Four suspects in the robbery of a cash-delivery company in Chon Buri last month have been arrested. One of them was an engineering graduate from abroad.
Pol Lt Gen Panya Mamen, a senior police adviser, on Saturday led a team bringing the suspects to re-enact the robbery that took place in the eastern province on March 27 in which the suspects reportedly made off with 5.38 million baht.
The suspects, one of whom was a woman, were identified as Yutthana Kittiyutthanawin, the van driver, Yothin Samruangjit, Kornvipa Samruangjit and Omsin Sakritan, Thai media reported on Saturday.
Seized from them were a grey Toyota van with a Bangkok licence plate and some 50,000 baht in cash.
Mr Omsin, 44, who reportedly staged the robbery, arrived on a motorcycle, produced a gun to force employees of Siam Administrative Management Co (Samco) to hand him bags of cash at a Siam Commercial Bank ATM in front of a Lotus Express branch in Muang district of Chon Buri on the morning of March 27.
According to police investigation, Mr Omsin and his gang, had removed seats from the van and put a motorcycle inside. Mr Yutthana drove the van at a location near the robbery scene to drop Mr Omsin and the bike. Mr Omsin then rode the motorcycle to carry out the robbery alone.
After the robbery, Mr Omsin rode the bike to an area where Mr Yutthana parked the van. Mr Yutthaya then drove the van to a Chinese graveyard near Wat Santipak in Muang district of Chon Buri, where the suspects divided the money.
However, Mr Omsin did not join the re-enactment on Saturday. He reportedly hit his head on a desk in a fit of depression and stress during the interrogation and sustained injuries, Daily News Online reported.
Investigators from Police Region 2 and Chon Buri police station began the investigation that led to the arrest of the four suspects.
During the investigation, only Mr Yutthana confessed to the robbery charges.
According to Khaosod Online, Mr Omsin held a bachelor’s degree in engineering from the United States. The suspect had plotted the robbery and rode the bike to carry out the heist alone on that day.
Daily News Online reported that Mr Omsin had not worked after graduating from the United States.
Ms Kornvipa, Mr Omsin’s 31-year-old wife, and her brother Mr Yothin, 24, claimed Mr Omsin had asked them to find a van from Pattaya for his friend's Buddhist ordination ceremony in Lampang.
They insisted they were not aware that the van would be used in the robbery.
Mr Yutthana, the van driver, told police Mr Omsin had persuaded him to rob the cash-delivery van two weeks earlier. He agreed as police earlier failed to arrest anyone in a very similar robbery by another gang.
On Apil 6, another similar heist took place in Pattaya in which 8.8 million baht was robbed, also from Samco.
Police escort one of the four suspects (wearing a green T-shirt) to a Chinese graveyard in Chon Buri for a crime re-enactment on Saturday. (Photo by Jersak Saengthongcharoen)