Man causes chaos with a fire extinguisher in Bangkok
Images adapted from: Khaosod, Mcot
In early August this year, Bangkok was shaken up after a series of small explosions in the city area. So it makes sense that people are wary of suspicious objects.
Yesterday morning, a concerned citizen made a police report about 2 mysterious men dropping an unknown object in a bush along a pavement in Bangkok’s Sanam Pao area. It was about 10 metres away from Royal Thai Army Television Channel 5 headquarters.
After the police and the bomb disposal unit investigated the scene, what they discovered turned out to be a 30 centimetre-tall fire extinguisher.
A man is dropping a fire extinguisher
Image credit: Khaosod
Though the object was neither explosive nor harmful, the police were still on the lookout for the suspects to see if they had any hidden agendas or political reasons behind their actions.
Mystery man identified
After checking the security camera footage, the police were able to capture the man who dropped the fire extinguisher. He was identified as 47-year-old Samat Thonggon, a homeless man who often wandered around the Victory Monument area.
The other man seen in the footage remained unidentified and wasn’t arrested since he didn’t get involves with Mr. Samat’s doing.
Images adapted from: Matichon
Man stole fire extinguisher because he liked it
During the interrogation, Mr. Samat confessed that he stole the fire extinguisher from a restaurant near Sanam Pao BTS station and put it in his bag because it was pretty. Soon after that, however, Mr. Samat felt that his bag was too heavy and decided to drop the fire extinguisher into the bushes and walked away.
He has since been charged with theft and the police are further investigating his case.
It’s bad enough to steal, but it’s worse to scare the bejesus out of people. If you come across suspicious items in public places, do not hesitate to dial the police hotline 191.
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