Boy was cheated of his change
Stress, anxiety, and negativity are aspects of daily life that can affect people in different ways. And when it gets too much, some can be pushed to the edge – like this 15-year-old boy in Thailand who found himself in a dire situation after a bus driver cheated him of his money.
He attempted to commit suicide twice
On 14th September 2020, One 31 reported that rescue officers at Sattahip district in Chonburi were notified that there was a boy trying to jump down from a flyover.
After investigating, the officers found a boy in his school uniform standing on a flyover, together with some of his friends who were trying to calm the boy down.
Image credit: One 31
He then agreed to step down, but tried to kill himself again by running into the traffic on the road. His classmates and officers quickly stop him and brought him out of the area to rest inside a nearby school.
Finally, he was able to relax and explained to his friends and the police that he had been cheated by a public pick-up driver.
Earlier that day, he had taken a rod songtaew (a public pick-up truck service which is popular among locals) to school and paid a fee of ฿20 with a ฿100 bill. However, the driver didn’t give him his change and drove away.
He was angry and stressed as he didn’t have enough for lunch and couldn’t go back home without money. So, he decided to go to school, write down a suicide note, and head to a nearby flyover to kill himself.
After he was saved, his friends and teacher came down to talk with him to make him feel better. Then, he was sent to a hospital for medical supervision.
The driver insisted that it was an accident
After investigation, police officers finally found the driver in question – a 26-year-old named Mr. Chatupon. When confronted, the driver explained that this might have happened, but he didn’t notice and couldn’t remember.
He insisted that he didn’t mean to deceive the boy, but there had been many passengers at that time the incident took place. The boy didn’t ask for the change either, so he thought he got a ฿20 bill and decided to continue driving.
Mr. Chatupon felt sorry for the teen after learning about what had happened, and said that he was ready to talk to him and his family to say sorry.
Even if this had been an accident and a genuine misunderstanding, the fee of ฿20 was still not in line with the rules. According to the Department of Land Transport, public transport trucks on this route should collect a fare of just ฿14.
Thus, the driver was fined a hefty ฿10,000 for overcharging customers.
Thankful for good support
Not getting back ฿80 might be a mere inconvenience for many of us and not something to mull over. However, we don’t know how much it must have meant to the boy, or if he had other problems that led him to want to end his life.
Thankfully he was saved in time and has good support from his friends and teachers. We hope that an incident like this will never happen again.
If you find yourself in such emergencies, don’t hesitate calling the police at 911 or Narenthorn EMS Center via 1669. And if you need a listening ear, do reach out to The Samaritans of Thailand at 02-713-6793 (Thai) or 02-713-6791 (English).
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Featured image adapted from: One 31
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