Two New Zealand nationals will have their tourist visas revoked and will be blacklisted from revisiting Thailand after they allegedly assaulted a Phuket traffic police officer and attempted to seize his service firearm in Chalong district on Saturday.
Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn, the deputy national police chief, said in his Facebook post today that, when he learned of the incident, he immediately ordered the chief of immigration police in Phuket to revoke the visas of the two suspects and to bar them from revisiting Thailand following the completion of legal proceedings.
The incident took place when Pol Sgt-Major (first class) Somsak Nu-iad, who was directing traffic on Chao Fah Tawan-ok Road, saw the two men riding a motorcycle and ordered them to stop, for alleged speeding and reckless driving.
They failed to stop and tried to speed away, forcing Somsak to give chase. He caught up with them and ordered them to pull over.
It is alleged that the two, at first, unsuccessfully attempted to bribe the officer, who used his smart phone to record the incident. One of the suspects then tried to grab the officer’s smart phone, resulting in a scuffle. The officer was pushed to the ground.
One of the suspects allegedly tried to snatch the officer’s sidearm, causing it to discharge once. No one was hurt. The second suspect, who was not involved in the original scuffle, then grabbed the gun from his compatriot.
Another police officer arrived at the scene and took the two New Zealanders into custody at Chalong district police station.
The two suspects are facing multiple charges, including assault, resisting police arrest, speeding, driving without a license and attempting to bribe a police officer.
