Police in Patong have arrested 4 suspects after an American tourist was injured in a late-night attack on Bangla Road this week. According to a Phuket Express report, the arrested men are all employees of nightlife venues along the popular tourist thoroughfare.
Police were following up on reports that in the early hours of Wednesday morning, an American tourist sustained facial injuries and an injury to one of his fingers after being attacked. The unnamed man was with a Russian woman, also unnamed, at the time of the incident. It’s understood she was not injured.
Sujin Nilbodee, chief of Patong Police, told the Phuket Express that the arrests came about after investigating officers checked CCTV footage of the incident.
PHOTO: The Phuket Express
“I ordered an immediate investigation after I received the report about the incident. Police checked CCTV footage nearby. We confirmed there was an incident and identified four suspects who are staff members at entertainment venues on Bangla Road.”
Sujin says the suspects have admitted they carried out the attack on the American national, claiming he was drunk and argumentative.
“The four suspects have admitted they attacked the American man who they claimed was intoxicated before an argument began, followed by a physical confrontation. The exact nature of the dispute and who started the altercation is still unclear and we are further interviewing all parties involved and investigating the incident in full.”
The investigation is ongoing as officers continue to interview both the victim and the 4 suspects. At this stage, it’s not known if the police plan to press charges.
SOURCE: The Phuket Express
