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Nana Pickpocket Warning


StoneSoup

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I'm just posting an advisory, in case it can save someone some grief.

 

I ate dinner this evening at the Bus Stop on Soi 4, and was headed over to Foodland to buy a few items before returning home. At about 9:15 pm, I was crossing Sukhumvit in front of the Police Box at the Nana intersection. One of the flowergirls - about 15-16 years old (presumably Vietnamese) - stepped off the curb a half step behind me, and shadowed me until I was stepping up onto the "island" on the divider strip. She then suddendly sidled up on my right side, and shoved a bunch of flowers up into my face, repeatedly saying "20 baht, 20 baht". But - that was just the distraction - her other hand was busy trying to remove my handphone from its holster on my belt. My right hand pushed the flowers away, and my left hand grabbed her hand as she was opening the flap on the handphone holster.

 

And there I stood - on the island, with seconds ticking away for the crossing, and an associate with whom I was walking already on the far side sidewalk, turning right. She was maybe 40 kg, and 1.5 meters tall - and for a split second, I thought about:

 

1) Crushing her hand - to cripple

 

2) Dragging her back to the police box

 

In the end, I just threw her hand upward and back, throwing her off balance, and causing her to start to fall into the shrubbery - but she caught herself, and retreated back toward the police box - and I continued on to the far side. Point. Set. Match. No harm done - to me, or to her.

 

The timing was practiced and precise - hit the target just as he steps up on the half-way island, which automatically provides a two direction getaway - and which puts the "mark" in a time/distance crunch - and also causes the target to have to give some attention to traffic.

 

Interesting dilemma - what do you do in my situation? No harm done to me personally. The 'perp' is a small, 16 year old flower girl. If I let her go, maybe 100-200 other targets will lose a phone this year. If I break her arm, many fewer targets will lose their phones. If I drag her back to the police box - what are they going to do? They can't extort money out of her. They don't really give a dam_n. Traffic police don't want to babysit non-violent juvenile girls.

 

At any rate - if anyone else reads this, and then ends up in the exact same position - and this gives you the extra half-second of pre-knowledge that saves you the grief of a stolen handphone, then all are better off.

 

I've lived/worked in lower Sukhumvit for a bit over six years now - and am well familiar with the flower girls / shoe shine kids. Over the past six months, I've noticed a marked change in their operations. They used to be 80% involved in their apparent business, 10% into larceny, and (perhaps) 10% into - satisfying pedophiles.

 

As I see it now, the numbers have changed to 40% conventional business, and 60% larceny. As soon as they start clinging to you or penetrating your personal space, they are probing you, with the object of stealing something. It is probably going to take some tragic "vigilante payback" against a few of them to discourage the trend.

 

I know by sight one of the "Fagin's" on lower Sukhumvit - a short, innocent-looking tomboyish lady - maybe early 30's, with a "page boy" haircut. Maybe its time to have a "chat" with her, to remind her of her mortality.

 

I had no qualms a few years back when running one of the Katoey pickpocket gauntlets that used to be permanently emplaced down around Soi 19 - if they even came close, a sharp bark and a swinging arm out in front of me would cause them to back off (and wait for an easier target?). I would have very decisively engaged these adult predators without hesitation.

 

But - what to do with children? I just don't have the bully in me to dispense steet justice to someone 40% my size (or less).

 

Cheers!

SS

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StoneSoup said:

I know by sight one of the "Fagin's" on lower Sukhumvit - a short, innocent-looking tomboyish lady - maybe early 30's, with a "page boy" haircut. Maybe its time to have a "chat" with her, to remind her of her mortality.SS

The problem there is you may bring your own into question...........not sure whether that would be the smartest thing to do based on what I have learnt over the years. I think just being aware is a good heads up. Thanks for the tip.

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During my last trip to BKK I was staying at the Die nasty hotel and I kept having one little boy selling flowers grab me around the leg and not letting go. My first thought was that he was trying to steal my wallet. But after checking my pockets and finally extacting the little fellow from my leg. After walking with him attached to me for half a block. I had nothing missing. I found this was rather stange and annoying.

But what can you do to a little kid?

 

Thanks for the warning.

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Just last night I was walking near Foodland and saw not one, but two of the flower kids playing with cellphones in separate locations. When I first saw the phone, I thought it was a toy. Then when I saw the keyboard light up, I thought to myself that it's true, "in Thailand everyone has a cellphone". I wondered at that time how they could ever afford a cellphone. I guess I know now how they got their phones.

 

Both appeared to be about 8-10 yrs old with one a boy and other a girl. They were not walking together. My significant other says the kids sound like they are talking Cambodian, so probably are not Vietnamese. Cambodians begging in Bangkok are much more common than Vietnamese.

 

When the cops come to hustle the beggars, they have been taught to take off running. They usually end up in the alley between Amari Hotel and the Beer Garden in a group of 6-8 including handlers.

 

The old hag that runs these kids should be taught a lesson.

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the "minder" I see has a head scarf like a muslim, this is for the ones around Nana....

 

and the "little ones" had cellphones last december....

 

plus they sure can run when the cops show up. ...

and much more graceful them the ladyboys "herd of buffolo" running from the cops :)

 

"herd of buffolo"

 

OC

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Thank you for the reminder.

 

Yeah, I've had the same thought of doing damage flash through my mind when I've found someone else's hand on my wallet, which has happened many times over the years, but as in your case, I have resisted the urge.

 

Talk like "vigilante payback" and "...should be taught a lesson" is repugnant. This sort of response is sinking below their level and as with the case dddave mentions, makes it all too easy for the perpetrator to claim abuse, and in a foreign country, you really don't want to be seen as picking on one of the locals. And other foreigners don't want to you be seen this way etiher.

 

The best course of action is probably what you have already done. Write about it. Tell people. Raise awareness. Complain.

 

It took the PM cleaning up the city for an APEC conference to motivate the police to get many of these beggers off the streets. It is unlikely that a long term solution will appear within in our lifetimes, so we had better get used to it.

 

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