The mother of an American college student whose killer fled to Thailand this morning praised the Thai police force for their role in returning the suspected hit-and-run driver to the United States for prosecution.
Stacey Kable said her family was relieved that justice would be done for Ben Kable, who died after being hit by a car driven by 57-year-old Tubtim “Sue” Howson on New Year’s Day. Tubtim, a U.S. citizen, was escorted to Suvarnabhumi Airport on Wednesday night for a flight back to the states, where agents from the U.S. FBI were waiting to take her into custody.
“We are very happy and relieved that Ben will finally get some justice,” Stacey Kable told Coconuts early Friday morning. “Mrs. Howson needs to be held accountable for her actions. We are grateful to the Thai people and the Thai national police for their involvement and help. They are wonderful!”
Tubtim was already wanted on a charge of failing to stop at the scene of a fatal crime, and the authorities were weighing another felony for fleeing prosecution. An FBI agent attested in court filings that she “told a close associate after the crash that she thought she killed somebody and that she was going back to Thailand,” which she did two days after hitting Kable.
Thai police Gen. Surachate Hakparn said she had been staying southeast of the capital in Chonburi province since she arrived Jan. 5. After her flight made headlines worldwide, she relocated to Ratchaburi province on Feb. 10, where she was apprehended by Thai police.
Ben Kable, a 22-year-old electrical engineering student at Michigan State University, was home for the New Year holidays when Tubtim hit him in the dawn hours of New Year’s Day.
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