A woman rushed to Pattaya City Police Station to file a complaint after three burly men stormed into an herbal shop claiming to be from an investigation unit. They found drug paraphernalia, abducted her and the shop's employees, detained them in a safe house, and threatened to extort 10,000 baht for their freedom.
At 00:10 on 4 August 2026, Ms. Kanyapak (surname withheld), 36, came to Pattaya City Police Station to report that three burly men had stormed into an herbal shop located in Soi 13/2, South Pattaya, Moo 10, Nong Prue Subdistrict, Bang Lamung District, Chonburi Province. They abducted her along with two employees from the shop and took them to a safe house before releasing her to raise money to free the others still detained.
Ms. Kanyapak, 36, said that after being taken captive, the three men claiming to be police investigators demanded she raise 10,000 baht as ransom for the release of all three detained individuals. However, she was certain they were not real police officers and promptly reported the incident seeking assistance.
The incident occurred on 27 July 2026 when three men claiming to be police entered the herbal shop to conduct a search. They alleged finding drug paraphernalia, which they used as a pretext to take the victims to their safe house and demand money. One of the three released the complainant to raise 10,000 baht to buy their freedom. She suspected they were not police because she was not taken to the police station but to a room containing only drug paraphernalia and was only pressured for money. Lacking funds or valuables, the men did not receive the ransom and eventually released all victims before she reported the matter.
Initially, Police Lieutenant Colonel Saijai Khamchulla, an investigator at Pattaya City Police Station, received the complaint and forwarded the case to the investigation unit. They promptly went to the scene to review CCTV footage and are actively pursuing the three suspects claiming to be police officers to bring them to justice under the law.