'Dirty' wife flees hubby; kathoey predator; old man's pride

No choice but to withdraw

Phitsamai

A Chon Buri man has withdrawn a 20,000 baht reward offered for information leading to his missing wife after discovering she had left him to escape his nagging.

Komsan Puklang, 36, a construction contractor, posted the reward after his wife of more than 10 years, Phitsamai (no surname given), 22, left home on Feb 19 and failed to make contact again.

He was willing to offer the cash to anyone who could provide information about her whereabouts, his post said, adding their youngest child, one of three, cried for his mother every day.

He and his sister’s family had been searching for her since she was last seen walking from their home in Ban Bueng district. The search continued for two days without success, with the family also filing a report with local police.

On Feb 23 they received a tip that Phitsamai had been spotted working at a grilled chicken eatery in soi Sed Noi of the municipality.

The search party, including Phitsamai’s mother, Boonjaem Kimaen, 49, visited the shop, but Phitsamai, perhaps getting wind of their efforts, failed to show up for work.

Komsan Puklang

They asked to see the CCTV footage, which confirmed that Phitsamai had indeed been working there.

Mr Komsan said he had never had any serious arguments with Phitsamai, but did nag her occasionally about her lack of cleanliness.

He had given her responsibility for doing the household chores and taking care of their children, without putting any financial pressure on her. However, on the night of Feb 18, before she went missing, he had scolded her for using her phone until late and talking to others on TikTok.

The next morning he left for work and his wife disappeared. He heard later that his wife had run away to pursue her own freedom. As such, he had no choice but to let her go, and would withdraw the reward offer.

“I originally offered the 20,000 baht to find out if my wife was alive and safe.

“Once I learned that she was alive and did not want to return to our life together, I decided to call off the search. I will explain to the kids that their mother has left to work and is no longer with them,” he said sadly.

He later posted on Facebook cancelling the reward, adding he would spend the money supporting the kids, as he would now have to look after them alone.

The owner of the restaurant in soi Sed Noi where Phitsamai was employed said a Good Samaritan had brought her to work there. She was looking for someone to help sell food and hired Phitsamai, who started working on Feb 20.

Phitsamai, she said, told her she had argued with her husband and was living in difficult conditions, doing all the household chores and eating leftovers. She felt that no one in her husband’s family loved or cared for her.

Phitsamai failed to show up for work after news of her disappearance broke on TV and social media. The owner had asked her about the news and the reward, but Phitsamai denied it.

Phitsamai’s mother-in-law, Khamphu Nambunruang, 54, said she took her daughter-in-law into her home more than 10 years ago.

She said Phitsamai had not improved her cleanliness despite being assigned responsibility of caring for the children. Often, the children would wear the same clothes to school without bathing. She had reprimanded her, as her son never did.

Phitsamai’s mother, Ms Boonjaem, said she had come with her son-in-law and relatives to search for her daughter. They left the eatery disappointed after finding no trace of her. They would continue searching and would look after her if they found her.

Kathoey preys on 13-year-old

Influencer 'Rin'

A scheming kathoey posing as a social media influencer persuaded a Matthayom 1 student in Bangkok to meet her at a motel room.

The boy’s parents complained to Ekaphop Leuangprasert, founder of the “Sai Mai Must Survive” webpage who helps victims of crime.

The victim, 13, referred to as “Nong Mitch” (a pseudonym) in news reports, was playing on FB when an image of an attractive woman, known as “Rin”, appeared in his feed.

The two started chatting and a week later agreed to meet at a motel in Lat Krabang.

Arriving at the motel, he did not find “Rin” but instead encountered a kathoey, aged about 20, who claimed to be Rin’s younger brother.

The kathoey suggested he take a shower first. Later, the two chatted before the kathoey started feeling him up. He resisted and fled.

A few days later, the kathoey messaged him, threatening to post images she had taken secretly of him showering, along with explicit images they had exchanged earlier.

She demanded the boy return so she could film them having sex and sell the images on social media.

Mitch tried to expose the kathoey’s tactics on social media, which angered the other party, leading to false accusations that Mitch was mentally ill and harassing him.

The kathoey claimed the boy had demanded they swap explicit images, which he denies.

Later, his private images were widely circulated on social media, which Mitch’s friends at school saw, causing him embarrassment.

Reporters tracked down the real “Rin”, or Mint as she is also known, a beauty blogger with a wide following, whose images were used to create the fake account that tricked Mitch into parting with naughty pics.

Mint said she contacted the kathoey to ask what happened, but the suspect denied using her images.

Mint said many netizens in the past have stolen her images to create fake pages or Instagram accounts, which she has warned her fans about. However, this incident was the most severe as images from her high school days were used to deceive.

She believes the culprit has deceived more than 10 victims including Mitch, though one report put the figure as high as 100.

She had also received messages from dozens of strange accounts inviting her to engage in 18+ conversations. She filed a report with Pak Khlong Rangsit police.

Reports said the suspect posing as Rin was studying at a well-known university in Lat Krabang. Under threat of blackmail, some victims had been forced to let the kathoey engage in indecent acts and film them.

Mr Ekaphop took Mitch’s parents to see Pol Col Siriwat Deephor, commander of the Technology Crime Investigation Division 1, to proceed with legal action. Investigators have the pair’s social media exchanges and know the motel room where the incident occurred. The probe continues.

Old love dies hard

Boonsri Songjinda

Police have nabbed an 83-year-old man for stabbing to death his former lover, aged 60.

Ban Pong police in Ratchaburi nabbed Boonsri Songjinda for fatally stabbing Natthida Meelom, also known as Aunt Mali, supposedly in a dispute over a stolen bicycle, though some reports also mention jealousy.

Mr Boonsri, who fled the scene on an old motorcycle, and then thumbed rides from motorists, was found hiding at a shrimp farm in Nakhon Pathom’s Muang district where locals, thinking he had merely argued with his wife, took sympathy.

Mr Boonsri, who appeared exhausted and shocked, denied he intended to kill her. He and the victim argued after she filed a police complaint against him for allegedly stealing a bicycle, which he claimed he had actually bought her.

He said the victim refused to withdraw the complaint and even demanded he give her 5,000 baht, which he did not have. This led to the row, during which Aunt Mali attacked him with a fruit knife, he told police. He grabbed the knife and stabbed her three times.

After she fell to the ground he took a motorcycle parked nearby and fled along an irrigation canal road in Pak Rat subdistrict before abandoning the vehicle. He then hitched a series of rides to Nakhon Pathom before asking locals to shelter him at a hut by the shrimp pond, spinning a tale that he had fled an argument.

Police say the motive stemmed from Mr Boonsri’s anger over the victim’s refusal to withdraw the complaint and jealousy over her involvement with another man, though few details were available of her other admirer.

Mr Boonsri said he fled out of shock and did not think Aunt Mali would die. He said Aunt Mali often came to him asking for money, which he always gave because he loved her.

When asked if he had ever been involved in a murder case, Mr Boonsri admitted that he had, some 40 years ago. In tears, Mr Boonsri said he wanted to apologise to the victim’s family but would not attend the funeral out of fear for his safety.

Reporters visited Tha Pha temple in Ban Pong district, where funeral rites for Aunt Mali were held. Aunt Mali’s daughter said she does not believe the victim attacked Mr Boonsri first, as she was not an aggressive type. She also urged police to pursue legal action to the fullest extent. Police charged Mr Boonsri with premeditated murder.