German-Thai couple nabbed for Phuket burglary

KAMALA: -- A German and his Thai girlfriend were arrested Wednesday for burglary and possession of stolen goods after the couple’s alleged victim spotted one of them carrying her missing handbag in Kamala, police said.

Natthapakin Kuanchaipruek, superintendent at Kamala Police Station, presented Karsten Lange, 45, and his girlfriend Pattranit Morida, 29, at a press conference yesterday.

Police said Mr Lange was not new to the game, as he was arrested for burglary and drugs possession in Kamala last year.

However, Mr Lange has denied the current charges and is being held at the police station, officers said.

On May 15, Wiyada Ruengsak, 32, reported to police that many of her belongings were stolen from her home in Kamala. Among the items missing were a handbag, Elle-brand purse, 20 pairs of earrings, two necklaces, 10 bottles of brand-name perfume, two T-shirts, three watches and some nail polish.

On Wednesday, Ms Wiyada saw a woman in Kamala holding her missing handbag and wearing some of her jewelry, prompting her to call the police and provide information that led to the arrest of Ms Pattranit.

Police said that Ms Pattranit confessed to the burglary, saying her partner-in-crime was Mr Lange.

The German was subsequently arrested in Patong, where police found what they believe to be more stolen goods in the house he shares with Ms Pattranit.

Mr Lange claimed all of the items were legally bought by him.

Ms Pattranit was released on 400,000-baht bail.

Police are investigating whether or not other items seized from Mr Lange’s house, including a 42-inch television set and CD player, were stolen in other burglaries.

-- Phuket Gazette 2010-08-06

I read about this yesterday... But it was from a different source.

I read about this yesterday... But it was from a different source.

And your point being?

I read about this yesterday... But it was from a different source.

And your point being?

My point being: The Phuket Gazette is a day late and therefore Thaivisa.com, who will only use their sponsored news sources, is usually late and short on the facts as well...

You could have written about it too...

"Police said Mr Lange was not new to the game, as he was arrested for burglary and drugs possession in Kamala last year."

If they mean Phuket why isn't he in jail waiting for the outcome of that case?

Did he make bail?

Much too easy to make a bail in Thailand. He should have been proscecuted and detained to Germany immediately after his first crimes.

Much too easy to make a bail in Thailand. He should have been proscecuted and detained to Germany immediately after his first crimes.

I think you mean deported, not detained. The reason the accused was not immediately deported was most likely due ti the fact that he was not guilty of a crime. One is not deported unless one commits a deportable offense.

I appreciate that you also wrote prosecute. I understand and even agree with you. Unfortunately, small property crimes joint the line at the prosecutors office. Thailand like other countries that try to maintain a criminal court system suffer from a lack of resources. Someone has to pay for the prosecutors, courtroom facilities and judges that would enable minor crimes to be dealt with quickly. If it was my house burglarized, I'd want the bugger responsible caught and disposed of. However, as we know, in Thailand, if one is charged with an offense, one is not usually allowed to leave until the court date. I do not justify his alleged thievery, but that's how it goes in Thailand and a lot of other places.

You could have written about it too...

But we are unable to quote anything and end up so limited (posts get deleted or threads closed until the 'news' can be verified.. Which it could be if we could post links..) that most of us have given up and just wait for the PG to catch up a few days later.

You could have written about it too...

But we are unable to quote anything and end up so limited (posts get deleted or threads closed until the 'news' can be verified.. Which it could be if we could post links..) that most of us have given up and just wait for the PG to catch up a few days later.

I agree... And since I had already read about it in another news source that isn't allowed on TV, for some unknown reason, other than it's not a sponsor of TV... Why bother? I even had to verify my email from the US State Department the other day as someone suggested I wrote the official warning.