BANGKOK, Thailand – The Dusit District Court, located on Nakhon Chai Si Road, on November 19, sentenced Pitipat Kanjanapanurath to one month in prison and a 5,000 baht fine after he was found guilty of driving recklessly on the Si Rat Expressway. The court also placed him on probation for one year, requiring him to report to the probation office four times and complete 12 hours of community service. Additionally, the court ordered the suspension of his driver’s license for six months and the seizure of the Tesla car he was driving during the incident.
The case stemmed from a viral video shared on the Facebook page “Kwai Lud Thanon v1” on November 14, showing a white Tesla driving aggressively, swerving left and right in front of other vehicles on the expressway. The video, which lasted about three minutes, was widely circulated and caused public outrage. After the incident, it was confirmed that the driver in the video was Pitipat Kanjanapanurath.
Pitipat confessed to all charges. The court originally considered a sentence of two months and a 10,000 baht fine but decided to reduce the sentence to one month in jail and the 5,000 baht fine, with a suspended sentence of one year. The seizure of the car was also upheld.
Pitipat explained that the incident occurred after a stressful argument with his girlfriend about GPS directions. He admitted that he had acted inappropriately and endangered other road users, but he claimed that the other driver involved had done nothing to provoke his actions. After realizing the severity of the situation, Pitipat expressed regret for his behavior and sought to apologize to the other party. However, the other driver declined to meet with him.
In his statement, Pitipat also clarified that the event occurred on November 13, and the video was posted on November 14. He underwent treatment for stress-related issues in a hospital before formally reporting to the authorities on November 16, and submitting the car to the police on November 17.
The court’s decision aligns with earlier guidelines issued by the Office of the Attorney General in 2022, which emphasized the need for severe penalties for reckless drivers, including the confiscation of vehicles used in such offenses. The office has previously cited a case in which the Supreme Court upheld the seizure of a vehicle driven by an intoxicated driver, reinforcing the legal approach to reducing traffic violations and promoting road safety.
