PATTAYA — A Taiwanese tourist suffered a head wound in an unprovoked attack by a man wielding a stick, while sitting outside a restaurant in this tourist town on Monday night.
His attacker then nonchalantly walked off.
The attack occurred about 10pm in front of a restaurant with upstairs accommodation in tambon Nong Prue, Bang Lamung district.
The 41-year-old tourist, identified only as Mr J, was seated, using his phone and waiting for an ordered food delivery.
A man of homeless appearance suddenly walked up to the tourist and hit him on the head with a wooden stick about 30 centimetres long, causing bleeding and swelling.
The attacker then walked casually away, as if nothing had happened, Mr J told reporters.
The victim called his Thai friend, whose name was given as Ms A, to take him to a hospital before filing a complaint with police.
They did not expect police to pursue the case seriously, so they shared security camera footage of the attack online as a warning to others and offered a 1,000-baht reward for information about the attacker.
"It is unsafe for all. It has a huge negative impact on the city's image," Ms A said. "Despite multiple crackdowns, incidents of homeless people attacking tourists have occurred repeatedly."
