Local residents of Koh Siboya in Krabi province were put on high alert following the mass escape of 100 drug addicts from a rehabilitation facility on the island on Friday, with the patients later claiming they were fleeing abuse.
Moo 7 village headman Yongyuth Fangkwa reported to police that a total of 100 drug addicts being treated at the private facility orchestrated an escape at about 4pm on Friday.
About 30 police and administrative officials were dispatched to the island to address residents’ fears that the escapees would cause trouble. However, the officials arrived to find the escapees gathered peacefully near the island’s pier.
While attempting to negotiate their return, authorities were told by the group that they had coordinated their breakout because they had endured physical abuse and harsh conditions at the rehab centre.
The facility, Pondok Koh Siboya Rehabilitation Centre, is reportedly run by the Foundation of the Central Islamic Council of Thailand for Education and Orphans.
After two hours of talks, 82 escapees were allowed to return to their homes. They were ferried to the mainland, where they were taken to the Khlong Khanan police station to await pickup by their relatives.
The escapees claimed that they suffered severe physical abuse at the facility and that some had been fatally injured. According to some, despite being cured of their addictions, they were not allowed to leave and were forced to work there.
In December last year, a 31-year-old patient, identified only as Oak, collapsed and died at the same rehabilitation centre, according to media reports.
His mother said she sent Oak to the facility on Dec 18, paying 32,000 baht, as her son had a psychiatric condition and was addicted to kratom and used marijuana.
Two weeks later, someone at the facility contacted the mother, telling her that Oak had suffered a stroke and urging her to visit him. Upon arrival, she found her son dead, with bruises on his body, raising her suspicions.
The uncertainties surrounding Oak’s death became public after the mother raised the issue on social media and the Hon Krasae talk show. She said her son had none of the bruises when he left for the facility. The death certificate stated, “unknown cause of death”, and the body was returned without any documentation, she added.
Later, the centre sent information and CCTV video to the TV programme, showing Oak collapsing on his own. The footage showed him walking unsteadily, stopping, and then collapsing.