At first glance, the CCTV footage from the incident looks like fair game but when you look closer you can see the UK man is isolated and frightened. He cannot escape an inexorable movement in the rolling fracas that left him making a traditional Thai wai gesture for mercy. This was ruthlessly ignored. He was the left bloodied, unconscious and cowered against a street wall. The badly injured man was moved from Mae Hong Son to Chiang Mai where he has already had surgery and faces a long recovery. His only comfort has been the support of his Thai wife and authorities. Thai police have already brought charges against three men from Chiang Rai, Lampang and Trang provinces. The police are continue to investigate the case, giving it top priority.
A protective Thai wife stood in her husband’s corner this week as she liaised with police and the media seeking justice for the brutal attack that took place on her 37 year old UK husband on Monday the 20th May this year. Three men have been charged by Thai police and have admitted their guilt in the brutal attack on the UK man who has been left hospitalised and facing at least six months therapy. CCTV footage shows the UK man fighting for his life and in a confused state on the streets of Pai in Mae Hong Son province after being corralled by a group of people and cornered into a street fight that he was never going to win. Battered and bruised, the UK man makes a Thai wai gesture showing respect and begged for his life only to be mercilessly attacked again and again beginning with a kick to the head.
A UK man is in hospital in Chiang Mai having been mercilessly beaten by a number of Thai men after street brawl in the town of Pai in Mae Hong Son province which is reported to have happened on May 20th last. A gang of Thai thugs used steel rods with grooves as well kicking feet to inflict horrible injuries on the UK man after he became involved with them in what appears, from CCTV footage, to be rolling street fracas.
Complaint lodged by UK man’s Thai wife
Thai police began their investigation into the incident on May 22nd after receiving a formal complaint from the UK man’s Thai wife, 33 year old Saifon Petchkrajang. The Thai woman gave an interview to the Thai newspaper the Daily News this week from the luxury hospital suite in Chiang Mai being provided for the UK named as 37 year old Luke Benjamin Thornton. The young woman explained just what happened to her UK husband on Monday the 20th of May.
Couple facing steep medical costs after brutal attack
Mr Thornton’s Thai wife has been championing her husband’s cause giving interviews and demanding to see justice served over an incident that has left her husband seriously injured, facing steep medical care costs and being unable to return home to the United Kingdom until the doctors in Chiang Mai give the all clear. It is reported that the couple live in the United Kingdom.
37 year old UK man was visiting Pai in the northern Thai province of Mae Hong Son
The UK man was visiting the northern Thai locality with his Thai wife Saifon Petchkrajang. It is reported that a brawl or disagreement ensued after a number of Thai men arrived on motorcyles near Pai Withayakhan School in the small Mae Hong Son town of Pai. The UK man is reported to have intervened in an effort to resolve the argument between some other tourists and the young Thai men but then found himself under attack instead.
Thai men said that they wanted to teach UK man a lesson after he intervened in dispute
The UK man’s story is supported by an admission from the young Thai men, after they were arrested, that they wanted to teach the him a lesson. They said that the UK man should not have interfered in an argument between mature men.
UK man with good intentions becomes the centre or target of the fight he tried to stop
Media reports on the incident are not quite clear. It is reported that Mr Thornton intervened to halt the fight or dispute that developed after one of a group of Thai men rode into another group of people on a motorbike. There are also reports that the Thai men had vicious metal weapons while also using a wooden club. The UK man’s wife showed the media police evidence of such weapons during the week which she had stored on her smartphone.
CCTV footage shows the UK man fighting for his life with Thai men on the streets
CCTV footage from the incident show the UK man, dressed in white, engaged in fighting the men before he was later overpowered by a number of Thai men on another street.
In one video, a Thai man can be seen provoking and challenging Mr Thornton to back off. Later footage from the CCTV video shows Thornton engaging with a man. The fight moves into a smaller street. Thornton punches a Thai man who falls to the ground after the UK man was attacked. The UK man is then seen using his leg to kick the Thai man in the head but is caught and pulled down.
Once overpowered on the ground, it is reported that the Thai men kept the UK man pinned to the ground. It is not clear from CCTV footage what injuries if any are being inflicted. It is at this point that the UK man is overpowered by the young Thai men. This appears to be the point where a serious crime is committed.
Nauseating display of cowardly brutality against unconscious UK man cowered on the ground
In one of the video clips, at this point, Mr Thornton gets up and offers a wai gesture as a way of showing respect signaling a wish to end the fight. The UK man is clearly shocked and worried after being pinned to the ground. But it is ignored. A Thai man lunges with his leg and kicks him into the head. This blow leaves the UK man virtually unconscious. He is then repeatedly attacked by a number of men with hands and feet. The crowd move him. He cowers near a wall and is repeatedly attacked by the younger Thai men in what is a nauseating display of cowardly brutality.
Thai wife shows police evidence on smartphone displaying weapons used by the arrested men
When visited by the media this week, the 33 year old Thai wife showed evidence apparently obtained by Thai police of those involved in the crime and the vicious nature of the weapons that were seized by police in connection with the attack. It is reported however that the Thai men involved in the incident have already confessed their guilt.
UK man seen on CCTV fighting with a number of Thai men prior to being seriously injured
It is being reported that the the UK man was drawn into the fracas while helping other parties who had become involved is an earlier dispute. It could be argued that the UK man was engaged in self defense as the CCTV footage clearly shows the UK man engaging with a number of young Thai men in two locations as the fight moved from one street to another.
Mr Thornton made a wai gesture seeking mercy from his merciless attackers after he was overpowered
The appalling injuries and brutal treatment of the UK man after he was beaten and overpowered by a group of Thai men cannot be disputed. This was serious attack on the foreigner that left him with serious bodily injuries. Doctors in Chiang Mai have already suggested he will need 6 months of therapy. His Thai wife has been giving interviews to the media and mentions his wai gesture as he sought mercy from his attackers which was not forthcoming.
UK man fought to defend himself from a rolling attack as a gang of people circled him
However, this wai came after Mr Thornton had engaged, and punched a number of men as they repeatedly came at him. He also attempted to kick one man in the head while on the ground. It is understood, however, that Mr Thornton was frantically attempting to defend himself from a hostile group of people, acting as a pack, who he could not escape from. The UK man clearly looks frightened and anxious at what is a happening around him. There are up to eight people involved in the scene including at last three Thai women. The group constantly harry the UK man corralling him into another street and confronting him with different attackers.
After the UK man made his wai gesture and pleaded for his life, the onslaught against him strengthened in a cowardly fashion. It is shocking to watch on CCTV footage. The UK man is bleeding profusely from his face and leaves blood on the streets and on the wall that he cowered into.
Thai police visit UK man and Thai wife in hospital to let them know about progress of investigation
It is reported that the UK man was transferred to a Chiang Mai hospital having been initially treated in Mae Hong Son. He is suffering from a fractured skull, eye socket and number of other injuries. It is also reported that the UK man has had double vision. In hospital, the UK man has received visits from the Mae Hong Son police including Police Colonel Suwan Tenphitak and another police officer.
Police concerned that attack is bad for Thailand’s image similar to Hua Hin attack in 2016
It is reported that senior Thai police officers in Mae Hong Son are concerned that the attack on Mr Thornton and ensuing press coverage of the incident may be detrimental to the country’s image abroad. A similar attack occurred on UK tourists in Hua Hin in 2016. A prosecution taken by Thai authorities later saw four men involved in the attack, sentenced to two years in prison. The four men were also denied the possibility of prison parole.
Three Thai men arrested as UK man recovers from surgery in hospital in Chiang Mai
Thai police have arrested three men after scanning CCTV footage of the extended fight and brawl which moved from one thoroughfare to another. The three men arrested have been named as 35 year old Anuphon Kongpithee from Lampang province, 29 year old Saenpetch Robert Porter from Chiang Rai and 23 year old Kantapong Kongphaka. It is also reported that weapons used by the men were seized as evidence by investigating police. Saifon Petchkrajang and her UK husband showed the Thai newspaper The Daily News a video of the surgery on the UK man’s nose and a deep wound that the UK man received while on the ground and overpowered by the attackers.
Thai police confirm that the three men arrested now face serious charges related to the attack
Thai police have confirmed that the men will face charges of assault causing grievous bodily harm. The UK man’s wife, Saifon Petchkrajang, has claimed that people purporting to be relatives of the attackers in Mae Hong Son have made contact and left a message to suggests that if the Thai men are prosecuted, the life of the UK man and his wife will be in danger.
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