Ayutthaya police are looking for a local conman with a colourful history after he staged a daring James-Bond like escape from a police car.
Tong, as he is known, is a repeat visitor to a local hotel but who is averse to paying his bills. Police had just nabbed him and were taking him to the station when he fled their vehicle and commandeered a motorcycle to make his escape.
Wisanchaya Meewongsom, 36, a shop worker, complained to police after Tong jumped on the back of her motorcycle, grabbed the handlebar and started revving the engine as he prepared to get away.
She had the presence of mind to tip the vehicle on its side, forcing Tong to remount it before taking off. Stunned police whose car he had just fled radioed ahead to try to catch him but without success.
Talking to the media, Ms Wisanchaya said: "I was heading to work when this man jumped in front of my motorcycle to block my path. He climbed on the back behind me and told me to keep my mouth shut.
"I was shocked and tried beeping the horn, but people in the area thought we were just a couple arguing so no one came to my aid. I turned the neck of the bike suddenly so it fell over, but the man took over the bike and sped away," she said.
Police had just nabbed Tong at a hotel in Ban Pom district where he is a frequent visitor, despite the fact he refuses to pay his bills and that staff recognise him from one visit to the next.
On his most recent visit last week, his fourth, the hotel owner contacted police, after Tong made off on a previous visit without paying.
Police were taking him in when, taking advantage of a moment as the vehicle slowed before turning, Tong jumped out and grabbed Ms Wisanchaya's bike.
Tong, who last week was also linked to the snatch-and-grab theft of a gold necklace, has a rocky history with the hotel.
Siwasit Butmuang, 33, the owner, said Tong turned up for his previous visit at the end of May. He arrived at 6am and asked staff to wake him two hours later.
When they failed to do so, he kicked up a fuss, refusing to pay his 700 baht bill as they had made him late for a later engagement.
When he later relented, he asked a hotel worker to accompany him to a friend's place where he would pick up some gold he had left for safekeeping.
He claimed he would take the gold to a local pawn shop and exchange it for cash, and pay his hotel bill with the proceeds.
On this occasion, Tong was riding the motorcycle, and the hotel staffer was on the back.
Mr Siwasit said: "When they came to a house which he claimed was his friend's, he asked the staffer to get off the bike and call out for his friend. My staffer said she took just a few steps off the bike when he sped off, leaving her there. She chased him but wasn't fast enough.
"Since then we have been waiting for him to re-appear so we could call the police. Finally he turned up so we called for help and they nabbed him."
On his first visit, many months ago, he left without paying, and on his second visit a few days later, staff who remembered him asked for the unpaid bill and he paid in full. However, the generosity was not to last.
Thais responding on social media have remarked on his tidy appearance and good looks, but police have few clues about his identity. A friend of the accused, identified as Sao Kaew, said he once worked at a convenience store with her for about a year.
He was a good worker and well behaved, but also hot tempered and as time went on was reluctant to come to work.
He also started showing signs he would steal from shop. Finally he quit and she didn't hear from him again though she has heard news that he had snatched a gold necklace. Police are still looking for runaway Tong and eager for any clues about his whereabouts.
I just like them young
Thai national artist Chonlathee Thanthong has hit back at claims by his daughter that he has fallen victim to voodoo stuff, as she tries to explain his relationship with a woman young enough to be his niece.
Chonlathee, 81, is under fire on social media after admitting he has a live-in partner, Ruksakun "Kade" Jaengprasong, 29, and wants a divorce from his wife of 27 years, teacher Siriwimol "Poom" Thongma, 51. The two sides head to court on July 2.
The feuding couple went before the media last month with Chonlathee admitting he hasn't spoken to his wife since he left their marital home in May last year.
Both sides have levelled claims of assault against the other, with Poom suggesting, perhaps inevitably, that Kade is a gold-digger. Mr Chonlathee denies he wants the divorce so he can marry Kade, insisting she is a mere student who helps care for him.
Meanwhile, Chonlathee's youngest child by a previous marriage, Naen, told reporters she was aware of claims that her father had fallen victim to voodoo stuff which had turned his mind. However, she would rather focus on his welfare. She was worried because he refuses to make contact.
She says Kade is trying to assert herself as a key figure in her father's life and warned her she may reap what she sows. "I know what Kade is about and I have warned my father repeatedly. Sometimes it looks as if he is getting some awareness and might return, but then he goes back to her again," she said. "He used to be open and friendly, but he's now he's closed himself up," she added.
Chonlathee, a look tung composer, last week attended a function with Kade by his side to mark 70 years of look tung music. Kade also took to the stage to perform one of his songs.
Asked about Naen's claims, he said the age when people could perform mystic rituals in the hope of influencing others was over. "What nonsense. The era for that stuff is done," he said.
He was still strong of mind and body and would tell all about his marital problems, which he claims predate his meeting Kade, during his day in court. The saga continues.
