KOH SAMUI – Police on the resort island of Koh Samui arrested a 29-year-old French man after he was accused of stealing valuables from his neighbor’s home, authorities said Wednesday.
Bo Phut police, working with Surat Thani immigration officers, arrested the man, identified as Mr. Arezi, at his residence on November 27 after a 25-year-old Chiang Mai man reported that his rented house in Bo Phut’s Moo 5 area had been burgled.
CCTV footage from the property showed a foreign resident living next door entering the victim’s home, police said. Officers accompanied the victim to the suspect’s residence, where the victim spotted his missing suitcase and a portable speaker in the living room.
Officers searched the home and found 13 stolen items hidden in a brown suitcase, with an estimated value of more than 246,000 baht ($7,650). Police said the recovered property included a diamond ring worth 150,000 baht ($4,665), a MacBook and an Acer laptop, three watches, several designer perfumes, a JBL speaker and a pair of Nike Jordan sneakers.
Police said the suspect admitted through a translator that he stole the items but refused to sign official documents.
He was charged with theft from a dwelling and transferred to Bo Phut police for further questioning. Under Thai law, the charge carries a penalty of one to five years in prison and a fine ranging from 20,000 to 100,000 baht ($620-3,110).
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