PATHUM THANI, Thailand – An armed robber made off with 1.5 million baht after robbing a bank in Khlong Luang district on Thursday afternoon and later set fire to the car he used in the heist in an apparent attempt to destroy evidence. The robbery took place at around 4pm at TMBThanachart Bank’s Talad Thai branch in tambon Khlong Nueng of Khlong Luang district, according to Pol Lt Col Siroj Naebnian, deputy investigation chief at Khlong Luang police station.

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Police and forensic officers, led by Pathum Thani provincial police chief Pol Maj Gen Peerapol Chotikasathien, were dispatched to the scene. The suspect, who acted alone, was described as a man about 170 centimetres tall wearing a red shirt, gloves and a balaclava. According to police reports, the suspect entered the branch about five minutes before closing time, used a metal bar to secure the entrance, preventing anyone from entering, and then brandished a handgun to threaten bank employees. At the time, five bank staff members and one security guard were inside the branch.

Demanding the cash available at the counter, the assailant took 500,000 baht before ordering staff to open the bank’s safe, acquiring another 1 million baht to bring the total haul to about 1.5 million baht. After fleeing the scene, the suspect drove to a vacant lot along the inbound section of Phahon Yothin Road, opposite the Khlong Luang post office, and set fire to the vehicle used in the robbery. The burned vehicle was identified as a Toyota bearing the licence plate number Khor Mor 8353 Songkhla, though a check found the registration to be fake.

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Authorities have alerted nearby stations to help track down the suspect, and investigators were examining CCTV footage from the bank and surrounding areas to determine the suspect’s escape route and whether an accomplice picked him up and aided in the escape.

-Thailand News (TN)