German killed by hit-and-run van driver in Chonburi

[Minnehaha]

driving fast and then stopping at traffic red lights or picking up passengers does little to the gain sought by driving fast in the first place. doing the math would help but I have not had coffee yet. later i will bust out some algebra and work the problem. I did it before... the time saved or arriving at the destination is seconds or minutes before the average speed. people get behind the wheel and think they are on the German Autobahn. Except they don't drive knowing the rules of the road that Germans have on the Autobahn.

the driver who did a runner?

not to worry. the police are not worried, I can guarantee that. people who commit crimes or are involved in a crime will "turn themselves in" at the police station. Very rarely is anyone ever arrested, cuffed and taken away. It is all very polite and handled with patience. I am sure he is not speeding on his way to the police station. I bet they are driving very slowly, and stopping for some lunch with the lawyer.

[Card]

Amazing mindset. In a company vehicle, well marked, passengers in the rear. Did he suddenly think he had become invisible?

The reason these scumbag hit and run merchants do their stuff is to let drugs or alcohol or both work themselves off before giving themselves up.

[micmichd]

Is there no duty to rescue for Thai drivers?

[spidermike007]

Amazing mindset. In a company vehicle, well marked, passengers in the rear. Did he suddenly think he had become invisible?

One would presume, he did not think at all. Just pure reflex. Hit and run. Do not take responsibility, at any cost. Do not man up. Do not act like a grown up, and say you are sorry, and you really screwed up. Run, run, run. Nobody will find you. They do not know where you work. They do not know what you look like. Your employer does not have a copy of your ID card or drivers license. There were no witnesses in the van. DUH!

What a coward. What a half man. What a man child. One of the issues here, is there is little in the way of a deterrent. Mr. defendant, you did not stay at the scene of the crime. You caused alot of problems for the police, and it took them a day to find you. You will have to pay an additional 2,000 baht fine, and you will get an additional one year, of a suspended sentence. In the US, fleeing the scene of a crime like this would land you in the slammer for a very long time, and go a long way toward proving your level of guilt. Here? Is there a competent judge in this country?

[hawker9000]

Amazing mindset. In a company vehicle, well marked, passengers in the rear. Did he suddenly think he had become invisible?

In the West, the driver would know the severity of the penalties he faced for such negligence and injuring, let alone killing, someone. Well, the trouble is, Thai drivers know the same thing in their country, and the penalties involved - if that's what you want to call them - don't really scare or deter them.

I think this is what the apologists mean when they keep screaming "love it or leave it!". If this mentality on the part of the locals bothers or frightens you, it probably actually is a good reason not to take up residence in Thailand, 'cause it's not going to change any time soon, and being a foreigner certainly doesn't exempt you. And it's good to have a forum where this kind of news is so easily accessible and talked about, among expats as well as potential travelers to Thailand, because it doesn't get that much publicity anywhere else.

OK, now cue all the pinheads who're going to start speculating about the victim being drunk or where he shouldn't have been or whatever ...

RIP to this man.

Edited August 25, 2015 by hawker9000

[SuwadeeS]

R.I.P.

Drivers who have an accident and run away, should be charged for murder.
I thought Mr. PM knows how to change laws.

TiT.... was just another foreigner who was killed in Thailand.

[jalansanitwong]

Thai men dont just flee the scene of a fatal road or boat accident to get their blood alcohol level down. If you read Thai law you will discover that a suspect that surrenders to the local police station and confesses his ill deeds automatically gets 50% off any sentence handed down by a judge. (buddhist)

On top of that he can appeal any jail sentence or fine. If the Thai man plays his cards right he should be able to get away with a suspended sentence and eventually pay a 500 baht fine.

The Thai government recently read out the riot act regarding the poisoning of stray dogs and cats. A Thai committing such an offence will not get off as lightly as the Thai who is guilty of a hit and run.

[thhMan]

I wonder if the drivers mom is proud of her cowardly son... after all, they bring them up with no discipline or respect as "The Golden Child" only to have them be useless as men later in life... You would think Thai parents would have caught onto this issue.

Its a sad day for this family and I hope the Police can muster enough energy to make what little "right" from all this and get the coward in quick time...

[jerojero]

Very fast. Surprise surprise surprise. Then run away... Coward!

[Peterinthai]

Another story which tells us how the real world is here. Those insane mini van drivers terrorizing all other traffic members for too long now. Everybody know this , Thais and foreigners. No Thai like to travel with them because there are all insane, inconsiderately, irreverently and may under the influence of drugs. I don't care the reasons those drivers may have. And t's not just the public vans, For me it seems that all of those minibus drivers show the same behavior. Like a Virus. The companies there are working for, recommending to the drivers that they shall run away in a case of accident. All material damages can be covered by the insurances. But not the drivers faults. After a view days or weeks they can come back and doing the same job. That information i got from a tour operator of a tour company. If the police, the laws or government or authorities can not stop this, which was promised now for many years, who will do then?

May we all should equip our cars or vehicles with traffic recording cameras (your old smart phone will do this very well fully for free) and submit dangerous situations to youtube, or social communities, at least to the police and to the company who owns the tour business. I guess that can much more powerful as anyone in a brown uniform could be. The records are very sharp, show very clear the plate number, some of the devices recording, time, date, speed and GPS location.

How is about this idea?

Every driver shall be aware about this.(no matter who they are). I estimate that between 5 and 10% of all cars are already equipped with this "evidence collectors" and there is always a high change to be recorded with the insane and dangerous driving.

I am sure that can be the ignition to change the mind set and hopefully the driving behavior of some crazy drivers.

[sabaii69]

The only thing surprising here is that we are not reading reports like this daily

We are all aware that these van drivers are a menace and a danger to everyone .......pedestrians and other road users

For goodness sake (and ours) ...someone in authority ....have the back bone to put a stop to these people.......Thais and Foreigners are at risk



RIP German co-expat

These vans are famous for bullying motorbikes off the road also. Come on Thailand, get civilized and jail those who have accidents and run!

[GAZZPA]

Although 90kmh is the maximum speed for vans by law, it may be way too fast for most stretches of road.

Not very long ago everyone was terrified going by bus to whatever place mostly due to the erratic style of driving.

Now most tour-buses have been replaced by minivans....let's say 5 vans for 1 tour bus.........you don't need a degree in maths to figure out the increase of lunatics on the road.

its not 90kmh on every road. The Sukhumvit road through Chonburi has a speed limit of 60kmh.

The problem is the same as always, bad driving, lack of education and no enforcement of road laws,, the results? One of the worst road death rates in the world. Thailand will never learn and never change, it just doesn't care.

Driving into my estate where I live recently a driver overtook me at over 50kmh on a hump bride totally blind of oncoming vehicles. This was late and the estate is poorly lit. When the driver got to the security gate to scan her key card I called out and told her (yes it was a woman) to slow down. She then got out of the car and asked me what i was talking about, so I told her,,, I also showed her the 30kmh speed limit sign right in front of her when she enters the estate,,,, the shocking thing? She was wearing a pilots uniform,,so yep apparently even specially trained and educated Thais whose whole career is about safety dont care.

RIP the poor German gentleman, condolences to his family and friends.

[mancub]

If there's effectively no real deterrent or penalty for fleeing the scene, then walking into the police station a sufficiently appropriate time later, has obvious benefits.

No possibility of being breathalysed and no direct witness accusations to face.

[Briggsy]

He needs to disappear for a day or so to

1. Flush the amphetamines and alcohol out of his system.

2. Have his boss (van boss Pattaya --> Bangkok = very big cheese) negotiate on his behalf.

3. Remain out of a cell.

[oldsailor35]

Amazing mindset. In a company vehicle, well marked, passengers in the rear. Did he suddenly think he had become invisible?

[/quot

I still don't understand why it is common practice here to "flee the scene" when you can be easily traced either through your job (if on duty at the time) or car registration or whatever. I had always assumed that it must be because they had alcohol taken...but even that doesn't seem to wash as so very few breathalyzer tests seem to be done at the scene of an accident.

RIP to the deceased man.

The point is, that by the time he is caught or gives himself up, they won't be able to do him for Alcohol or Drugs and he will just say that he was in shock. Leaving the scene of an accident does not appear to be a serious offence here.

Edited August 25, 2015 by oldsailor35

[Kannikapor88]

Since it's a foreigner and not a cop, It will be interesting to see how much compinsation this family is paid. Or if police care to even catch the guy.....

Agree ... Family will not receive a satang since it was just a foreigner that got killed (murdered ...) by this piece of scum - Police will not give a s... again cause its a foreigner ...

No wonder so many expats like (probably cause of their Family) but also hate Thailand ...

[springheeled jack]

harsher sentences must be imposed for these type of accidents hit and runs in my opinion should be classed as murder the driver must have seen the victim but he couldn't stop because he was driving too fast these type of people are lethal .

[kiwikeith]

Well surely he shouldn't be too difficult to find , being it was a public van full of passengers, many of which would have been Thai too I would imagine.

If they do find this cowardly <deleted> eventually, after he has sobered up or rid himself of traces of Yabba or whatever, I wonder, being as the German guy was related and with close connections to someone famous in Thailand, I wonder if he will get away with a few days in a temple and a small fine, or will the family be looking for a big payout or long tem sentence ?

RIP to the German guy.

Now I know why they drive so fast, so they don't miss out on passengers at the next pickup point, maybe he ran to pick them up by hand.

Seriously suicide drivers, Thai drivers drive at you and flash their lights to get out of their way!

So if your making a U turn and some loonatic is flying at 140k down the Rd flashing his lights at you in a 60 k speed zone then the loonatic is in danger of killing himself so be careful not to injure them.

[micmichd]

harsher sentences must be imposed for these type of accidents hit and runs in my opinion should be classed as murder the driver must have seen the victim but he couldn't stop because he was driving too fast these type of people are lethal .

Not murder, the driver was probably under stress and panicked.

Just to be fair:

I live near a road with quite a few car accidents. And Thai drivers engaged in an accident usually stop and leave their cars.

[kiwikeith]

harsher sentences must be imposed for these type of accidents hit and runs in my opinion should be classed as murder the driver must have seen the victim but he couldn't stop because he was driving too fast these type of people are lethal .

Not murder, the driver was probably under stress and panicked.

Just to be fair:

I live near a road with quite a few car accidents. And Thai drivers engaged in an accident usually stop and leave their cars.

I think that's called hit and run.

[Mitker]

Never seen a good driver in a van in my 8 years in Thailand.

(...)

I've met 1! in my 15 years. Seriously.

By looking at the others, I'm sure he was born with a normal mental capacity, leaving no single brain cell available for the remaining thousands of van drivers

[Nowisee]

The other and most important way is for everyone in the van to tell the idiot driver to slow down... slow down or pull over and give us a refund.
Too many people stay quiet and allow this crap to happen.

It really isn't rocket science to get all these reckless driving under control. Sadly, there just isn't the will (or the competency) to get it done with local management/authorities. Simple first step is to restrict the top speed of these vehicles - easily done electronically.

[brownknees]

There is only one answer to all the posts like this,"THAI"means "FREE" so people do what they want,sure theres a sketchy kind of justice system but its more like an injustice system.

[Jonathon]

I absolutely refuse to use these vans as in my experience the drivers are maniacs. The only exception is around town where they cannot get up any speed. Unfortunately that still exposes one if out walking, very sad for the guy and his family.

Fleeing the scene implies guilt, alcohol or drugs maybe.

[smotherb]

Amazing mindset. In a company vehicle, well marked, passengers in the rear. Did he suddenly think he had become invisible?

As often happens, the drivers run away to face the police and investigative medical tests another day. TIT, what can I say?

[Liquorice]

One of the three passengers told reporters the van driver was traveling “very fast” prior to the accident, complaining that he wanted to pick up passengers at the Central Festival Pattaya shopping mall before other vans were able to.

So his excuse for driving very fast comes down to money.

Thai logic thinking 'Shit that's my next pickups down the plughole, I might as well bugger off'.

RIP to the German and condolences to his family.

[billbellamy]

78 years old, crossing a highway road (assuming these intercity vans do not go into small soi) alone at 9pm. Could easily get blinded by the headlights of oncoming cars and especially if he was crossing at some random point without proper road lighting.

Read story again and than delete this post.

[Nemesis7]

RIP old man.

Crossing the street like that at dark isn't a safe thing to do.

And finding the driver is the easiest thing for the cops as he drove a public van where he has his details and so easy to catch him. Why did the driver glee the scene ? What was he thinking ?!?!

[Travelman868]

Although 90kmh is the maximum speed for vans by law, it may be way too fast for most stretches of road.

Not very long ago everyone was terrified going by bus to whatever place mostly due to the erratic style of driving.

Now most tour-buses have been replaced by minivans....let's say 5 vans for 1 tour bus.........you don't need a degree in maths to figure out the increase of lunatics on the road.

Why are people frightened to tell the driver to slow down. /if they are ignored then phone the company.

When drivers run away from accidents they should be jailed, minimum 5 years

[Just1Voice]

Where I come from, fleeing the scene of an accident is an AUTOMATIC 5 year sentence. Killing someone in an accident is Vehicular Manslaughter. Automatic 10 year prison term, which can be longer than that if extenuating circumstances warrant it.

Thailand? 2,000 baht (max) fine, suspended for 2 weeks from driving.