A young woman whose drug-addled boyfriend brutally assaulted her and streamed it live on Facebook, accusing her of theft, has told police he was trying to avoid having to refund customers he had charged for a forex trading course he failed to provide.
Kuldara Yeesaman, 21, answered police questions from her bed at Nopparatrajathanee Hospital in Khanna Yao district on Monday after being rescued from an apartment room in Bung Kum district on Sunday evening.
Police raided the room after being alerted by people who saw the video streaming live.
Deputy national police chief Wirachai Songmetta quoted the young woman as saying Chaichana Sirichart, 26, had beaten and tortured her six times in the last month. He had burned her skin with a hot hair straightener, hit her with a camera mount and given her electric shocks.
On Sunday night he cut her neck with a knife and threatened to gouge her eyes out, Pol Gen Suwira said.
While under the influence of methamphetamine, the man always claimed to be the Joker and thought she was the Joker's woman. He claimed that she had cheated on him and stolen about 15 million baht in tuition fees he was paid by customers, the deputy police commissioner said.
The attack was streamed live on Facebook on Sunday because Mr Chaichana wanted an excuse not to give refunds after his failure to organise a training course in foreign exchange trading he had advertised and charged for.
She denied cheating on him and theft.
Police would charge him with attempted murder and multiple accounts of severe physical assault, Pol Gen Suwira said. He was earlier charged with illegal detention, computer crime and drug abuse.
Mr Chaichana was still unable to speak sensibly on Monday due to effects of the drugs he consumed on Sunday, the deputy national police chief said.
Dr Somboon Tosboworn, director of Nopparatrajathanee Hospital, said Ms Kuldara had severe bruising to her face and body, a shallow knife cut to her neck and bones in her right arm, left hand and nose were broken.
She also had many burns consistent with being inflicted with a hot hair straightener and traces of previous assaults. She apparently had been tortured for 8-10 hours before being rescued.
Ms Kuldara was now recovering and out of danger, the director said.
Mr Chaichana told reporters on Monday that he regretted the assaults, but his girlfriend was involved in a problem with tuition fees for his foreign exchange course. He insisted she had cheated on him. He admitted to abusing drugs.
He said he was so angry he felt he just had to assault her, but he still loved her.
Mr Chaichana set up the Global FX Investment Facebook page and offered a course in forex trading for a fee of 15,000 baht. Media reported that his customers were about to file fraud complaints against him for failing to provide the course he promised and was paid for.
Police collected these objects, believed to be used to torture his girlfriend, from Chaichana Sirichart's apartment room on Monday. They include an iron, knives, a hair straightener, brooms and electric plug and wiring. (Police photo)