BANGKOK: A Malaysian man risks facing up to seven years in prison upon conviction of theft of a handbag belonging to a New Zealand tourist in Chiang Rai today.
According to Lt Aphisit Injai of the Bandu police station, the 46-year-old suspect, from Penang, was nabbed at 9am local time while trying to escape after committing the snatch theft.
“The New Zealand woman sustained minor injuries when she fell down while trying to fend off the Malaysian man,” he told Bernama when contacted today.
However, the seven-year jail sentence could be halved if the suspect confessed his crime in court, he said.
The suspect, said Aphisit, claimed he arrived in Chiang Rai six days ago to locate his Thai wife but failed before running out of money and committed the crime to sustain his livelihood.
The police seized the suspect’s Malaysian identity card from him but not his passport as he alleged he had thrown it away while in Sadao.
Aphisit also confirmed the Malaysian had overstayed as he entered Thailand in May last year through the Sadao border checkpoint before travelling to Hatyai, Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai. --Bernama