he was gone longer than usual. Someone then called to inform her that her husband had been assaulted and was unconscious in the ICU.
Witnesses later told her that her husband was leaning against a car when a security guard came out and verbally confronted him. An argument ensued, and the man allegedly punched her husband, causing him to fall and hit his head on the ground. A foreign witness managed to record part of the incident on video.
The witness told her that the guard tried to snatch the phone used to record the evidence. He felt this incident demonstrated the lack of safety for tourists and was deeply disturbed by the violence he witnessed.
Nongyao asked the police to track down the perpetrator and take legal action. She also called for regulating security guards, who are supposed to ensure tourist safety, to stop such behavior and restore Pattaya’s good image.
On August 4, Pol. Lt. Col. Chainarong Jitsunthorn, an investigator from the Tourist Police, invited Mr. Patiphan, 28, a security guard from Soi Pattaya 6, for questioning at the Pattaya City Police Station around 9:30 p.m.
Patiphan stated that on the day of the incident, he received a report of a tourist attempting to break into a car. When the car owner confronted the tourist, they were verbally abused. Patiphan claimed that he went to investigate, but the foreigner wouldn’t listen and pushed him against a car. So he pushed back, but the foreigner tried to approach again, so he pushed him once more, causing the foreigner to fall.
He claimed that witnesses didn’t see the entire incident from the beginning. He tried to explain, but they ran away. After seeing the news, he contacted the police to clarify. He also provided CCTV footage to confirm that there was no punching, only pushing, before the foreigner fell and hit his head.
The police stated they will thoroughly examine the evidence before deciding how to proceed with the case.
