Thugs Use Balm in Taxi Driver Eyes Before Stealing Cab & Cash

Picture courtesy of Daily News.

Two men tricked a Bangkok taxi driver into taking them to Ayutthaya before using menthol balm to temporarily blind him and make off with his cab and cash in the early hours of 29 August.

The incident occurred around 00.30, when police at Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya station received a call reporting a carjacking and robbery at a PTT petrol station on the Asia Highway in Ban Koh subdistrict.

Officers arrived to find 56-year-old taxi driver Arkom Jaipakdee shaken and distressed. He told police that he had picked up two Thai men, both around 30 years old, dark-skinned with shaved heads, one short and one tall, from Bangkok’s Din Daeng district. They asked to be taken to the central shrimp market in Ayutthaya.

Upon arrival, the suspects directed him down a deserted road in Bo Phong, Nakhon Luang district and then ordered him to turn back. One of the men suddenly smeared balm into his eyes and mouth, causing severe burning, while threatening that they had a firearm. They demanded money, but Arkom only had 900 baht in cash, far short of the 2,000 baht they were demanding. Attempts to transfer more money via mobile banking failed as the system was under maintenance.

The assailants then forced Arkom into the passenger seat while one of them took over the wheel, driving towards the Asia Highway. Claiming they would let him withdraw cash from an ATM, they pulled into a busy petrol station, but instead pushed him out onto the roadside before speeding off in his green-and-yellow Toyota Altis, along with his mobile phone.

Fighting back tears, Arkom told reporters:

“I only bought this taxi two years ago with my hard-earned savings. It’s my family’s livelihood. I never thought something like this would happen.”

Police believe the robbers were familiar with the local area and may abandon the stolen vehicle to cover their tracks. CCTV footage from the highway and nearby petrol stations is being reviewed, and investigators are gathering witness statements in an effort to track down the suspects.

  Adapted by Asean Now from Daily News 2025-08-30