Pattaya, Thailand– Police have arrested a 34-year-old man who robbed a gold shop in a Pattaya shopping mall on Thursday evening, stealing a gold necklace valued at more than 120,000 baht.
The incident occurred on the evening of 17 July when a lone male suspect entered the gold shop, snatched the necklace, and threatened staff, warning them not to make noise. “I don’t want to kill anyone. I just need the money to pay off my football betting debts,” he reportedly told them before fleeing the scene.
Officers from Pattaya City Police Station launched an immediate investigation, using CCTV footage and informant tips to track the suspect.
The breakthrough came on Friday, 18 July, at approximately 8:46 p.m., when a team led by Police Lieutenant Colonel Sudej Imjai of the Pattaya City Police Station arrested the man identified as Mr. Kittipong Uamcharoen, also known as “Kiu,” at a rental room in the Mab Song area of the Nong Prue sub-district.
During the arrest, officers seized some cash and traced funds in a bank account linked to the suspect. While being taken into custody, Kittipong reportedly asked officers for permission to “use more”, understood to mean to consume illegal drugs, but the request was unsurprisingly denied.
Police then took the suspect to retrace his steps, first to the scene of the robbery and then to a pawn shop in the Nong Prue area where he had sold the stolen necklace.
Kittipong has reportedly confessed to the crime. He admitted selling the 2-baht gold chain for 117,000 baht. Part of the proceeds were used to settle gambling debts from football betting, he said. He claimed he had not previously been involved in football gambling and had only turned to it because he needed money to help his sister settle a separate case involving a money mule victim in another province.
He reportedly chose a 2-baht necklace because he believed a heavier 3-baht chain would be harder to sell and might raise suspicions from potential buyers.
The suspect is currently in police custody. Officers are using his statements to build the case, including visits to the crime scene and the pawn shop. He will be charged and processed according to legal procedures.
