Phuket city: A man who strangled and robbed a female tour guide of her gold has been arrested by police in Phuket City. He confessed to committing the crime in a car before abandoning it in an alley.

According to Thai News Agency, the body of Ms. Oratai, a well-known tour guide and vice president of the Andaman Tour Guides Association, was discovered in a sedan with a Phuket license plate. The vehicle was abandoned in an old house located in Soi 12, Thepkasattri Road, Ratsada Subdistrict, Mueang Phuket District. Evidence of a struggle suggested that Ms. Oratai had been dead for at least three days.

On November 10, Police Lieutenant Sumet Petchruen, Deputy Inspector at Phuket City Police Station, was alerted to a suspicious vehicle matching one reported missing by relatives on November 7. A coordinated investigation led by Police Major General Sinlert Sukhum, along with local police and forensic teams, was initiated to inspect the crime scene.

Inside the car, the deceased was found with her head on the ground and legs on the seat, wearing a floral t-shirt and black trousers. She was clutching a Luang Pu Thuat amulet and standing on fresh seawater. The body displayed no obvious wounds but was bloated and swollen. The remains were sent to Vachira Phuket Hospital for an autopsy to determine the cause of death.

CCTV footage from November 7 at 4:47 PM showed the deceased parking at a department store, followed by a man who entered her car. The man was identified as Mr. Jirasak, a 43-year-old resident of Thai Mueang District, Phang Nga Province, employed as an internet cable installer. Police tracked him down, driving a grey Isuzu pickup truck on the bypass road near the Bang Khu intersection, where he was arrested and brought to the crime scene.

Mr. Jirasak confessed to meeting the deceased at a shopping mall and following her to her car. A struggle ensued inside the vehicle, and when the deceased attempted to honk for help, he strangled her. Afterward, he covered the body with a mat and stole a gold necklace, a mobile phone, two gold-framed Buddha amulets, and a red handbag. He sold the gold for 48,420 baht to settle debts and abandoned the car in an alley.

Police Major General Sinlert Sukhum stated that the investigation swiftly led to the suspect’s arrest after identifying his actions and escape route through CCTV footage. Mr. Jirasak faces charges of “intentional murder and robbery resulting in death,” and efforts are ongoing to recover the stolen assets for return to the deceased’s family.

During the suspect’s return to the crime scene, a friend of the deceased assaulted him in anger, but officers quickly contained the situation.