Phuket Provincial Police Chief Maj Gen Pornsak Nuannu announced the arrest at the press conference this afternoon (Feb 1), joined by the chiefs of Wichit and Phuket City police stations.
Maj Gen Pornsak explained that the arrests came from cooperation with Region 8 Police, Provincial Police and Wichit Police.
Police named the two arrested as Eakkarin Petchsiesuk, 19, originally from Satun, and Montri Chansuk, 18, originally from Trang.
Gen Pornsak explained that Wichit Police were called to the 7-Eleven store in Moo 7, Wichit, at about 4:40am last Thursday (Jan 28) by store manager Daranee Thongphom.
Ms Daranee told police that a man about 30 years old used a knife to threaten store staffer Wichu-orn Prachongkarn to give him money.
Ms Wichu-orn was forced at knifepoint to open three cash drawers, from which the man grabbed B2,270 in cash before running out of the store and riding off on a motorbike being driven by a friend waiting for him.
Police through CCTV tracked down the blue-black Honda Wave motorbike used to flee the scene and arrested Montri.
Montri later confessed that he was the getaway driver for the robbery, and then led police to arrest Eakkarin at a house in Baan Muang Thong in Wichit, Gen Pornsak said.
In placing Montri and Ekkarin under arrest, officers seized the motorbike, the clothes the men wore while committing the robbery and the knife used in the robbery.
Eakkarin then also confessed to committing the robbery, Gen Pornsak said.
“He gave B220 to Montri, spent B300 to buy items in an online game and spent the rest o the money on drugs,” he said.
Eakkarin further confessed that he stole money from a local resident in Ban Kuan Pho in Satun in a ‘snatch and run’ last year, Gen Pornsak added.
Gen Pornsak confirmed that Eakkarin and Montri were both taken to Wichit Police Station and charged with robbery in the nighttime by using a vehicle to flee.
At the press conference, Gen Pornsak also announced that from Jan 27-31, police had arrested 196 suspects from 150 cases.
A total 130 suspects were arrested in 119 drug cases. The rest were arrested for weapons, gambling, murder and other crimes, he noted.