PHUKET: A South African tourist has told Phuket police that a trip rope was used to throw him off his motorcycle in a Patong downpour last weekend.
The tourist, Tune Laubscher, 42 on Monday, was knocked unconscious and suffered facial wounds that may leave him scarred.
It was last Saturday and the newly-arrived Mr Laubscher, who runs an advertising agency in Cape Town, was riding his rented motorcycle back to his resort about 10pm, after an afternoon at the beach and a night out watching rugby.
''It's difficult for me to say precisely where i was because it was pouring with rain at the time,'' he told Phuketwan last night.
''I remember going flying and banged my head. I must have been unconscious for a while. When I got up and went back to pick up my bike, my wallet was gone.''
Bleeding profusely and hardly comprehending what had happened, local residents helped him to Patong Hospital where nurses treated his wounds.
The following day, he reported what had happened to Kathu Police Station. But because Mr Laubscher could not say precisely where the rope had been strung across the road, there was little they could do.
One lasting concern is that he may lose his good looks - as a model, that matters. More surgery may be necessary, but for now he is going to the hospital every day to have his wounds treated and dressed.
''I withdrew 20,000 baht from an ATM on Saturday and left 10,000 baht at the resort,'' he said. ''So they got what remained of the other 10,000 baht plus all my credit cards and ID.
''I really don't have a clue whether the people who attacked me were two feet tall or eight feet tall, or where it took place exactly.''
Mr Laubscher, who arrived on Phuket on his own, has since teamed up with a friend and says that's helping him to cope with the trauma.
He also has praise for Patong's locals. ''They couldn't have been more helpful,'' he said.
Patong Region 8 police volunteer Wal Brown said it was the first incident he'd heard of in Patong where a rope had been strung across a road, but that such a dangerous technique had been employed previously elsewhere in Thailand.
Lone tourists on motorcycles at night on Phuket have occasionally crashed in suspicious circumstances and been left with no money or ID. Often, the rider is left unconscious at the roadside and has no memory of what took place.
The tourist, Tune Laubscher, 42 on Monday, was knocked unconscious and suffered facial wounds that may leave him scarred.
It was last Saturday and the newly-arrived Mr Laubscher, who runs an advertising agency in Cape Town, was riding his rented motorcycle back to his resort about 10pm, after an afternoon at the beach and a night out watching rugby.
''It's difficult for me to say precisely where i was because it was pouring with rain at the time,'' he told Phuketwan last night.
''I remember going flying and banged my head. I must have been unconscious for a while. When I got up and went back to pick up my bike, my wallet was gone.''
Bleeding profusely and hardly comprehending what had happened, local residents helped him to Patong Hospital where nurses treated his wounds.
The following day, he reported what had happened to Kathu Police Station. But because Mr Laubscher could not say precisely where the rope had been strung across the road, there was little they could do.
One lasting concern is that he may lose his good looks - as a model, that matters. More surgery may be necessary, but for now he is going to the hospital every day to have his wounds treated and dressed.
''I withdrew 20,000 baht from an ATM on Saturday and left 10,000 baht at the resort,'' he said. ''So they got what remained of the other 10,000 baht plus all my credit cards and ID.
''I really don't have a clue whether the people who attacked me were two feet tall or eight feet tall, or where it took place exactly.''
Mr Laubscher, who arrived on Phuket on his own, has since teamed up with a friend and says that's helping him to cope with the trauma.
He also has praise for Patong's locals. ''They couldn't have been more helpful,'' he said.
Patong Region 8 police volunteer Wal Brown said it was the first incident he'd heard of in Patong where a rope had been strung across a road, but that such a dangerous technique had been employed previously elsewhere in Thailand.
Lone tourists on motorcycles at night on Phuket have occasionally crashed in suspicious circumstances and been left with no money or ID. Often, the rider is left unconscious at the roadside and has no memory of what took place.
Anyone caught doing this should get life in prison - the potential to kill someone is extremely high.
Posted by Ciaran on August 1, 2014 08:55