An Argentinian man has been charged with armed robbery after he used a knife to threaten Chinese tourists into handing over their valuables in two separate incidents in Phuket on Friday.
The man, named by police as Nahum Pedre, 25, was taken into custody early this morning.
Police began their search for Nahum after reports of two separate robberies at knifepoint on Friday – one at Karon Viewpoint at 9:30am and again near Karon Circle at 1:09pm – were filed by Chinese tourists.
Chinese tourist Jin Yang, 24, reported he had been robbed of his bag, containing his pink iPhone 7, THB10,000 in cash and CNY3,500 (about THB17,000), at Karon Viewpoint.
A Chinese woman, Luo Dan, reported she had been robbed of her bag, containing her iPhone 6s, THB5,000 cash, CNY3,000 (about THB14,800) and her ID card near Karon Circle.
Officers tracked down Nahum to his rented house in Rawai via CCTV footage, and duly issued a warrant for his arrest on Sunday, said Pol. Maj. Preecha Bahring of the Karon Police.
“At the house, police found a five-inch blade and the motorbike used in the robberies,” the officer added.
Nahum was placed under arrest and later charged with committing robbery with the use of a weapon. Police said he confessed to committing the robberies, adding this was the first time he’d done it.
From the search of the house, police only recovered THB8,540, US$800 (THB25,000), and just six Chinese yuan in cash (THB30).
Regardless, Karon Police said they were continuing to question Nahum.
If found guilty, the man could face a prison term of 15-20 years and/or a fine of THB20,000 to THB30,000.
Story: The Phuket News with additional reporting by Coconuts Bangkok
