Veteran thief hunters ply their trade

Veteran thief hunters ply their trade

Cops come out of retirement to help combat crime at Chatuchak

Retired police detectives are back on the beat, deployed on a mission to weed out crooks preying on shoppers at the country's most famous weekend market.

Pol Lt Col Surasak Boonsrihirat, president of S&S Corporation which is contracted to handle security at the Chatuchak Weekend Market, shows pictures of pickpockets who have been caught at the market. (Photo by WASSAYOS NGAMKHAM)

The Chatuchak Weekend Market, spanning 68 rai, resembles a small town on weekends with an estimated 150,000 shoppers, many of them foreign tourists.

The large crowds at Chatuchak, or JJ Market as it's commonly known, are a perfect target for criminals, police say.

The market employs 300 police and security guards, but the team is not nearly large enough to cover the market's vast premises.

To increase the size of the force and to boost security at the market, the company in charge of security has opted to bring police out of retirement.

The market teems with more than 17,000 vendors, many of whom report a variety of crimes on a regular basis.

One of the most common crimes is the theft of goods from vendors while they stack their merchandise before opening their shop, Surat Dabmai, the head of the State Railway of Thailand's governor office, said. The SRT owns and manages the market land.

Pickpockets are another nuisance, he said. They often operate in gangs and prowl the markets in the late afternoons and evenings.

Mr Surat said the gangs comprise locals and foreigners from Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. Many of the Thai crooks are tied to theft networks in Klong Toey, he added.

The pickpockets are hard to catch, since they work in teams and quickly pass the stolen goods from one gang member to another.

Police usually have no evidence and are unable to catch them red-handed, he said. All they can do is take photos of the suspects, record their personal details and let them go, he said. "But they come back soon enough and it's not easy to weed them out."

Incidents involving armed robbery have happened, but are quite rare, he said.

Some corners of the market have become hang-outs for teenagers to buy, sell or take drugs, Mr Surat said.

The notorious "one-dollar gang" of Iranians also prey on foreign tourists at the market. Members of the gang approach potential victims and ask for money, he said. They then open their wallets to show the shoppers they are down to their last American dollar.

The scam artists speak to their target in poor English to distract them while another gang member sneaks up behind them to pull money from the victim's purse. Mr Surat said the market now has 72 surveillance cameras to keep an eye on the action. At least 80 more cameras will be installed.

Two of the crime hot spots at the market are around the pet shops and the teenage merchandise sections because they are particularly crowded, he said.

Pol Lt Col Surasak Boonsrihirat is the president of S&S Corporation, which was contracted last year to provide security at the market.

He said his firm has recruited retired police to help fight back against crime at the market.

The market is under the jurisdiction of the Bang Sue police station, which only has 20 police available to patrol the market.

Pol Lt Col Surasak said his firm earlier requested the help of 191 emergency police and anti-riot officers to guard the market, but they were recalled shortly after to deal with street protests in Bangkok.

A total of 37 retired police, many of them former investigators specialising in theft cases, were hired to maintain security at the market by Pol Lt Col Surasak's firm.

"It would be a pity to see their expertise lost when they retire," he said.

Pol Lt Col Surasak said his firm now employs 37 retired police at the market. They work with 128 other police officers and guards to maintain order at Chatuchak.

Pol Sub Lt Anant Panya, 63, a retired detective, said he was glad to return to a job he loves and he is earning extra income while helping out the community.

Pol Lt Col Somnuek Somsri, 64, a former investigator with city police, said tracking and catching criminals involves studying their behaviour.

Busting thieves requires deep investigative knowledge and experience, which retired officers experienced at solving robberies can offer, he said.


Contact Crime Track: crimetrack@bangkokpost.co.th

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