Thai elephant raids convenience store, eats snacks and leaves without paying
A convenience store in northeastern
Thailand has had to contend with an unusual shoplifter – a large male elephant who scoffed down boxes of rice crackers before casually walking out.
Advertisement
The daylight robbery has gone viral in Thailand after the 'Here is Khao Yai' Facebook page posted a video on Monday afternoon showing the giant creature – known locally as Plai Biang Lek – ambling into the shop, head brushing the ceiling, guzzling snacks, and then strolling out.
The local store, in Pak Chong district, about three hours northeast of Bangkok, is not far from Khao Yai National Park, where wild elephants are frequently seen leaving protected areas to forage for food.
Thais chuckled at the unexpected human-elephant interaction in a region where such encounters, while not uncommon, rarely play out in convenience stores.
'Would you like some pork buns?' one Facebook user quipped, while others teased the elephant for its apparent criminality.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South China Morning Post
a day ago
- South China Morning Post
Thai teachers' group slams ‘unacceptable' beer deal that it says tarnishes educators' image
A group of Thai teachers has protested against a state agency's partnership with a beer company, claiming the deal tarnishes educators' integrity and sends the wrong message to society. The one-year deal, signed last month by Tawandang German Brewery and the government office for improving education workers' welfare and benefits, offers teachers a 10 per cent discount at three branches of the brewery firm. Chayapa Khunpittikana, coordinator of the Thai Teachers Against Vice-Promoting Welfare network, said the partnership promoted harmful behaviour, the Bangkok Post reported. 'The image of teachers is already often viewed negatively,' she said. 'For a state agency to endorse and incentivise access to vices through discounts on alcohol is unacceptable.' Benefits such as discounted beer could damage the public image and ethical standards of teachers, as well as the education bureau, the network stressed in an open letter to Thailand's Education Minister Permpoon Chidchob. The deal could also have a negative influence on young people who are likely to mimic their teachers' behaviours, and erase the dignity and respect traditionally associated with the teaching profession, the letter noted. The network called for the deal to be withdrawn and urged authorities to instead establish partnerships that truly enhanced teachers' welfare – such as securing affordable private healthcare access.
South China Morning Post
4 days ago
- South China Morning Post
Thai elephant raids convenience store, eats snacks and leaves without paying
A convenience store in northeastern Thailand has had to contend with an unusual shoplifter – a large male elephant who scoffed down boxes of rice crackers before casually walking out. Advertisement The daylight robbery has gone viral in Thailand after the 'Here is Khao Yai' Facebook page posted a video on Monday afternoon showing the giant creature – known locally as Plai Biang Lek – ambling into the shop, head brushing the ceiling, guzzling snacks, and then strolling out. The local store, in Pak Chong district, about three hours northeast of Bangkok, is not far from Khao Yai National Park, where wild elephants are frequently seen leaving protected areas to forage for food. Thais chuckled at the unexpected human-elephant interaction in a region where such encounters, while not uncommon, rarely play out in convenience stores. 'Would you like some pork buns?' one Facebook user quipped, while others teased the elephant for its apparent criminality.
South China Morning Post
4 days ago
- South China Morning Post
Cambodia to file complaint with ICJ over Thai border dispute that left 1 soldier dead
Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Manet on Monday said his country would file a complaint with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to adjudicate over its borders with Thailand, after a skirmish killed one Cambodian soldier and awoke dormant nationalist sentiment in both countries. Advertisement The flashpoint happened on May 28 as Cambodian troops patrolled in what their government insists was their side of the frontier with eastern Thailand. Thai soldiers opened fire and in a 10-minute gunfight, one Cambodian soldier was killed. Thai authorities said the Cambodian troops were inside a disputed area – later producing photos of trenches allegedly dug by their counterparts in the contested zone inside a forest. But Cambodia has demanded an investigation for what its foreign ministry has called 'an unprovoked attack'. On Monday, its leader Hun Manet – the son of Cambodian strongman Hun Sen – said he would be escalating the diplomatic response. 'To prevent armed confrontation again', Cambodia urged Thailand 'to jointly bring these issues to the International Court of Justice', Hun Manet told lawmakers, according to Agence France-Presse. Cambodian soldiers check their weapons near Preah Vihear temple, a World Heritage site, in northern Cambodia in February 2011. Photo: Kyodo News Stills via Getty Images Border disputes between the two kingdoms have incendiary potential.
