A mother and aunt filed a complaint against a village headman who forcibly handcuffed a 28-year-old man, tied him to a mango tree, slapped and poked him, then struck his head with a red ants' nest. The opposing party appeared later seeking to settle, saying there was nothing to explain.
On the night of 25 Apr 2016, Mrs. Somthong, 49, the mother, and Mrs. Amornrat, 36, the aunt of Mr. Suthep, 28, from Phatthalung Province, sought justice alleging that a village headman dragged Mr. Suthep, who was sleeping inside the house, handcuffed him, tied him to a mango tree in front of the house, slapped him twice causing bruising around his eyes, and poked him once more. Afterwards, the headman fetched four red ants nests, struck his head with three, and placed one nest beside him.
The headman claimed to have CCTV evidence that Mr. Suthep had sneaked in to steal beetles that villagers were raising. Mr. Suthep denied stealing, saying he only went in with a plastic bag. Mr. Suthep endured suffering for over four hours as the handcuffs were not removed. Family members had to drive to request police assistance from Srinakharin Police Station to remove the handcuffs, fearing their nephew might not survive otherwise. Police then came and removed the handcuffs. Red ant bites were found all over Mr. Suthep's body, and signs of struggling were evident at the base of the mango tree.
Most recently, at 10:30 a.m. on 26 Apr 2016, Mr. Suthep's mother and aunt filed a police complaint at Srinakharin Police Station, Phatthalung Province, to press charges against the village headman.
Mrs. Somthong, the mother, said the village headman had gone too far by handcuffing her son, slapping and poking him, and striking his head with red ants. She pleaded and even bowed repeatedly during the attack, which caused bleeding, but the headman did not relent. She also refused to give in, determined to pursue the case to the end. She admitted her son had a bad character, but if he committed a crime, the proper procedure is to report to the police and let the law handle it—not to take vigilante action like this.
Mrs. Somthong added that earlier that morning, the headman and local administrative officers from Srinakharin District came to their house. The headman asked if they would settle the matter without going to the police and end it there. He said he was willing to compensate, but the mother refused, insisting on pursuing the matter fully.
When reporters met the village headman and asked for his explanation about the incident, he briefly replied that there was nothing to explain and he did not need to talk to the press.