September 16, 2021, 11:38 AM
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A 17-year-old student from Thailand's Nonthaburi province was arrested on Sep. 12 for robbery.
The Bangkok Post reported that the incident occurred at Big C hypermarket’s Rattanathibet branch.
The act
Clad in a pink hat, yellow top, blue gloves and sunglasses, the girl stepped into the Yaowarat Krungthep goldsmith outlet on Sunday afternoon.
She then pulled out a kitchen knife, and handed over a piece of paper with a black bag to the 21-year-old store manager, Kulpanisa Dabut.
On the paper, the note read, "Put money and gold in a bag. Don’t shout. Your life is yours. There’s no need to kill", according to Bangkok Post.
Video via YP - ที่นี่มีแต่คลิป/Youtube.
The staff filled the bag with the necklaces and rings on display, and gave her the bag weighing a total of 208.4g.
The contents of the bag was valued at about 400,000 baht (S$16,000).
Foiled escape
As the girl ran out of the shop, the manager shouted for help.
Alerted by the commotion, a middle-aged man seated in the mall's food court managed to stick out his right leg that tripped the robber.
The girl stumbled and fell to the floor, but then quickly got up.
In the video recorded by a CCTV camera, it showed staff from the goldsmith shop pursuing her, as well as a female cleaner trying to hold her back.
Bangkok Post reported that a policeman on patrol at the mall who happened to be in the area apprehended the teen.
Quick reflexes. Video via YP - ที่นี่มีแต่คลิป/Youtube.
Other police officers soon arrived at the scene.
Images from YP - ที่นี่มีแต่คลิป/Youtube.
The motive
The girl was reported to have lost money in an online investment scam she found on Instagram.
Hooked by sizeable returns promised by the website, she had put in 50,000 baht (S$2,000), amounting to the life insurance payout from her father's death.
When she could no longer contact the website, she realised her mistake.
Her mother, who was undergoing treatment for Covid-19, questioned her about the money.
At a loss as to what to do, the girl headed to the mall on Sunday, lying to her grandmother that she was going to see the dentist.
The grandmother told police that the girl has been staying with her for three years while she attended school, and had never spoken about being scammed.
The Central Juvenile and Family Court has temporarily released the girl after her school's director bailed her out for 15,000 baht (S$612).
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Top images via YP - ที่นี่มีแต่คลิป/Youtube.
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