Baseball bats won't cut it
A hot-tempered young man in Thon Buri met his match when a motorcycle taxi driver he attacked with a baseball bat went to the media after he failed to pay a damages bill on time.
Nonthawat
Nonthawat (no surname given), 20, swung at driver Krissana Lampa, 40, in a streetfront clash on Dec 12, in scenes captured by CCTV camera.
The clash occurred near Mr Krissana's motorcycle taxi queue in soi Thoet Thai 19 in the Bang Yi Rua area. Passersby and other drivers intervened, but Nonthawat kept hitting the victim with the bat.
Mr Krissana, who managed to dodge the worst of it as he scrambled for cover, was left with heavy bruising to his arms, back and leg and needed hospital care. He went to the police, who called both sides in for a chat.
Nonthawat, who attacked Mr Krissana after the two exchanged words the day before, agreed to pay 30,000 baht in damages, which he negotiated down to 20,000 baht.
He paid 7,000 baht upfront, and promised to pay the rest within a week, but when the deadline came due he failed to front up.
A fed up Mr Krissana took the CCTV clip of the beating to the media, as details of the pair's escalating dispute came to light.
Mr Krissana said the row started when he saw Nonthawat preparing to cut in front of a railway barrier and he suggested he cool down. The two did not know each other previously.
Nonthawat, upset to get the warning, revved his motorcycle at him and sped off.
Nonthawat, who lives locally, returned later and the two started arguing. Some news reports say he whipped out a knife.
Mr Krissana challenged him to a knife fight, if that's what he wanted, as a CCTV camera was nearby and would catch him in the act.
The motorsai driver is said to have remarked that he would have to arm himself for self-protection in future, as Nonthawat could return.
Another driver who sits in the queue, Montra Toosaranon, 53, heard the remark and is said to have warned Nonthawat via a mutual friend to stay clear. Nonthawat took the warning as provocation and later attacked Mr Krissana with the baseball bat.
The first blow knocked him off the bike and Mr Krissana dives inside a shop for cover. Nonthawat strides in and drags him out.
The victim lies on the ground with his arms and legs raised to defend himself against the blows, but Nonthawat keeps swinging until locals pull him back.
Some media reports said Ms Montra, the motorsai woman who passed on the warning, had a grievance against Mr Krissana. According to these reports, she told Nonthawat that he was armed to goad him into the attack.
She denies it, however, saying she merely warned Nonthawat to avoid him. "I told both sides to avoid each other as I didn't want trouble, but now I am getting the blame," she told reporters.
Contacted by the media, Nonthawat said he had failed to pay the last 13,000 baht owed as he could not find the money in time.
Recounting their dispute, he said when they met at the railway crossing, Mr Krissana had spoken rudely, saying he may as well cross as a train arrived and kill himself in the resulting collision. He was not concerned for his safety as he claimed.
Nonthawat (in red) attacks Krissana with a baseball bat.
He admitted threatening him later with a knife, but insisted he did not mean to stab him.
Finally, he was upset to get the warning from Ms Montra via a friend, saying it was like Mr Krissana had gone behind his back to criticise.
"I admitted the attack when we met at the station, but he did not return my wai," he grumbled.
Following the baseball attack, Mr Krissana called a group of about 10 of his friends, he claimed. They beat up Nonthawat in reprisal for the baseball attack, with his injuries needing hospital care.
"I thought the matter was settled. but now he's gone to the media," Nonthawat said, referring to Mr Krissana releasing the clip.
Nonthawat said he would try to raise the money owed in a hurry so he could finally put the dispute to rest.
Two cowardly drivers at once
A Khon Kaen woman was struck twice by hit-and-run drivers in a horrific pre-Christmas accident, with each vehicle dragging her body 100m along the road and neither bothering to sound the alarm.
Prawit mourns at Thanaporn's funeral.
Thanaporn "Nim" Singsee, 34, was hit by a speeding white pickup heading from the province's Nong Song Hong district towards Na Pho district in Buri Ram early on Dec 22 as she was heading out to meet her husband.
Police suspect the vehicle knocked her off her Honda Click motorcycle into the opposite lane, where an oncoming red pickup struck her again. Both vehicles are thought to have dragged her about 100m before her body finally freed itself.
CCTV cameras failed to catch the moment of impact, but police found oil stains and parts of her smashed motorcycle along a wide stretch of road.
Her husband, Prawit Jaitiang, 33, said his wife had just been out to a traditional dance show and was staying at her mother's place in Ban Khon Ta Kaeng in Takua Pa sub-district, about 9km away from his own in Hua Nong in Ban Phai district.
"My wife called to say she'd come to see me, but I warned her against it as it was too cold," Mr Prawit told the media.
"Shortly before 4am I called my mother-in-law who said she had already left. I called my wife next, but there was no answer," he said. He went out looking for and found the accident scene about 3km from his place.
Mr Prawit asked if he could take her body back to his place for funeral rites. She was to be cremated on Christmas Day. The grief-stricken husband appealed to both drivers to come forward and take responsibility. "They should come to say sorry to the body of my wife, before she is cremated," he said.
Police know the identity of the drivers, who live locally, and were looking for them. When caught, the drivers would be charged with careless use of a vehicle causing death, and failing to help at the scene of an accident.
Teen thieves flee plush hideout
A Chon Buri motor dealer tracked down his stolen vehicle via GPS to the lair of a gang run by six or seven teens.
The front of the teen gang's rented house with the stolen motorcycles and spare parts.
Jomyuth Roskratok, 31, salesman at a caryard, said his Honda PCX bike was stolen from in front of an apartment in soi Na Kluea of Bang Lamung sub-district on Dec 24.
He called police, but after failing to get a prompt response tracked down the vehicle himself via its GPs signal.
He suspects the teens who stole the bike did not know it was equipped with GPS. CCTV images show two teens spiriting it away.
Mr Jomyuth tracked down the bike to a rented house in Huay Yai, about 20km away, and called police when he arrived. Officers surrounded the house, but teens sitting outside the house saw the new arrivals and fled.
Six or seven youngsters aged 15 to 20 escaped in a pickup and motorcycles parked outside, leaving one 14 year-old at the scene, who was arrested.
Police found five other bikes at the house, including Mr Jomyuth's stolen bike, 50 spare parts, and an order book, deputy head of inspections at Huay Yai station, Pol Lt Col Pornprom Muangbangyung, told the media.
The gang is headed by two local teens, but they are thought to be hired by a transnational gang which sends the vehicles across the border for re-sale. The gang's bank account has 200,000 baht in circulation, police said.
Inside the house, police found a gun, a pot for making krathom juice, marijuana gear, and at least 10 vehicle registration plates, presumably belonging to previous theft victims.
The teens had set themselves up nicely, with hi-end clothes in the bedroom, and a car converted for racing outside.
Police are tracking down the owners of the plates. They say they know the identity of the teen gang members, and are searching for them.
