An Algerian man has been arrested and charged with the theft of an amulet worth about 20,000 baht from a gold shop in Phra Nakhon district of Bangkok.
Pol Col Santi Kornkasem, superintendent of the Children and Women Protection Sub-Division, said on Tuesday that police arrested the Algerian suspect, 56, on Monday. He identified the man only as Garou.
His arrest followed a complaint by Samatya Rattana-ubonchai of Yong Seng Heng gold shop on Phra Sumen Road in Talad Yod area of Phra Nakhon district.
She said a foreigner entered the shop around 2.30pm on Feb 15 and asked to see some gold amulets, but he did not buy anything and later left.
Ms Samatya said she later examined footage from her security camera, which showed the man taking a gold-framed Buddha amulet worth about 20,000 from the shop. She filed a complaint with Chana Songkhram police station.
Local police working with officers from the Children and Women Protection Sub-Division tracked down the suspect, approached him and asked to see his passport.
They then contacted the complainant to confirm whether the man, an Algerian tourist, was the same person who came to her shop and was seen in the security camera recording. Ms Samatya confirmed that he was.
During questioning, Mr Garou allegedly admitted via an interpreter that he took the gold amulet. It was later found in a shoulder bag in his hotel room on Phra Sumen Road.
The suspect was handed over to Chana Songkhram police for legal action.