No-talkies upsets jailbird
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| Angry driver |
A city taxi driver is refusing to apologise after a passenger complained to police that he baited her about the anti-government protests and injured her arm as she tried to flee his cab.
Mintar Lekdee, 26, posted a clip on Wednesday night of her arguing with a taxi driver who picked her up outside the Fashion Island department store. She asked to be taken to Phahon Yothin Road soi 52 but says the driver invited her to talk about politics and was unhappy when she declined.
The driver, Supap Sukpijaratnakul, said he opposed the anti-government protest taking place that night outside the Siam Commercial Bank (SCB) on Ratchayothin Road in Chatuchak district.
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| Mintar |
The driver appeared to get upset, she said, and suggested she might like to change taxis. “He said I was ignorant but pretending to be clever, and criticised my parents. He said they had brought me up poorly,” she complained in her FB post.
Ms Mintar said she was mystified that her simple refusal to talk about politics could have provoked such an outburst. Later, she said, he pulled a yellow shirt, such as the ones worn by royalists, out of the glove compartment and said he came to work every day to protect the higher institution.
When the young passenger asked to be let out, he pulled on her bag and grabbed her by the arm, grazing it, as she hadn’t yet paid her fare. They carried on until her destination, when she paid her fare of 170 baht. Ms Mintar said she feared for her safety and thought the driver should change professions if he could flare up so easily. She visited a hospital in Sai Mai to check her injuries, and later that night also laid a complaint with Kannayao police.
Mr Supap, who tells a dramatically different version of the events, said the atmosphere in the taxi grew tense after Ms Mintar refused to talk. “She kept telling me to shut up,” he told Amarin TV.
He said he grabbed her arm and her bag out of concern for her safety, as she tried to leave the taxi while it was in the middle of the road. At the end of their journey he thanked her for the fare, but she said: “Don’t bother thanking me, as tomorrow we will meet again.”
The driver said he pulled out an orange T-shirt he wears to show her, though denies broaching politics or taking sides. He said he received the T-shirt as part of a royally sponsored project more than 10 years ago while serving time in Si Sa Ket prison for attempting to kill. He refused to apologise to the passenger, as he had done nothing wrong. He said people should also avoid looking down on taxi drivers, as all professions have their dignity.
Kannayao police say they have called in both parties along with the Land Transport Dept tomorrow for talks.
Rice-on-the-road mishap
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| Sia Teuy |
Khanakorn Apaijit, or Sia Teuy, 27, who owns a rubber trading business in Chalermprakiat district, hit a pile of rice left on the road of the same name about 8pm on Nov 16.
The owners, an elderly farming couple, had left the rice on the road to dry unattended, with only a large tree branch dragged into the centre of the road to warn approaching motorists.
Sia Teuy posted to Facebook, warning motorists off the area and asking farmers to place traffic cones around the rice for the sake of motorists’ safety.
He said he met the farmers who owned the rice, Somchai Meunrum, 67, and his wife Kul Meunrum 60, at the scene, who were apologetic and admitted leaving the rice unattended. He said he was able to pull his Ducati Multistrada Enduro bike back in time or the damage would have been worse.
Sia Teuy initially said he had no intention of taking legal action, as he understood farmers’ plight. They lay their freshly harvested rice on the road to dry, an illegal practice which has led to accidents in the past, including a double fatality in Nakhon Ratchasima last November when three pickup trucks collided in Non Sung district.
However, the saga took a new turn when the farmers’ niece spoke out on social media, accusing Sia Teuy of driving too fast.
“Sorry, but people at my place came home for a meal and collect some traffic cones...they planned to put them in place but in the meantime left a large tree branch there. If you go too fast you won’t see it. Don’t post to make yourself look good...speak the truth!” she wrote in response to his FB post.
Sia Teuy said the comment left him speechless. He said other farmers had marked out their rice with traffic cones, and the rice could be seen clearly as a result. After the couple’s niece, identified as “Nong A” stuck her oar in, he decided to lay a complaint with Chalermprakiat police, who called the parties in for questioning and made a time for the couple to have their case heard in court.
Farmers Somchai and Kul tried to apologise to Sia Teuy, to no avail, as he wanted to hear from their niece. They turned up at his business and his home, but he refused to see them. Mrs Kul said the couple, who had no money, borrowed 4,000 baht from an underground lender to help defray Sia Teuy’s expenses.
She was willing to prostrate herself at his feet to beg for forgiveness, but he refused to relent until they brought along their niece, who claimed she was too busy at work to see him.
Police made two dates for the parties to meet for talks, but it wasn’t until Nong A agreed to turn up, last Sunday, in a meeting mediated by the local Provincial Cooperative Office, that the dispute made progress. Nong A gave him a wai of apology and Sia Teuy agreed to withdraw his complaint.
Police, meanwhile, renewed their call on farmers to avoid leaving their rice to dry on the road unattended. Some have also arranged public spaces off the main road for them to dry their rice instead.
Body in a ditch mystery
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| Udomporn |
Bang Kaew police last Monday found the body of Ratthapoom Suwannang, 19, along with his bike, in a water channel beneath the U-turn close to the Megabangna mall.
Police were initially mystified as to the cause of the death. They found the lad was wearing a belt buckle from a technical college, and thought at first a fight involving tech students might be to blame.
However, the location of the body, at the head of the U-turn below a bridge, in an overgrown area in the middle of a four-lane road, suggested a traffic accident was a more likely cause. His body lay there undetected for a whole day before it was found by locals.
Officers now believe he may have been struck by a motorist at the 8km mark, sending both Ratthapoom and his bike over the crash barrier, plunging 10m into the water channel below.
Another theory is the lad, who had been drinking, toppled over the barrier himself, though his mother discounts that, saying her son drove cautiously and avoided driving under the influence.
Speaking from Khlong Palat Priang temple in Samut Prakan on Monday for her son’s funeral, his mother, Udomporn, said rescue workers had visited her at home that morning asking her to identify the body from a picture.
She saw Ratthapoom for the last time on Nov 20 at 1am. After taking a meal at home, her son, her third born, spoke to a friend on the phone.
He took off on his bike shortly after without saying where he was going. A work friend later came forward to say they were drinking until 7am, when they split up for home.
Mrs Udomporn said Ratthapoom often came home at that hour and takes the same route every time.
She said her son rarely returned her texts when he was out and she did not know what happened to him. However, she did not suspect anything amiss when the rescue workers turned up. “I thought perhaps he had been caught driving without a licence,” she said.
Mrs Udomporn doubts he hit the barrier himself, as the road on the U-turn is wide. On the night of the accident he and his friend drank 2-3 bottles of beer.
She said her son had studied at a technical school in Saraburi, and wore the belt buckle as a keepsake. However, he had no problems with anyone. “If a motorist did strike him, I would like him to come forward and apologise, as I don’t want to leave the matter hanging,” she said.
As for the police theory that he may have hit the barrier himself, she would like to watch CCTV footage in the area to see if it sheds light on the incident.
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