Gunman seals six people inside a Talat Thai bank, pulls a gun and escapes with ฿1.54 million. He flees in a Toyota with fake Songkhla plates before torching the car near AIT, as CCTV reveals it was circling the bank three days earlier.
A masked gunman pulled off a ฿1.54 million bank heist at Talat Thai on Thursday before torching his getaway car. The robber sealed five employees and a security guard inside the TMBThanachart branch, then threatened them with a gun. He grabbed ฿500,000 from the counter before forcing staff to open the safe, taking ฿1,541,704. Minutes later, he sped away in a grey Toyota Vios with fake Songkhla plates. The car was later found burned out opposite the Asian Institute of Technology on Phahonyothin Road. Crucially, CCTV reportedly caught the same Toyota circling the bank three days before the raid. Provincial Police Region 1 Commander Pol Lt Gen Wattana Yijin has ordered a manhunt as detectives trace the gunman’s escape.
A masked gunman stormed a bank at Talat Thai on Thursday and escaped with ฿1,541,704 in cash. He trapped five employees and a security guard inside before threatening them with a gun. First, he grabbed ฿500,000 from the counter.
He then forced staff to open the safe and hand over more money. Minutes later, he sped away in a grey Toyota Vios carrying fake Songkhla plates. However, the getaway car was later found burned out near the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT). Police launched an immediate manhunt as senior commanders descended on the crime scene.
The raid targeted a TMBThanachart Bank branch inside the sprawling Talat Thai wholesale complex. It is located in Khlong Nueng, Khlong Luang district, Pathum Thani province. Pol Lt Col Siroj Nabnean received the robbery report on September 10. He is Deputy Superintendent for Investigation at Khlong Luang Police Station. In response, he alerted his superiors and investigators raced to the bank.
Police secure Talat Thai bank as CCTV captures masked gunman, fake plates and ฿1.54 million raid
Pol Maj Gen Peerapol Chotikasetthian subsequently joined the investigation at the scene. He is Commander of Pathum Thani Provincial Police. In parallel, specialists from Forensic Science Centre 1 began examining the branch. Police secured the area and immediately turned to its security cameras. Crucially, CCTV had captured the masked robber, his clothing and his getaway vehicle.
The suspect was described as a thin man standing approximately 170 centimetres tall. He wore a red shirt, gloves and a balaclava covering his head and face. Notably, he arrived in a grey Toyota Vios displaying registration KM 8353 Songkhla. The car was parked directly outside the bank near closing time. Police later discovered another key detail. The Songkhla registration plates were fake.
Inside the branch, the robber moved quickly to prevent anyone interrupting the raid. Initially, he placed a sign at the entrance indicating the bank was closed. Next, he used an iron pipe to bar the door. The move effectively sealed the branch with six people still inside. He then produced a gun and threatened the five employees and the security guard.
The gunman first targeted cash sitting at the counter. He seized approximately ฿500,000 before demanding access to the bank’s safe. At that point, he forced staff to open it. The employees complied while being threatened with the weapon. Afterwards, he collected the additional cash and prepared his escape. Police later calculated the entire haul at exactly ฿1,541,704.
Gunman flees Talat Thai with ฿1.54 million before getaway Toyota is found burned beside the road
With the money secured, the masked man left the branch and returned to the Toyota. Within minutes, the car disappeared from Talat Thai. Yet the robber’s escape would soon take another dramatic turn. The grey Vios was found ablaze beside one of Pathum Thani’s busiest road corridors.
Tha Khlong municipal firefighters received a report of a vehicle fire in a vacant lot. The site was opposite AIT on the inbound side of Phahonyothin Road. On arrival, crews discovered a grey Toyota sedan being consumed by flames. Once the blaze was controlled, police identified it as the getaway vehicle.
The registration still matched the car seen outside the bank. It displayed KM 8353 Songkhla, despite police later confirming the plates were false. By then, however, the Toyota had been extensively damaged by fire. Police believe the getaway vehicle was deliberately set ablaze after the robbery.
Separately, detectives reviewing earlier CCTV made another important discovery. The Toyota had reportedly been driving around the bank since September 7. That placed the vehicle near the target three days before Thursday’s raid. As part of this, investigators began examining several days of footage around the wholesale complex.
Detectives trace burned Toyota through CCTV as forensic teams hunt its true identity and registered owner
The discovery gave detectives a longer CCTV trail to follow. They can now trace the vehicle’s movements before the robbery and during Thursday’s escape. Furthermore, cameras may show where the Toyota travelled after earlier appearances near the bank. Police are comparing those recordings with footage from roads surrounding Talat Thai.
On another front, forensic specialists began working on the burned Toyota. The fake plates meant the visible registration could not identify its owner. Therefore, investigators turned to permanent identification marks on the vehicle. Officers were ordered to locate its chassis and engine numbers despite the extensive fire damage.
Those numbers could reveal the Toyota’s true registration and registered owner. Additionally, forensic officers are examining the wreckage for other surviving evidence. The car could provide another route towards identifying the gunman. Its ownership and movements are now central parts of the investigation.
Meanwhile, detectives are reconstructing the robber’s escape after he abandoned the Toyota. Police are checking CCTV cameras between Talat Thai and the vacant lot opposite AIT. They are also examining cameras beyond the burned vehicle. Investigators want to establish how the gunman continued his escape after torching the car.
The investigation quickly reached the highest regional police command. Pol Lt Gen Wattana Yijin, Commander of Provincial Police Region 1, personally inspected the bank. Following his inspection, he ordered the investigative team to accelerate the hunt. Officers were told to examine CCTV along the escape route without delay.
Police rebuild the Talat Thai raid from CCTV as fake plates and burned Toyota become key evidence
At the same time, Pol Lt Gen Wattana ordered forensic officers to establish the Toyota’s true identity. Detectives must trace both the vehicle and the masked man seen inside the bank. Consequently, police are working backwards from Thursday’s robbery and forward from the abandoned car.
The CCTV inside the bank has already provided a detailed sequence of the raid. The robber arrived near closing time and parked immediately outside. He entered wearing a balaclava, red shirt and gloves. Then came the closed-door sign and the iron pipe barricade. Only after sealing the entrance did he threaten those inside with the gun.
The first target was approximately ฿500,000 held at the counter. Still, the robber demanded considerably more before leaving. He forced employees to open the safe and surrendered no opportunity to increase his haul. By the time he left, he was carrying ฿1,541,704.
Outside, the Toyota provided the first stage of his escape. Later, the burned wreckage provided police with another crime scene. The fake plates added a further layer to the investigation. However, the chassis and engine numbers could still expose the vehicle’s identity.
Earlier CCTV footage could prove equally important. The same Toyota was reportedly seen around the branch from September 7. Thus, police have recordings stretching back three days before the robbery. Detectives are examining whether cameras captured its movements elsewhere during that period.
Talat Thai’s huge trading hub becomes crime scene as police follow CCTV and burned Toyota evidence
Talat Thai itself is one of Thailand’s largest wholesale trading centres. The vast complex sits beside the Phahonyothin Road corridor in Khlong Nueng. It operates around the clock and serves thousands of traders. Moreover, approximately 12,000 tonnes of produce pass through the market every day.
Its scale supports extensive commercial activity and numerous financial services. Banks operate in the area to serve traders and businesses working across the enormous complex. Thursday’s raid brought senior provincial and regional police commanders directly to the market.
By Thursday night, investigators had several major evidence trails under examination. One was the bank’s CCTV, which captured the robber and his clothing. Another was footage showing the Toyota around the branch from September 7. A third involved cameras tracing Thursday’s escape towards the burned vehicle.
Beyond that, forensic officers have the wrecked Toyota itself. Although badly burned, its chassis and engine numbers may establish its real identity. Investigators are also searching for evidence surviving inside the vehicle. In turn, that work could connect the car with whoever possessed it before Thursday’s robbery.
Regional police widen hunt for masked Talat Thai gunman after ฿1.54 million raid and burned getaway car
Police must also determine the robber’s route after abandoning the Toyota. For that reason, cameras surrounding the vacant lot are being examined. Footage from Phahonyothin Road and surrounding routes forms another part of the expanding CCTV hunt.
Pol Lt Gen Wattana has ordered officers to move quickly. Detectives are hunting the thin, masked gunman who threatened six people and stole ฿1,541,704. Forensic teams are simultaneously trying to identify the burned Toyota despite its fake plates.
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As the manhunt intensified, police continued tracing several days of CCTV around Talat Thai and along the escape route. The robber remained at large after abandoning and burning the getaway car. However, investigators had his movements inside the bank, the Toyota and several days of camera footage to examine.
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