20-7-2024 (BANGKOK) 3 Chinese men have successfully evaded Thai authorities and escaped to Hong Kong following a brazen home invasion, extortion attempt, and kidnapping in Chon Buri. The incident, which unfolded on Wednesday night, has left local law enforcement scrambling to piece together the details of this audacious crime.
The drama began in a luxurious housing estate in tambon Nong Prue, where the victim, 34-year-old Chinese national Qian Peng Yi, found himself at the centre of a terrifying ordeal. According to Pol Capt Damchaluay Samkhanying, deputy investigation chief at Nong Prue station, the homeowner reported the incident around 1am on Thursday.
Upon arrival at the scene, police and immigration officers discovered a visibly shaken Qian, bearing marks from being bound with cables. The victim recounted a harrowing tale of three men invading his home at 9pm, one brandishing a firearm. The intruders swiftly overpowered Qian, binding his hands and feet, gagging him with cloth, and securing his head with tape before forcing him onto his bed.
In a twist that has raised eyebrows among investigators, the assailants attempted to coerce Qian into transferring a staggering 10 million baht to a bank account. Their leverage? The life of Qian’s 33-year-old cousin, Tu Peizhi, who was present in her second-floor bedroom during the invasion.
Despite the criminals’ persistent threats and a thorough ransacking of the property in search of valuables, Qian steadfastly refused to comply with their demands. In a stroke of fortune, he managed to escape when the attackers’ attention wavered momentarily. From his hiding place nearby, Qian witnessed the perpetrators departing with his cousin in tow.
The plot thickened when a 30-year-old van driver came forward with crucial information. Hired to transport Chinese customers from Pattaya to Suvarnabhumi airport, the driver’s testimony has led investigators to suspect that Tu Peizhi may have been complicit in the scheme against her cousin.
According to the driver’s account, he was instructed to collect the group from a hotel on Soi Pornprapanimit 7, merely a kilometre from Qian’s residence. After a series of delays and promises of additional payment, four Chinese individuals – one possibly a woman disguised as a man – emerged around 11:15pm. The driver transported them to the airport, arriving at approximately 1am.
In a stroke of investigative luck, the driver managed to photograph the group smoking at the airport entrance, identifying one as Tu Peizhi. This timeline aligns suspiciously well with the departure of the suspects from Thailand on the same flight, fuelling suspicions of her involvement in the plot against her cousin.
