Trolley thieves apprehended At Airport

The arrests followed recent complaints of insufficient trolleys at the international airport and the discovery that some 2,000 out of 9,000 trolleys were missing.

Police were alerted at 2.30 am yesterday that two men in a pickup truck had tried to smuggle five trolleys out of the airport but were stopped at Parking Lot Building 3.

The cleaning staff member, Supakorn Klawikrit, 29, and friend Abhisit Nhopuutharangkul, 33, reportedly confessed that they had been stealing trolleys since March.

The duo said they took three or four trolleys each time, usually during weekend nights, and sold them to a scrap shop in Nong Chok district for Bt960 per trolley.

Police then raided the scrap shop and found the parts of some 500 trolleys there. The shop owner was interrogated and the parts, later identified by the supplier as those in service at the airport, were seized as evidence.

Each trolley was worth Bt17,000, thus the retrieved 500 trolleys were worth about Bt8.5 million in total.

In two previous cases, alleged trolley thieves were arrested and their trials are proceeding. Since this recent arrest revealed the largest number of stolen trolleys, police suspect there are more groups stealing trolleys and aim for further investigations and arrests.

Samut Prakan governor Anuwat Methiwibulwut said that he would report the property thefts at the airport to the Provincial Administration Department to push for scrap shops in the area to stop trading in stolen items.

Airport deputy chief Captain Pratheep Wichittoe said more security cameras would be installed at the airport while police and security guards would increase surveillance.