A father who said he didn’t want his son to get soaked in the pouring rain stole a Toyota Vios at a car sales tent in the outskirts Bangkok and left his Honda motorbike in place of the car on Monday.
The father, identified as Weerapan Kaewma, 24, proceeded to drive away with the car, but then crashed into the pillar of a bridge in Nonthaburi. The car took a heavy blow, and the man fled the scene with his 3-year-old son.
On Tuesday, the police found out that the car thief has been admitted to Srithanya Hospital, a psychiatric institution, by his parents.
A few policemen proceeded to enter Srithanya with a warrant for Weerapan’s arrest. He has been charged with theft.
After checking Weerapan’s patient records, they found out that he has not had a history with mental health issues. He was apprehended immediately, but was given a letter from the doctor saying that, if he showed signs of mental instability, he should be brought back to be treated.
After interrogating Weerapan, he explained that after the car crash, he took a cab with his son and went into hiding at his cousin’s house in Bangkok’s Bang Sue district.
While Weerapan was not injured in the crash, his 3-year-old son was reported to have sustained a few bruises on the left side of his chest, as well as his right arm.
As for the reason behind the stolen car, Weerapan explained that he had a fight with his wife earlier, so he drove away with his son on his father’s motorcycle.
They were driving along the road when it began to rain, and he feared that he would not make it to his older brother’s house in Kanchanaburi province in the rain on the bike. He also didn’t want his son to get sick, which was why he stole the car.
His older brother, Weerayut, 32, said that his younger brother isn’t normal when he consumes alcohol. Add to that the fact that he hadn’t been sleeping for the past few nights due to his problems at home, he felt that his brother truly wasn’t mentally stable when he committed the crime.
Police are waiting for the doctors at Srithanya to examine Weerapan. The diagnosis of his mental illness, if any, will be taken into consideration into the case, reported Sanook.
