Seven youths detained over assault on Japanese tourist in Bangkok

BANGKOK, Aug 14 (TNA) - Thai police have detained seven youths after a Japanese language teacher was assaulted and attempted to be robbed near an Airport Rail Link station in Bangkok, authorities said.

The incident occurred on Wednesday night near the Makkasan Airport Rail Link station. Police said the victim, a 43-year-old Japanese national, was walking through an unlit overgrown area when two motorcycles carrying a group of teenagers approached him and demanded money.

According to police, when he refused, the youths attacked him with rocks and fists. The man fled the scene and sought help from a local taxi driver resting nearby.

He sustained facial injuries, requiring four stitches behind his ear and three on his lip.

Using CCTV footage tracking the suspects’ escape route toward public housing flats near Din Daeng Police Station, officers located and brought in the seven minors for questioning alongside multidisciplinary officials and their parents.

Police Colonel Uramporn Khundechsamrit, chief of Makkasan Police Station, said that while the youths admitted to the incident, investigators are planning to re-interview the victim to clarify details before formal charges are filed.

The suspects are scheduled to be presented to the Central Juvenile and Family Court following police procedures. -819 (TNA)