Somthannut Bunthap (left) was
held hostage by Chaiwat Praeson (right) from Kalasin, who was making
nonsensical demands of police negotiators.
Teerarak Suthathiwong
A man thrice treated for mental disease carjacked and held hostage a
Pattaya woman, demanding Thailand’s military regime capture rosewood
smugglers in the deep south and rescue his wife in Laos.
The drama unfolded around 4 p.m. Aug. 24 when police received a report that
a woman was being held at gun- and knife-point near the King Power duty-free
mall on Sukhumvit Road.
Authorities arrived to find a gold Toyota Vios had slammed into the back of
a Isuzu pickup truck at Sukhumvit Soi 42. Inside the car was a trembling
Somthannut Bunthap, 42, being held hostage by Chaiwat Praeson, 25, from
Kalasin.
Somthannut later told police she had gone to her car outside Tony’s Gym on
Third Road when Chaiwat grabbed her, pushing her into her car and
threatening her with weapons to drive to Sukhumvit Road.
She said she offered Chaiwat her valuables in exchange for her freedom, but
he refused. As a last resort, she intentionally rammed the pickup truck.
Police negotiated with Chaiwat for an hour, hearing two very different
demands. First he wanted the National Council for Peace and Order to support
military troops in Thailand’s troubled southern prefectures and,
specifically, to arrest rosewood traffickers.
Later, however, Chaiwat changed his demand, asking for NCPO assistance in
freeing his wife and 1-year-old son from drug dealers.
It’s not know if Chaiwat is even married or why the Issan native was so
interested in the deep south.
Police eventually persuaded Chaiwat to allow Sen. Sgt. Maj. Thanorm
Phakdeesamai to take Somthannut’s place as his hostage. The suspect agreed
and was told to drive to a nearby car-care center to make the switch.
When he did, police caught him off-guard and pulled Chaiwat out of the
vehicle and put him in handcuffs. The gun was found to be fake.
Authorities said afterward that Chiawat had been treated for mental disease
as hospitals in Khon Kaen, Ayutthaya and Chiang Mai. Officials suspect he
either had another mental break or was under the influence of drugs at the
time.
A drug test was planned while he was in custody. Initially, however, he was
charged with kidnapping, theft and illegal weapons charges.
