Dead boy's family in Phuket 'mob' against Russians

[siamsmile33]

Phuket -- A large group of Thais gathered outside the Villa Market in Chalong yesterday (April 9) to protest over the death of 16-year-old Thananbavorn “Lotus” Durongpan, who was killed just after 1am on Saturday (April 5) when he was hit by a car as he rode his motorbike along Patak Rd from Chalong Circle.

The incident has sparked anger at the Russian woman driving the car, at her friends and, by extension, Russians in general.

The Phuket News’ Russian-language sister paper Novosti Phuketa contacted Russian police volunteers who reported that the driver, known only as Larisa, allegedly made a U-turn on Patak Rd next to the Shell filling station, knocking the boy – who was travelling in the same direction – off his bike. He was not wearing a helmet.

Larisa drove away. A man known only as Valentin, thought to be her husband, was following in another car. He stopped briefly but, deciding that Lotus was dead, he too sped off.

Police failed to find either of the drivers. But witnesses helped officers to track down one of the cars to a rental agency, where they found it had been rented to a third Russian national, named Ekaterina. She told the police that she was a passenger with Larissa and witnessed the accident, which she described.

But now, apparently, she has left the country, as have Valentin and Larisa. The main witness – Ekaterina – also disappeared after the police questioning. Police also interviewed Anna, the host of a party the Russian couple had been to before the accident but she told them she did not know their full names.

The flight of the three Russians has caused bitterness, not only among the boy’s family but also among the frustrated police.

Capt Thada Sodarak, investigation officer at Chalong police station told The Phuket News, “Wherever country people come from, whether developed or not, I believe we all have hearts. But what these Russians showed is that they are heartless – they don’t care. They just left.

“I asked [Ekaterina and Anna] to tell me the full names of their friends. But they just don’t care.

“I understand the intensity of the feelings of the boy’s relatives. Nevertheless, I have told them not to attack these Russian people. I have also ordered the police to look after the safety of everybody at Villa Market.” (Villa Market is a popular shopping venue for Russians in the Chalong area.)

“Right now we know who is the driver who killed the boy, but we can’t reveal anything. We just want to have the driver’s full name to advance the investigation. But no one will tell us.

“Of all the [foreigners] who live in Thailand, the Russians cause the most problem. Look: they come to our country, hit our children, and then when they feel like it they [run away].

“I asked them [the Russian witnesses], ‘Look, what would you do if a Thai goes to your country and hits and kills your children? Would you let him go back home?’ They said nothing.”

Som, the mother of the dead boy, told The Phuket News: “Lotus was a good boy. He worked and took care of his grandmother and his brothers and sisters. On the night he died he had gone out to buy some mosquito repellent.

“I have donated his eyes to the Thai Red Cross Society and already someone has received them.

“I don’t want my son to have died without someone paying for it. I’m ready to forgive because I don’t want [his spirit] to worry, but these Russians [the witness Ekaterina and and the party host Anna] are shirking their responsibility. They are not going to reveal the real name of the driver. It seems they are trying to protect their friends.”

The family were also critical of the police for allowing the witness Ekaterina to leave the country; she apparently flew out to Dubai on Monday (April 7). “How could the police not hold on to her passport?” Mrs Som asked. “She is the only witness.

“The car that hit my son went through a police checkpoint. Four officers were there but no one could catch that car.”

Pim, the boy’s aunt told The Phuket News that the family had done a deal of investigating before the police reacted, identifying the car and even the party venue, where they found one man still drunk, surrounded by empty beer and alcohol bottles.

Police declined to give more details of the investigation, but police volunteers said they would welcome any more details about the two drivers, Larisa and Valentin.

 

Photo: "Larisa" and "Valentin", Facebook.

Source: http://www.thephuket...sians-45639.php


-- Phuket News 2014-04-11

[Shocker]

Feel sorry for the kid and his family, but isn't leaving the scene of an accident after killing someone fairly standard practice for Thais?

[jerry]

Feel sorry for the kid and his family, but isn't leaving the scene of an accident after killing someone fairly standard practice for Thais?

 

RIP for the boy .

 

Sadly it is , more than once Thai friends have advised me to leave the scene ASAP in case of an accident . 

 

[xymmot]

Feel sorry for the kid and his family, but isn't leaving the scene of an accident after killing someone fairly standard practice for Thais?

 

My thoughts exactly, Thais run if they had the chance .  It happens all the time, but somehow they get caught.  I do feel sorry for the boy who got hit for no reason except maybe a drunk driver on the road.

[zenzen11]

Doesn't matter if it is "standard practice" to leave the scene of an accident or not.

What are you implying?

 ... Are you saying that people should not be upset that a boy was killed by a hit and run driver ... ?

and that now the killer is being protected by others?

 .. 

 Even if the person that hit the boy was Thai people would be upset.  

And, if the killer was Thai .. and couldn't flee the country .. the police (and the boy's friends/relatives) could find the person and hold them accountable for their actions.

Even if many Thai people would leave the scene, and advise others to do so, does not make it the correct thing to do.

 

IMO the people are justifiably upset that these killers are escaping justice and being protected by their friends.

[cbmgolfer]

Surely there are pictures from passport control in the airport (if not, what are those cameras for?)... They know what they look like, they can figure out who they are and demand extradition from the Russians.

[dirtyslag]

Poor lad ...

Just incompetence from start to finish by the authorities...

 

 

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[zenzen11]

Poor lad ...

Just incompetence from start to finish by the authorities...

 

 

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 How is this incompetence by the authorities?

 

What would you have them do?

 

Or do differently?

[layow]

@cbmgolfer are you joking? demand extradition?

 

the lad may have caused the accident for all we know or have been 50% responsible

 

you cant go on what has been reported, nor what the police say

 

and actually, although very sad for the family,

 

good on the Russians for having some solidarity,

 

something quite a miss for the English speaking farang

 

as we know some very dodgy sh1t can go down at the farang expense with no help or recourse.

[zenzen11]

Surely there are pictures from passport control in the airport (if not, what are those cameras for?)... They know what they look like, they can figure out who they are and demand extradition from the Russians.

 

How do they know what they look like? ... 

  .. EDIT: .. just saw the picture in the original post .. 

 ... missed that .. 

 

 

Do you REALLY think the Russians would extradite these people?

 

I doubt the even USA would extradite anyone with whatever evidence the Thai police have .. 

 

  The best hope the Thai people have of getting any kind of "justice" in this situation will be to extract some kind of revenge against the killers friends .. 

and .. if it were me .. 

and I was in the USA .. and I knew someone was protecting the killers of my son .. 

I would burn their fucking house down .. 

 

  .. LMFAO .. "the boy could have been responsible .. or %50 responsible"  .. 

yes .. Blame the dead person .. I suppose that as "standard procedure" in Africa ... LOL 

[cbmgolfer]

@cbmgolfer are you joking? demand extradition?

 

the lad may have caused the accident for all we know or have been 50% responsible

 

you cant go on what has been reported, nor what the police say

 

and actually, although very sad for the family,

 

good on the Russians for having some solidarity,

 

something quite a miss for the English speaking farang

 

as we know some very dodgy sh1t can go down at the farang expense with no help or recourse.

No, I am not joking.

[Daryle]

Now now boys... Money will put all this to a right. Just a matter of getting the insurance company to pay up, plus getting little Ms Russian to come to the party.

 

 

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[dirtyslag]

How is this incompetence by the authorities?

 

What would you have them do?

 

Or do differently?

 

Wouldn't have let them jump on the first plane to Dubai for starters..

 

 

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[Woofiee]

Now now boys... Money will put all this to a right. Just a matter of getting the insurance company to pay up, plus getting little Ms Russian to come to the party.

 

Nicely glib and hipster-esque. 

 

But the child is still dead. 

[zenzen11]

Wouldn't have let them jump on the first plane to Dubai for starters..

 

 

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And .. how would you stop this?

 

I could kill someone in the USA (or Thailand) ... leave my picture behind on the body.

And STILL have time to book a plane out of the country.

 

Its not like they can run to the airport within hours to look through every passengers picture and info.

[dirtyslag]

And .. how would you stop this?

 

I could kill someone in the USA (or Thailand) ... leave my picture behind on the body.

And STILL have time to book a plane out of the country.

 

Its not like they can run to the airport within hours to look through every passengers picture and info.

 

Confiscate their passport while they make further enquiries...

 

How would you feel if one of your family members was involved in an accident with a tourist, and said tourist just fucked off back to their own country?

 

Not to happy with the authorities I think...

 

 

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[stevensonn]

I am sure if they had stopped the Thais would have dispensed their own justice and lynched the Ruskies ,Russians are not very popular in Thailand ,I wonder where they are ? The least they could have done is drive to the nearest police station and hand themselves in instead they have chosen to run and taken the next flight out of the country .I doubt if the thai authorities will be able to extradite them even if they are able to establish the identity of the culprits because we all know Russians always back their own whether good or bad

[zenzen11]

Confiscate their passport while they make further enquiries...

 

How would you feel if one of your family members was involved in an accident with a tourist, and said tourist just fucked off back to their own country?

 

Not to happy with the authorities I think...

 

 

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How can you confiscate their passports when they have already left the country?

 

I agree, if the authorities HAD THEM in the police station then they never should have let them out.

 

I do not think they ever had them though.  They took off IMMEDIATELY. 

 

I would be VERY pissed if this happened to my child .. 

and as I stated earlier .. I would burn their friend's house down just to make a point.

[Edge]

How can you confiscate their passports when they have already left the country?

 

I agree, if the authorities HAD THEM in the police station then they never should have let them out.

 

I do not think they ever had them though.  They took off IMMEDIATELY. 

.......................................................

 

The witness and passenger in the car (if indeed she wasn't driving).

 

 

 

....................................................

Police failed to find either of the drivers. But witnesses helped officers to track down one of the cars to a rental agency, where they found it had been rented to a third Russian national, named Ekaterina. She told the police that she was a passenger with Larissa and witnessed the accident, which she described.

 

But now, apparently, she has left the country, as have Valentin and Larisa. The main witness – Ekaterina – also disappeared after the police questioning. ...................

 

Now they have only the party host Anna, who says she doesn't know their full names.

 

I would expect them to get the names from Immigration in due course.

[dirtyslag]

My bad

I thought the driver and her husband had been questioned ...

Just re read the article and seen they did just flee..

 

 

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