SAMUT PRAKAN: A luggage loader has been caught for stealing a gold necklace from a reporter flying from Koh Samui to Suvarnabhumi.
Thongchai Mana, 26, of Bangkok’s Min Buri district, was apprehended and taken for a media briefing on Tuesday.
The arrest was made following a complaint by Phiriphat Bunnil, a Thai Rath reporter who claimed his gold necklace and cash had been stolen from his luggage loaded on a Bangkok Airways flight from Koh Samui to Bangkok on Jan 25.
Deputy national police chief Veerachai Songmetra said police had swiftly looked into the case as it had tarnished the reputation of the country.
Witnesses and CCTV camera footage led to the arrest of the suspect and the seizure of the one-baht-weight gold necklace.
Mr Thongchai confessed to having stolen the gold necklace, but denied taking 5,000 baht in cash from the reporter’s luggage, said Pol Col Chutrakul Yotmadee, superintendent of Suvarnabhumi airport police station.
The suspect said while he was loading luggage in the back of Flight PG104, he saw an open slot on a rucksack with a small red bag traditionally used to keep gold ornaments visible inside.
After finding the necklace inside, he wrapped it with tissue paper and put it in one of his shoes to avoid being searched. The bag and plastic case were then flushed down the toilet. He then went home.
Police took him to his house to show where he hid the necklace. The reporter confirmed it was his.