The man, a security guard at Point Yamu, told to police that he broke into the room to steal the guest’s mobile phones and that he did not want to sexual harass or hurt the woman.
The incident was reported to police last Friday by 27-year-old Bolin Lou who said she and her boyfriend had checked in to the resort on Thursday evening (May 26) and locked the door before they went out for dinner.
After dinner, while they were sleeping, she felt a hand on her neck. She said a man tried to strangle her so she called for help which woke up her boyfriend. This caused the suspect to flee via the balcony. (See story here.)
Col Sompong Tiparphakul the new chief of Thalang Police held a press conference today to announce the arrest of 24-years-old Ammorn Tohkani who was arrested on a warrant issued on Sunday (May 29) by Phuket Provincial Court for burglary at night and assault.
Ammorn was arrested in his home town of Bajoh in Narathiwat province where he sought refuge after the incident.
Col Sompong said, “Mr Ammorn admitted that he sneaked into the guest’s room with the intention of stealing their mobile phones. However, he denied that he wanted to harass or rape the woman. He said he got into a fight with the victim who woke up and shouted for help when she realised his was in the room.
“He fled the room without any valuables and quickly left the resort on his motorbike because he was scared. He then left the motorbike at a convenience store near Heroines Monument before taking a bus back to his home town,” he said.
Ammorn’s mother Roberzhae Tokani told police in a statement that her son had called her on Friday morning and told her he was coming home because he had been in a fight with his supervisor.
“After the incident I ordered an investigation team to find the suspect as soon as possible because this case involved foreigners and affects our tourism image,” Col Sompong said.
“We suspected that the guard on duty that night must have been be responsible for the incident so we questioned staff about it. We learned that part as part of his duties, Ammorn checked the electrical system in the area close the guest’s room between 4am-5:30am.
“We also learned that after the incident he missed his morning roll call, turned off his mobile phone and removed all his belongings from his room. We were sure then that we had the right man and asked the court for an arrest warrant,” Col Sompong concluded.
Point Yamu General Manager Andy Kunz was unavailable to comment when The Phuket News attempted to him this afternoon.