PATTAYA – Thailand’s Regional Police Region 2 have arrested four suspects, including two Chinese nationals, in connection with a robbery case where the perpetrators posed as Thai police officers to assault and rob a 52-year-old Chinese man in Pattaya two days ago. Immigration police subsequently apprehended the mastermind behind the operation at the airport.
On July 12, Police Lieutenant General Yingyot Thepchamnong, Commander of Police Region 2, announced that the case involved cooperation from multiple police units including Regional Police Region 2, Immigration Bureau, Tourist Police, Chonburi Provincial Police, and Pattaya City Police Station, resulting in the arrest of four suspects: two Chinese nationals and two Thai citizens.
The arrested suspects are Mr. L. Han, 37, Mr. Zh. Han, 63, Mr. Siripong, 35, and Mr. Thitipong, 28. All four confessed to being the individuals captured on CCTV footage dragging Mr. Lin. They admitted to being hired by a Chinese man named Hao to rob Lin, though they claimed they didn’t know the amount of money involved beforehand, believing it was a debt collection operation.
The group planned the crime together and traveled from Bangkok to Pattaya on July 10. Zh. Han drove the vehicle while L. Han picked up the two Thai accomplices dressed in black before proceeding to commit the robbery.
They dragged Lin into an SUV in front of a Chinese restaurant on North Pattaya Road Sai 3, stealing $7,070 before releasing him near a shooting range on Railway Road, approximately 9 kilometers from the initial location.
After the robbery, Han drove the two Thai men away from the scene before fleeing to Minburi district where they divided the stolen money. The victim’s mobile phone was reportedly thrown into water.
Investigation teams reviewed CCTV footage and tracked down all suspects, seizing the vehicle used in the crime at a residence in Minburi. All suspects have been charged with armed robbery.
Subsequently, Police Colonel Choengron Rimpadee, Commander of Immigration Division 2, revealed that immigration officers arrested Mr. Hao, 30, a Chinese national, at the departure checkpoint of Suvarnabhumi Airport at approximately 4:30 PM while he was holding a boarding pass for flight VZ722 to Cambodia.
When officers informed him of the charges under a Pattaya Provincial Court warrant for armed robbery involving three or more persons, Hao denied the allegations and refused to sign the arrest record. He has been transferred to investigators at Pattaya City Police Station for legal proceedings.
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