PATTAYA, THAILAND – An armed gang in Pattaya robbed a British national of more than 2 million baht and staged a multi-vehicle escape reminiscent of an action film, leading to the arrest of three foreign suspects.
The raid in a residential area
The robbery took place shortly after midnight on 26 February at a house in Chokchai Village 9, Moo 10, in the Nong Prue area of Bang Lamung district, Chonburi province. The neighbourhood is a densely built-up residential zone near Pattaya.
According to police, three men dressed in black and wearing balaclavas allegedly forced their way into the property. They reportedly threatened the 32-year-old British man living there, along with his Thai partner and several friends, using knives.
Cash in the safe and first getaway vehicle
Investigators said the victim, who worked as a cook abroad, had stored more than 2 million baht in a safe inside a wardrobe on the first floor. The cash had reportedly been withdrawn recently for a planned house purchase.
The robbers carried the entire safe out of the house and loaded it into a black four-door Ford pickup. They then fled the scene in this vehicle, police reported.
Investigators trace the route
On 28 February, Pol Col Nattaphon Phongsuksakul, chief of Nong Prue police station, launched multiple teams to track the gang, together with senior officers from provincial crime, immigration and tourist police in Chonburi. The operation involved Pol Col Phatsakorn Paijit, Pol Col Naphatsapong Kosit Suriyamanee and Pol Lt Col Prabda Suksuntree.
According to their findings, the group had allegedly selected the victim in a targeted manner after learning he had withdrawn around 2 million baht in cash for the planned house purchase. The parties had reportedly first met in a cannabis shop in Pattaya.
Three vehicles used like in an action film
CCTV footage showed the black Ford pickup initially driving along a railway-road route, where the victim’s mobile phone was later found discarded. The vehicle then turned onto Sukhumvit Road and continued in the direction of Wat Boonkanjanaram in Jomtien.
At 10:57 p.m., the recordings showed the suspects switching into a white car. They then drove to an apartment in Soi Boonkanjanaram 5, about eight to nine kilometres from the crime scene, where they apparently stayed to open the safe and divide the money.
Arrests and unanswered questions
At 11:33 p.m. the same evening, another four-door Ford pickup collected the group. They then travelled along Sukhumvit Road towards Chonburi, with police believing the use of three vehicles was intended to mislead investigators and resembled scenes from “Fast & Furious”.
According to a report in Khao Sod newspaper, one foreign suspect with dark skin and a height of nearly two metres was being questioned at Nong Prue police station. Two other foreign suspects were also in custody, though authorities had not yet released further details on their detention or the progress of the case.
Professional rehearsal – or insider job?
More than two million baht taken from a safe, three getaway vehicles and precise timing led police to describe the robbery as meticulously prepared. Investigators believed the perpetrators knew the victim had recently withdrawn cash for a house purchase.
The case raised questions about how such sensitive financial information reached the wrong hands and whether there had been deliberate surveillance or a breach of trust in the victim’s circle. Officers also examined whether the incident pointed to a new level of professionalism in armed robberies in the area.