With the help of an eyewitness who had the number “69” etched into his memory, police on Phuket managed to catch two Iranians on Friday who had stolen “millions of baht” from a number of guesthouses in Patong. The Phuket News’ Eakkapop Thongtub has the story.
Police had been hunting for the two suspects, Mr Ghorbaniaf Sharr Shahram, 48, and Mr Emery Sfaharin, 42, since Christmas Eve.
After the suspects confessed to the crime, authorities formally charged the men with using a vehicle to commit robbery and vandalism.
The men were caught on CCTV committing the crimes and escaping on a motorbike but because they wore helmets police were unable to identify them.
Luckily, one eyewitness said he remembered their license plate to be “169”. Police then searched for a bike believed to have been used in the crimes – a Yamaha Nuvo scooter – with that number plate.
A search failed to find a bike with the number “69”, but police did spot a Yamaha Nuvo with the plate number “163”.
Police saw the two suspects leave a guesthouse on the scooter, and proceeded to follow them to a currency exchange booth where the men exchanged some money before returning to the guest house.
After comparing the suspects to CCTV images, police raided a room at the guesthouse.
Inside the room, police found screwdrivers, a helmet, prying devices, and money in multiple currencies “valued at millions of baht”.
Police said the suspects are believed to have broken into some 20 lockers or safes over the last several days.
Story: The Phuket News
