A mother abandoned her 10-year-old son after frequent quarrels with her stepfather. She decided to flee with her two children back to their original home but lacked enough money to buy tickets. She left her eldest son alone waiting at the bus terminal before rescue workers and kind-hearted locals intervened to help.
On 28 May 2026, a reporter reported that a Facebook user posted a photo of a 10-year-old boy with a message stating, “Received a request for help from the village headman of Village 5, Sa Kruat Subdistrict. The 10-year-old child came with his mother and younger sibling, totaling three people, planning to return to their hometown in Chonburi Province. Upon arriving at the bus ticket booth, they found they lacked enough money for the fare, so they left the 10-year-old boy waiting at the Sri Thep fresh market bus stop. Only the mother and younger sibling boarded the bus first. The Sri Thep Kaok Sai rescue unit intervened to help by purchasing some tickets and collecting 500 baht in donations from nearby locals to give the boy, along with the rescue unit’s contact number to ensure payment of fares until he reached home.”
After the post was made public, many netizens expressed praise for the assistance and criticized the mother for leaving her 10-year-old son alone like that.
Upon inquiry, Mr. Natchakitnan Yodsai, or Technician Bia, the poster and a rescue worker at Sri Thep Kaok Sai, Phong Lai 20, Sri Thep District, Phetchabun Province, said that after receiving the village headman’s alert, he went to provide assistance. He learned from the child that the 10-year-old boy, his mother, and younger sibling—three people in total—were living with the stepfather. The stepfather often quarreled and abused the mother, so she decided to take her children back to their home in Chonburi Province.
However, upon arrival, they found they did not have enough money for the bus tickets. The mother told the 10-year-old boy to return to the stepfather’s house, which was about 3-4 kilometers across from the bus terminal. But the boy refused to go back. Therefore, I and the locals helped by buying a ticket for the boy and providing some money to take with him home. I also gave him my phone number, instructing that if he needs to take another bus with additional fare, the driver should call me, and I would transfer the money. This arrangement is to ensure he returns home safely.