Groom claimed to be a billionaire involved in the aircraft charter business with links to Hong Kong. The young woman met the man on March 15th at a restaurant and accepted his proposal of marriage the next day. They were officially married 10 days later. However, it was not until the May 10th wedding celebration in Buriram that the wheels started coming off the wagon.
A beautiful 30-year-old Thai woman who married what she thought was a wealthy businessman in March last year has had her life turned upside down after the ฿3.5 million wedding bill for the May wedding celebration was not paid and a ฿1.6 million dowry cheque simply disappeared. On Tuesday, she was reported as consulting with a lawyer and considering divorce as she tries with the help of her family of modest means, to deal with the costs in the aftermath of the event.
A Thai man who left a bride and her family at the wrong end of a ฿3.5 million bill for a lavish wedding party in Buriram on May 10th last may be served with divorce proceedings by his wife who has sought legal advice on the matter. The woman was in Pakkred in Nonthaburi on Tuesday to consult with a well-known lawyer and justice campaigner after finding herself in the media spotlight for all the wrong reasons.
Couple met at a restaurant in March
The story of Mr Nathawad and Ms Da is reported to have begun back in March when the pair met at a restaurant. The Thai man proposed marriage to her the next day on March 16th. At that time, he had held himself out to be a wealthy man, indeed a billionaire who ran an aircraft charter business between Thailand and Hong Kong. The couple registered their marriage on March 26th at Huai Khwang in Bangkok.
Consulting with an activist lawyer in Nonthaburi
This week, the young woman met a well-known lawyer and social justice campaigner in Pakkred Nonthaburi to see what recourse she might have in law to deal with the impossible situation she now finds herself following an ostentatious wedding party that was held later on May 10th at a hotel in Buriram.
Professional wedding planners from Bangkok
Ms Da’s mother, Noi, has told Thai media outlets that the wedding reception which involved wedding planning professionals from Bangkok has left the family in a quandary about how to cope with the bill which the family who live modestly in the Prakhon Chai district of Buriram, simply find impossible to pay.
Mother of the bride meet ‘billionaire’ only once before the wedding party on May 10th last
The mother of Ms Da who is a 30-year old Thai woman works as a ‘pretty’ or commercial presenter takes care of her bedridden mother. She said that she had only met Mr Nat, the high flying businessman, on one occasion, that being the funeral of her father. She recalled her daughter’s assurance at that time, that the man she was engaged to was a billionaire
There is some confusion as to the final cost of the wedding with some reports suggesting that the Bangkok wedding planning company who organised the affair had presented a bill for ฿2.6 billion.
Bill for the hotel stands at ฿400,000
The hotel was the well known Alvarez Hotel in Buriram’s Mueang district. This week, the owner at that establishment Wasant Thepnakhon confirmed that the wedding party was a flamboyant affair. She confirmed that the total bill owed to the hotel was ฿400,000.
Groom declined to pay a deposit when requested
Staff at the hotel were in contact with both the bride and groom with Mr Nathawad claiming to be in the charter aircraft business. The staff had tried to convince the groom to pay a deposit but he told them that it would have to wait until financial agreements were concluded between himself and the family.
Reneged on instalment payments, the family have paid ฿80,000 towards the hotel bill
Hotel staff have since tried to collect the money owed from the groom but have explained that they are currently having difficulty in contacting him by phone.
It is understood that, at some point, instalment plans were agreed and the bride’s family has paid ฿80,000 in an attempt to meet the bill. The 30-year-old daughter and her mother Ms Noi personally met the hotel’s management to try to deal with the matter.
It is understood that the groom had agreed on several instalment payments before finally cutting off contact.
The other services and expenses including the bride’s dress and those of her entourage in addition to lighting and music bring the final tally to ฿3.5 million.
The dowry cheque payment of ฿1.6 million presented at the wedding ceremony mysteriously disappeared
On the wedding celebration day itself, the groom presented a cheque for ฿1.6 million as the bride’s dowry which is the Thai custom. A further ฿860,000 in gold was also to be presented later but did not materialise. The cheque for ฿1.6 million was seen at the wedding party but later mysteriously disappeared.
Bride considering divorce and legal action
The meeting on Tuesday at Pakkred was with Mr Ronnarong Kaewphet, the President of the Social Justice Recovery Campaign network. The young 30-year-old Thai commercial saleswoman was reported to be seeking guidance on how to proceed legally in dealing with the outstanding debt and pursuing the man who married her on the basis that he was a wealthy person of means and standing.
Instead, Mr Da has been left facing divorce and a lifetime of debt by Thai standards.
Further reading:
Thai father calls off ฿10 million business offer for his beautiful daughter’s hand in marriage
