Quote:
Originally Posted by LivinLOS
Dutch tourist stabbed near Downtown Market
The victim and his wife were loading goods into a tuk-tuk about 50 meters from the entrance to the market at about 10:30 pm when the thief ran up and ripped the victim’s fanny pack from around his waist.
Mr De Klerk gave chase and caught up with the man..... ...the thief pulled out a knife and stabbed De Klerk twice, once in the left hand and once in the abdomen, slicing through his bladder.
The thief then fled with the bag, which contained 20 euros in cash, a camera, credit card, cosmetics and other personal effects....
The victim was rushed to Bangkok Phuket Hospital, where he remains in the ICU......
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Getting stabbed over a thousand baht in cash and a few insured personal effects .... I'd be feeling pretty stupid as I lay there looking at the ceiling with tubes running out of most of my orifices....a holiday to remember.
Hindsight is always 20/20....a fairly brazen robbery, armed robbery since he had a knife and was prepared to use it…seems so artless and unrefined in a country that is infamous for parting you from your money in a 1000 far more subtle ways...anyone anywhere can "mug" you, I've come to expect something better when in Thailand....
Somebody snatches your bag and runs....instinct is to chase....we'd all do it...hard to believe this 51 year old was able to catch up to the crook....heck, I'm younger and lately doubt I'd catch one of those blind karaoke singer teams if they got a few metres head start....
IMO...it is not that you stop thinking for a moment but rather it is how quickly you start thinking clearly again that matters....I'd hope I'd have the presence of mind to give up the chase, shout something like "please just leave me my leprosy medicine" and get back to the wife; just in case this was a decoy and his partners were really after the tuk-tuk full of gear and the wife's jewelry, money etc.
This guy cornered a rat and the rat bit him as rat’s do...a good example of how NOT to handle the situation....he has my sympathy but not my respect. Enjoy.
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"Heaven holds a sense of wonder...and I wanted to believe..."