A 50-year-old single woman found love online with a 42-year-old man and arranged to meet at a resort in Udon Thani province. She was heartbroken when he deceived her by stealing her car, a gold necklace, and a gold-framed amulet. Fortunately, the police were able to recover the car.
At 09:00 on 9 February 2026, Mrs. B (a pseudonym), 50, from Udon Thani, came to meet Police Lieutenant Colonel Pichet Pakketat, Deputy Superintendent of Mueang Udon Thani Police Station, to hand over a spare car key and provide additional testimony about her white Toyota Veloz being borrowed by a male friend who had not returned it. The incident occurred the evening of 8 February 2026 at a resort in Sam Phrao Subdistrict, Mueang District, Udon Thani.
Mrs. B said she is single and works in Mueang Udon Thani. She met a young man on Facebook, later identified as Mr. Pu, 42, from Mai Subdistrict, Ban Muang District, Sakon Nakhon Province. They chatted for about two months. He seemed trustworthy, claiming to have a real name and address that could be verified but would not provide his 13-digit ID number. He said he was from Chanthaburi but was selling durians in Sakon Nakhon near Ban Dung District, Udon Thani. He added that he was currently working in Roi Et Province and would take a bus to meet her. He also said he was about to take a foreman job in Nong Wua So District, which she believed.
Mrs. B continued that Mr. Pu asked to be her boyfriend, but she said she was not ready and wanted to get to know him better first. He said he was ready for a new relationship since his wife had passed away. Trusting him, she arranged to meet on Friday, 6 February, at a resort in Sam Phrao Subdistrict, Mueang District, Udon Thani. They spent three days eating and drinking together at the resort. On Sunday morning, they went to make merit at Phu Thong Thep Nimit Temple in Nong Saeng District, with Mr. Pu driving her car. She took photos of him. She paid all expenses upfront because Mr. Pu said his salary had not yet been paid, promising to repay her 25,000 baht once he received it. After returning from the temple, on Sunday evening, 8 February, Mr. Pu said his salary had arrived and he would drive her car to buy beer and repay her about 5,000 baht.
Mrs. B said she trusted him and let him drive the car to withdraw money. Mr. Pu called asking if she wanted beer or liquor and asked for her bank account number to transfer 10,000 baht. After she gave the details, no money was transferred. He then stopped responding, changed his profile picture to a cat, ignored calls, and blocked her on Facebook. When she checked her bedroom, she found his bag of clothes missing, along with her 2-salueng gold necklace, a Luang Pu Thuat amulet dated 1965 with a gold frame set with diamonds, valued at 80,000 baht. She reported to the police to recover her car and gave a spare key to facilitate access if the car was found.
At 12:00 the same day, Police Colonel Patthanawong Janphon, Superintendent of Mueang Udon Thani Police Station, and Police Lieutenant Colonel Pichet Pakketat, Deputy Superintendent of the investigation division, took the suspect for a crime reenactment after his confession. They found the reported stolen car parked in a lot in front of a shopping mall. Using the spare key, police opened the car and found it in normal condition. They brought the car back to the station and called Mrs. B to inspect it. She was very happy to get her car back, but the gold necklace and amulet had not been recovered. She insisted on pressing charges against Mr. Pu.
“I am very glad justice has been served and I got my car back. I thank the police for quickly recovering it. There are good police officers, not just the bad ones in the news. This experience is a lesson. I want to warn everyone not to trust people blindly. Screen and choose carefully on Facebook and online. It’s better to meet face-to-face. I want to tell Mr. Pu that you should know this is wrong—to play with someone’s heart and feelings. If someone lacks knowledge and friends to help, they might not even be able to file a report or find their car so quickly. It could have taken much longer.”
Police Colonel Patthanawong Janphon, Superintendent of Mueang Udon Thani Police Station, said that although the car has been recovered, some valuables have not been returned. He ordered investigators to take further statements from the victim to gather evidence and seek court approval to issue an arrest warrant for Mr. Pu, who will face legal proceedings.