Police arrested a suspected car thief, retrieved the car she allegedly stole and rescued a cat napping inside the car, at a hostel in the Lat Phrao area of Bangkok last night, about eight hours after the brand-new vehicle had been stolen from the parking lot of a shopping mall in the Ratchadapisek area yesterday afternoon.
Police say that they will not press any charges against the suspect, identified as “Natthakan”, until her mental condition has been assessed by a doctor.
Acting on a tipoff from a Good Samaritan, a Huai Khwang police unit rushed to the hostel in Narkniwat Soi 16 to arrest the suspect. The stolen car was found in the parking lot and a cat was found hiding under the front seat.
Pol Col Prasobchok Iamphinit, the superintendent of Huai Khwang police, said the suspect spoke incoherently, adding that they were told by the suspect’s mother and sister that the she had undergone psychological treatment at a hospital in Khon Kaen province and that they are waiting for the medical records.
The CTTV system at the Ratchadapisek mall provided some detail on the car theft in broad daylight.
Photo: Thai News Agency
At 10.12am, the suspect was seen entering a nearby mall, to change her sandals into a pair of shoes. At 10.56am, she was seen leaving the mall, entering the Ratchadapisek mall and the parking lot.
She remained there for a few hours. At 2.09pm, the stolen car, a Honda SUV, was seen exiting the parking lot, heading for the tunnel at Huai Khwang intersection and then turning into Ratchadapisek Soi 17.
Police said that the driver crashed it into iron-grille barriers and was chased by security guards, who unsuccessfully tried to stop the car. A police officer sustained minor injuries when he tried to stop it at a gas station in Soi Miyalarp.
According to the car’s owner, he had left the it with its engine running to buy something, because the cat was in the car.
While the police looked for the stolen vehicle, Thai netizens and radio hosts joined hands to locate the cat out of fear that the thieves would abandon it or throw it from the car.
Photos of the cat provided by the owner were shared on social media platforms, accompanied by calls for help in locating it.
