The village headman revealed information about "Nong Det," a young Karen man who was assaulted on orders from "Hia Tee." He described Det as a hardworking individual who earns money to support his mother and send his younger sibling to school. Det holds Thai nationality and is in the process of obtaining a national ID card at Mueang Kanchanaburi District. The headman disagreed with the assault, pointing out that the country has laws and that government officials would not take such extreme measures.
On 10 March 2026, reporters reported that The case became a hot topic on social media involving "Hia Tee Hot Pan Steak" or "Hia Tee Thai Not Tolerant," who confronted workers suspected of being foreigners, leading to physical assault and the incident being shared as content on social media.
Later, at 11:00 a.m., reporters visited Huai Nam Khao Village, Village No. 15, Ban Kao Subdistrict, Mueang District, Kanchanaburi Province, and met Mr. Rewat Luangdaeng, the headman of Village No. 15, Huai Nam Khao. He provided details about Mr. Det (no surname yet), 27 years old, holding a pink card starting with number 6, Thai nationality, of Karen ethnicity. His father is deceased, and his mother, Mrs. Kaew (no surname yet), 48 years old, is Karen. He has a younger brother named Mr. Dom Chokdanthai, 25 years old, who already holds a Thai ID card. Both the mother and Mr. Det are currently in the process of applying for Thai national ID cards at Mueang Kanchanaburi District. The process is expected to be completed soon because Det was born and raised in Thailand and has witnesses supporting all procedural steps, similar to his younger brother, whose process has been completed.
Mr. Rewat Luangdaeng, headman of Village No. 15, Huai Nam Khao, said that as far as he knows, he has seen Nong Det since childhood. Det was born in Thailand and has siblings with the same parents: Det and Dom.
After Det's father passed away when Det was still young, his mother raised them and later had a new partner who was Thai but has since passed away. They also have a younger sister who is still studying. Det's mother currently works as a laborer, and the younger brother Dom also works as a laborer.
Normally, in the village, Nong Det has never been troublemaking. After he started working, he helped his mother support the younger sibling's education. He is hardworking and has no record of misconduct in the village.
The origin is that his father was in Thailand, likely the same generation as the village headman, while his mother is Karen but migrated to Thailand since the time the Karen people were displaced. They have proper documentation—a pink card issued by Thailand allowing legal residence.
Since then, Det was born but had no birth certificate, so he had to hold the pink card. Currently, Nong Det is awaiting approval, while his younger sibling has already obtained the ID card.
“Dom has a surname, which I (the headman) gave: Chokdanthai. If Det receives his ID card, his surname will be the same as Dom's, which I assigned. So, Det will likely use the same surname as Dom.”
The village headman further stated that Det should not be judged in that way. If Det is guilty, then the law should take its course. Even government officials involved have not gone to such lengths. Even the headman himself said that there are many Karen people in the village, but they have never experienced any violence or assault to this extent.
He added that society should help judge and be a voice for Nong Det. “As Det is a member of my village, I see that MPs Golf and Kai, among other agencies, have already contacted us. We are truly grateful to these two MPs.”
Mr. Rewat, the village headman, said further that regarding ethnicity, some people in better positions often categorize others as Karen, Mon, Burmese, etc. But in reality, the phrase 'Thailand' includes all ethnic groups. There is a line in the Thai national anthem about "uniting flesh and blood as Thai race." In the west are Thai Karen, in the northwest Thai Lanna, in the south Thai Muslim, in the east Thai Surin, and also Thai Lao. This is the meaning of 'uniting flesh and blood as Thai race.' I want us to remember this and to love one another as Thai people.”