Thai man arrested after faking story about pregnant wife buried in quake rubble
A man in
Thailand has been arrested for falsely claiming he had a pregnant wife who was buried under the rubble of a building in Bangkok that collapsed during Friday's
earthquake , Thai media reported.
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Somnit Duangnet admitted to fabricating the story about his wife – who he claimed was four months pregnant – being trapped beneath the rubble of the under-construction State Audit Office building after police arrested him on Monday.
Although he insisted he had no intention of deceiving the public, the police said they would take a hard line against him to deter others from exploiting the disaster.
Somnit, who is in his early 50s, is believed to have received at least 10,000 baht (US$293) in donations, according to local broadcaster Thai PBS.
In a trembling voice, he told reporters on Friday that his pregnant wife was buried under the building while holding up an employee card that belonged to a young woman.
Rescue work going on at the site of the collapsed State Audit Office building in Bangkok, Thailand, on Tuesday following Friday's earthquake. Photo: Reuters
He said that his wife had contacted him to tell him the building was shaking and that he had lost contact with her after that, according to The Nation newspaper.
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Cambodia blames Thai forces for allegedly shooting dead a Cambodian soldier on May 28 during a brief firefight in the Emerald Triangle, where eastern Thailand, northern Cambodia, and southern Laos meet. The jungle and scrubland include a no man's zone that is not officially demarcated, attracting human and wildlife traffickers, illegal loggers, smugglers, fugitives, and other criminals. The disputed zone also boasts the ruins of ancient Hindu temples, including Ta Moan Thom, Ta Moan Toch, and Ta Kro Bei. The latest deadly confrontation began when the two nations' armed forces opened fire at each other at Chong Bok pass on the Thai-Cambodian border. The Cambodians were allegedly digging a trench along the rugged, porous frontier, drawn 100 years ago by French colonialists. According to the Thai army, Cambodia's troops 'encroached' and shot first when the Thais approached to talk. 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Thailand and Phnom Penh deny violating the law when it comes to deporting people back to each other's country, despite pleas that fleeing political activists be spared. In 1999, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet was a cadet at the US Military Academy at West Point. It is unknown if that will temper or give confidence to his military dealings with Thailand. Paetongtarn's father, former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, had close fraternal ties with Cambodia's previous prime minister and former Khmer Rouge regiment commander Hun Sen, the father of Prime Minister Hun Manet. Those generational links were especially valuable after Thaksin was overthrown in a military coup in 2006, leading to 15 years as a self-exiled fugitive from prison sentences for corruption and other financial crimes. Those enmeshed personal relationships had recently been blamed by some Thais for weakening Bangkok's negotiating stance in an ongoing dispute with Cambodia over mapping their shared Gulf of Thailand which hosts oil and natural gas extraction platforms. 'Right-wing opponents of the Shinawatras, in particular, are using the issue of Thai-Cambodian border issues to attack the Paetongtarn government,' Chambers said. 'This issue could become increasingly productive for the right-wing opposition.' Sophal Ear said: 'Opposition groups in Thailand have criticized the Shinawatra-led government for its handling of the border dispute, accusing it of being too conciliatory towards Cambodia. 'This strategy taps into nationalist sentiments, but risks being counterproductive if perceived as undermining efforts for a peaceful resolution. The [Thai] government's emphasis on diplomacy may appeal to moderates who prioritize stability over confrontation. 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