A 22-year-old hi-tech thief who used Google Maps Street View as a tool to carry out a string of break-ins at luxury housing estates has been arrested in Khon Kaen’s Muang district, police said on Sunday.
Thotsawat Lert-arayakul, a native of Nakhon Ratchasima’s Khong district, was apprehended at an apartment room in Khon Khaen and later was presented to a press conference at the Provincial Police Region 4 office on Sunday.
Seized from him were more than 140 stolen items, including a motorcycle, mobile phones, gold ornaments, diamond-studded rings, watches, electric appliances, notebook computers and other valuables worth more than 2 million baht.
Pol Lt Gen Boonlert Jaipradit, commissioner of Provincial Police Region 4, said police had received a number of complaints over the past week that thieves had broken into houses in estates in Khon Kaen’s Muang district and made off with many valuable items.
Footage of closed-circuit television cameras and footprints found at victims’ houses had been examined and this helped to provide clues that the break-ins were being carried out by the same thief, Pol Lt Gen Boonlert said.
Thotsawat confessed he had been carrying out burglaries since March last year, targeting houses in luxury estates when the occupants went out or had fixed schedules on returning home. Before carrying out each burglary, he would use Google Maps Street View as a tool to monitor activities of residents living in the estates and members of a targeted home. Mostly he would carry out his break-ins after 10pm.
He told police that walls of most housing estates were not high and this made it easy for him to climb over them to get inside.
"After climbing over a wall, I would break into a targeted house through a rear bathroom window or shatter a window at the back door of the house. On entering a house, I would steal valuables on the first floor only. Each break-in would take five to ten minutes," he said.
He had given stolen items to four accomplices to mortgage at pawn shops or sell to other shops. The four accomplices, who were still at large, would each receive 10% of the amount of the sold items, Thotsawat said.
"I spent the money from selling the stolen items to finance my personal expenses as I have many girlfriends," he said.
He claimed his attempts to get a job at state agencies and private firms had been rejected, causing him to remain unemployed. This drove him to carry out burglaries to get money to finance his expenses.
Pol Col Pongrit Khongsirisombat, superintendent of Provincial Police Region 4, said the suspect had carried out more than 100 home break-ins at 18 housing estates in Khon Kaen and made off with more than 200 stolen items worth about 2 million baht since March last year.
Many damaged parties had contacted police to see the seized stolen items.
Police initially charged the suspect with nighttime theft. He was held in police custody at the Khon Kaen police station.
Thotsawat Lert-arayakul, 22, re-enacts a break-in at a house in a housing estate in Khon Kaen. (Photo by Jakkrapan Nathanri)