Four of the six Filipinos who were arrested for robbing jewelry stores around Bangkok last week have pleaded guilty.
“Four of them pleaded guilty, while two denied the charges,” the Philippines Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said in a statement according to the Philippine Daily Inquirer. The suspects along with an interpreter and an officer from the Philippine Embassy attended a preliminary hearing Friday March 9. The judge ordered a THB500,000 bond for each of the accused.
The DFA said that the Philippine Embassy is negotiating to reduce the bail amount and said that the suspects will meet with their Thai lawyer today March 14.
If convicted they could each face 5-10 years in jail.
The gang allegedly robbed gold shops around Bangkok, including on Yaowarat Road, until they aroused the suspicion of a security guard when they hit the Gems Pavilion jewelry store in Siam Paragon. The guard alerted the police who followed the suspects back to their Pathum Wan hotel, where they found the stolen jewelry.
The gang operated by having one of its members distract a shop clerk while another simply reached over the counter and grabbed the jewels.
