As the age-old saying goes: “Clothes maketh the man“. However, during a recent robbery at a gold shop in Thailand, this robber’s choice of footwear became his downfall when it accidentally revealed his identity.
Thai police arrested Thatchaset Chetthawatananukon (42) on 12th December after they found indisputable evidence that he had been the one to rob the gold store. The evidence in question? His designer shoes which he had worn during said robbery itself.
Reportedly, the incident had initially taken place on 28th November in a mall in the Chiang Mai Province. A lone robber had walked into the store brandishing a gun and walked out a minute later with 88 gold necklaces weighing 300 baht in total. Notably enough, despite wearing a full-body suit during the incident, the suspect was also wearing costly brand-name shoes.
Police managed to trace the thief’s route via surveillance camera recording before they finally arrested him in a luxury housing estate in Tambon San Phee Sua, Muang district. When arrested, it was discovered that Thatchaset was wearing the same shoes from the robbery. Police also seized 1.4 million baht (~RM185,000), a gun and a motorcycle from the house.
Thatchaset, son-in-law of a famous and wealthy orange orchard owner, later confessed to resorting to the robbery as he had suffered losses from stock and Bitcoin investments. He allegedly wanted the funds to continue investing in his personal business. Thatchaset had supposedly gone to Myanmar after the robbery and sold 80 of the stolen necklaces for 4 million baht, receiving only half the money first, with the balance to come later.
Thatchaset had allegedly attempted to shoot himself during the arrest but was supposedly prevented by the arresting officers. Additionally, he was taken back to the gold store yesterday (13th December) to reenact his actions during the robbery.
Sources: Bangkok Post, Khaosod English, China Press
