A British tourist is being hunted by police after he was allegedly filmed attacking his Thai ex-girlfriend’s home in Pattaya after she kicked him out.
Footage reportedly shows the unnamed 42-year-old Brit smashing up the property belonging to bar girl Soraya Janbuppa, 31, after their whirlwind holiday romance ended in a bitter break-up.
The former businessman, from East London, was kicked out of her home over alleged abusive and violent behaviour, according to local news outlet Pattaya News.
However, he was said to have raided it twice while Soraya was away.
A newly installed CCTV camera captured his rampage as he hurled shoes and plant pots over the garage gate in the early hours of Tuesday, August 12.
He also allegedly snapped the side mirror of a motorcycle before fleeing the scene.
Soraya said she returned from work and found that her home had been ransacked later that morning.
She filed a report at the local station, fearing her former lover would return to hurt her.
She also claimed her ex had previously trashed her home, but she could not call police because she had no security cameras at the time.
She said: ‘I finished working and returned home around 4 am when I saw my items scattered and the gate completely damaged.
‘I checked security camera footage from 3am and saw him climbing the gate.
‘He threw my shoes out and threw gardening pots from outside into the house. After three to four minutes, he left. I filed the report at 6am.’
The bar girl said she met the Brit, who works for an Essex-based steel fabrications company, at an entertainment venue in the Thai resort town around four months ago.
She said they maintained contact through messaging apps even after he had left Thailand.
She continued: ‘He returned to Thailand again on July 18, and I let him stay in my house for around 10 days.
‘He was scheduled to leave on August 6 but stayed until August 12.
‘While we were together, he acted aggressively and spoke vulgarly to me.
‘We argued often. I was not okay with the relationship and could not bear letting him stay in my house anymore because he never paid any expenses, so I forced him out.
‘I told him to stay outside, which might have made him angry because I chased him away.
‘When we were together, he never assaulted me. His violent behaviour was habitual and not caused by alcohol. However, he was once drunk and argued with a motorcycle taxi rider.
‘I do not know where he is residing now, only that he is somewhere in Pattaya.’
Soraya said she was ‘in a state of paranoia’, constantly worrying that her vengeful ex would attack her.
She sought help from the media as she claimed police were taking too long to act.
She said: ‘I called the police several times but they said we had to wait because there was a process. They said they needed to call him and then call the patrol.
‘They would then go and arrest him face to face. But I don’t know when he will return. Do the police have to wait for something to happen to me before they act? I’m very anxious and worried about my safety.’
Lieutenant Kittiphot Iampraphai, an investigator at Nong Prue district station, said officers were today tracking the suspect.
The officer added: ‘At this point, the police have already taken the statement from the complainant, Ms Soraya, and we are in the process of sending a request to Immigration to obtain [his] address, since they have information on his residence.
‘If we can locate him, we will first arrange for them to talk in order to mediate, because they just recently broke up. However, it depends on the victim whether she wishes to proceed with legal action. We are ready to proceed if she wishes.
‘If she decides to take legal action, the foreigner would be charged with nighttime trespassing and causing damage to property.
‘However, he likely won’t be charged with overstaying his visa, as checks show it is still valid and will expire next month.’
Tourists are regularly caught up in crime, leading Pattaya to be dubbed ‘Sin City’.
Embarrassed officials in the central government have launched tourism initiatives to attract families and rebrand Pattaya as a safe destination.
Authorities have also introduced safety measures, such as improved lighting and CCTV.
Despite some success in cleaning up the town’s image, alcohol and sex remain its biggest draws, often leading to a high rate of crime and accidents.