Taxi driver arrested for abandoning elderly foreign tourist on Bangkok highway

[jerojero]

Do we really need 7 policemen in the photo for this crime?

.... And why no pointing! What happening?

[LannaGuy]

we all get old and a bit of respect would have helped but then... he wasn't Thai so respect for this 80 year old would have been waaaay down on the list after the soi dog probably

[steven100]

just another BKK taxi driver ........ what can you expect ..

[JAG]

Do we really need 7 policemen in the photo for this crime?

.... And why no pointing! What happening?

No need, he has admitted what he did, so you see there is no need for any further evidence or proof (a.k.a. pointing).

[Pib]

Too bad they couldn't squeeze in a few more policemen into the picture (only 7) as this arrest must have been a capstone event for the police. I expect arresting say a gold shop robber would take a couple hundred police and require a wide angle lens shot from a kilometer away to get all the police into the picture.

[steven100]

Do we really need 7 policemen in the photo for this crime?

.... And why no pointing! What happening?

It's obvious these police officers haven't been fully trained up in the PR department ... they need to be enrolled as quickly as possible before anymore cases come in ......

only then they will know that their job includes pointing to the suspect .....

[Thechook]

No problem, TAT will roll out its propoganda photos of taxi drivers finding 100K baht in the car and returning it to a tourist a week later.

[nottocus]

No pic of Mr Reyes pointing at the taxi driver?

Travesty.

Too busy emptying his colostomy bag.

As for the taxi driver….death penalty.

Edited February 24, 2016 by nottocus

[Robbie Dye]

And why couldn't he have driven the poor guy to a highway police post?

[Mister Fixit]

'In his defence, Mr Witoon said that he told the other taxi driver to drive Mr Reyes to a local police station so they could provide assistance and not just leave the man on the roadside.'

The question remains - why did the FIRST taxi driver ask the SECOND taxi driver to take the old Filipino chap to the police station?

Why didn't he just do it himself?

[ratcatcher]

Judging by the words on the wall to the left, these policemen are Liverpool fans and possibly requested the taxi driver to give a rendition.

[Mister Fixit]

Too bad they couldn't squeeze in a few more policemen into the picture (only 7) as this arrest must have been a capstone event for the police. I expect arresting say a gold shop robber would take a couple hundred police and require a wide angle lens shot from a kilometer away to get all the police into the picture.

How many local government officials, police and soldiers to arrest 30-plus geriatrics playing bridge in Pattaya? Wasn't it 50 or more?

Talk about a sledgehammer to crack a nut. And of course, highlighting to the world the woeful ignorance of the Thai officials involved ...

[llonjac]

Some information may be available on the web

[glenmohr]

Do we really need 7 policemen in the photo for this crime?

.... And why no pointing! What happening?

Just wait for the inevitable reenactment Jero, there will be pointing then!

[balo]

Well, I am happy they caught him , would not happen 3 years ago .

[FourAces]

Filipinos speak English, Spanish and Tagalog, So I find it hard to believe that the old man had an issue with communication, I think it was just another typical Thai taxi driver who can only speak an embarrassing version of Thailish.

Yeah, you could count on one hand the number of Bangkok taxi driver who can't speak Spanish and Tagalog.

you forgot and English!

[MRDave]

Ive thrown a few people out of my Taxi when I was in the trade but never an old age person. It was mainly wannabee gangsters and smack heads, though I once told a young woman to get out with her son who I later found out was blind. The reason he was blind was the woman was given a good kicking when she was pregnant which resulted in her son being born blind, and after spending 5 minutes in the car with this woman it was easy to see why this had happened as she was a total bitch! And if I could go back in time with hindsight I would do the same thing again.

[Sawan Chan 7]

80yo men should not travel alone.

[Strangebrew]

How about rape the driver lock him in the car, crush the car and leave him on side of road while you throw away the keys then charge him with littering and drink driving. Plus sue him for impersonating a human being.

[IamNoone88]

As long as there is no benefit to been seen or the will to teach or learn English from the earliest age, then this type of thing will continue for a very long time.

[dcsw53]

The last time I took a taxi from Suvarnabhumi ( last week ) I had to go to the desk and tell the clerk where I was going, as normal. He/she must have written this down for the driver, so he has no defence.

Nice to see other Thais coming to the guy's aid.

[khunpa]

I blame the old guy... I meant, how hard can it be to learn to say "Soi" and then just show 4 fingers? ;-)

[SABloke]

Sometimes I wish I believed in hell: It would make it easier to accept the fact that people like MRDave existed

[Familyaffairs]

Nice mentality, and his lame defense tops it all...LOS' Taxi drivers are infamous the world over.

[BestBitterPhuket]

He should lose his taxi licence for ever. He has proven that he is not fit to be a taxi driver EVER. Shocking that he is allowed to continue to drive.

[Crash999]

Why didn't the airport white ticket say where he was going?

[pauleddy]

Prb is on the money, as usual.

The driver decided that the "tip" was not going to be big enough, or the ride too short--so he dumped the old man and went to find another poor sucker.

[JAG]

Ive thrown a few people out of my Taxi when I was in the trade but never an old age person. It was mainly wannabee gangsters and smack heads, though I once told a young woman to get out with her son who I later found out was blind. The reason he was blind was the woman was given a good kicking when she was pregnant which resulted in her son being born blind, and after spending 5 minutes in the car with this woman it was easy to see why this had happened as she was a total bitch! And if I could go back in time with hindsight I would do the same thing again.

I did it a couple of times.

I had an A5 poster of Madeline McCann (the little girl who went missing, a sort of what she must look like now image) inside the car.

Cretin got in, guffawed and said "What's pink and rusty - Madeline McCanns' bicycle! "

I turned him out. He rang the local licensing authority to complain. The enforcement officer ( an ex police sergeant) called me in. I explained. I later heard he rang the cretin and suggested to him that he bought a bike...

[little mary sunshine]

I'm sure with more Thais like this in the tourist and travel

Industry. Quality tourists with big money will go down

By 50%....

He couldn't take the old man to the nearest police

Station for help!! Real idiot, ran back to Swampy for

Another fare....Should be in jail!!

[sanuk21]

I read all these incidents people have with the taxi's from the airport and to be honest I have never had a bad one. It may help that i can speak Thai and converse with the driver but I cant say I have had a bad experience

Exactly Gandalf, any Filipino should arrive in Thailand speaking fluent Thai otherwise he may well be dumped on the highway. Something to do with Thai hospitality I am told. Speak the local language or get out of my car.

In China Beijing the government there made a huge effort to get the taxis into English before the Beijing Olympics because English is the language of the Olympics. No such effort will be made in Thailand in the foreseeable future.

Quote "English is the language of the Olympics".

Actually French and English are the official languages of the Olympics.........