The news came with a stern warning from Maj Werayut Thanyasiriworakul, Chief Investigator at Wichit Police, that any other persons, including juveniles, thinking of committing the same acts will face criminal charges.
The four young teens involved in the attack on the 11-year-old will face charges of causing physical and mental harm to another person, Maj Werayut said yesterday (May 16).
“I would like to inform parents who know that their children have been attacked by such groups to report a complaint to the local investigator at the scene of the accident, and I want parents to educate their children that such acts are illegal and will be prosecuted according to the law,” he said.
The four teens comprise the three girls seen in the video posted online and one boy, the youngest, who recorded the attack on a mobile phone.
The confirmation came after he met the four children who were brought to Wichit Police Station by a woman, presumed to be the mother of at least one of the children. The woman was not named by police, but it was confirmed that she was 34 years old.
Under child protection laws police have not named the four young teens or their parents. They also have not identified which school the teens attend. Today marked the first day of classes of the Thai school year.
Officers from child welfare agencies were present for the meeting yesterday.
Attempting to defend the actions of the four teens, the “mother” called for “justice” for their actions. The woman denied that the 11-year-old was told that she would be killed if she told anyone about the attack.
“The news has gotten out of hand… how could the children be in the house if they were not invited?” she said.
No explanation was given to the 15-year-old being recorded saying, “That’s enough talking, who’s going to start?” before attacking the 11-year-old girl by dragging her to the floor by her hair kicking her repeatedly, including several kicks to the head.
Wichit Police have confirmed that since the mother of the 11-year-old filed a criminal complaint on Sunday (May 15), officers now have received five videos in total showing the same four teens involved in other vicious attacks on other unsuspecting young teens.
So far police have not mentioned what further charges the four may face for those attacks.
Phayungsak Kalmick, Director of the Phuket Provincial Justice Office, today confirmed that the four will face charges and that the mother and her 11-year-old daughter were entitled to claim for compensation for any medical bills and rehabilitation.
The amount for damages to be awarded was a matter for the court to decide, Mr Phayungsak said.
“The investigating officer is proceeding to prosecute,” Mr Phayungsak said. “The investigator has accepted the case and wanted to tell the children that everything people do affects the rights of others, and what they did was all wrong.
“In this case the parents and the children are guilty,” he added. “According to the law, parents are also guilty. How much the penalty is depends on the circumstance of the case and on how the investigating officer proceeds with the case.
“I have seen youngsters go to court, and if they do not fix the small mistakes, the next time it will be a bigger mistake. If no one admonishes them or punishes, it will go from small things to big things,” Mr Phayungsak warned.
“Please warn the youngsters to have their hearts and minds not wanting anyone to hurt anyone. If they were treated like that, how would they feel? Think of the psychological impact,” he added.
“There are many ways to make things better without violence,” he said.
christysweet | 18 May 2022 - 12:04:40