Four British tourists have been arrested in Thailand for allegedly robbing an American lawyer at gunpoint for his luxury Audemars Piguet watch.
Brits Hussain Meer, 26, Mir Wayne Carew, 25, Yanne Sarkawt, 25, and Malique Kai Walters, 27, allegedly knocked Ibrahim Iyun to the ground before emerging from an SUV in Phuket on Thursday.
They then allegedly pointed a gun and knife at the terrified victim and ripped his gold $75,000 timepiece from his wrist before speeding away.
Shocking footage shows the moment a blue Ford Everest rams Ibrahim’s motorcycle, sending him sprawling on the wet pavement.
Two men then emerge from the SUV and force the expensive accessory off his wrist while threatening him with a gun and a knife.
Officers detained the four Brits on Thursday evening and believe they were professional watch thieves who targeted Ibrahim after spotting him in the upmarket holiday destination.
Police Major General Sinlert Sukum, commander of the Phuket Provincial Police, said: ‘As of now, there are four suspects. We are interrogating them to determine whether other persons were involved.
‘They arrived in Thailand at different times as tourists. We are investigating their movements and have already located all vehicles used in the crime as well as other evidence.
Four British tourists have been arrested in Thailand for allegedly robbing an American lawyer at gunpoint for his luxury watch
Shocking footage shows the moment a blue Ford Everest rams Ibrahim Iyun’s motorcycle, sending him sprawling on the wet pavement
They then allegedly pointed a gun and knife at the terrified victim and ripped his gold $75,000 timepiece from his wrist before speeding away
‘They were charged with jointly committing robbery. We are currently checking their backgrounds. So far, we have not found any similar incidents committed by them in other areas.
‘All four of them are from the same country, but they did not confirm whether they knew each other before coming here or if they only met in Thailand.’
The American tourist, a lawyer based in Geneva, Switzerland, said he was riding home after shopping at the Boat Avenue mall when he was mugged.
He said: ‘I had never seen any one of these people before in my life. This just comes to show that foreigners who are criminals should not be welcome in Thailand.’
‘Unfortunately these foreigners come to Thailand to attack Thai people, to attack the tourists, and to ruin the reputation of Thailand, but Thai people are stronger than this’, he added.
The lawyer said he was grateful for the ‘swift and efficient’ response after police managed to arrest the suspect and return his stolen watch within a day.
Onlooker Somphum Nopwankaew, who was driving behind the SUV, said: ‘The victim ran up to me. I said I had footage of the entire incident, and he told me what was going on. I helped him as much as I could and took him to the police station.
The American tourist, a lawyer based in Geneva, Switzerland, said he was riding home after shopping at the Boat Avenue mall when he was mugged
Pictured: The luxury watch that was allegedly stolen by the British tourists
Mr Iyun (pictured) thanked Thai authorities for their ‘swift and efficient’ response
‘I saw both a gun and a knife used to threaten him. It was the first time I’d seen such an attack. I was left shaking too.’
Officers from the Sakhu and Thalang district stations later discovered the Ford Everest abandoned at a rubber plantation. Security footage from the area reportedly showed a white car then collecting the suspects.
Police said they were investigating if other individuals were involved in the robbery.
The once-pristine island of Phuket has been marred by over-tourism as the Thai government implements a visa-free scheme to boost revenue following the barren pandemic years.
Angry locals claim the push for tourist dollars has attracted crowds of ‘low-quality’ visitors from Russia, India and Australia.
There are also fears that the island has become an enclave of criminal activity, with police unable to control street fights and more organised ruffians setting up rackets among local businesses.
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