A man who robbed a gold shop at gunpoint in Chon Buri’s Muang district on Thursday morning died after jumping from a six-storey condominium in what police suspect was a suicide attempt to evade capture.
At around 9:30 a.m., Muang Chonburi police received reports of an armed robbery at a gold shop located inside a department store in tambon Ban Suan.
The robber stole four gold necklaces totaling 38 baht weight (approximately 578 grams). CCTV footage showed a man wearing a hat and face mask entering the store, pretending to be a customer before pulling out a firearm. He forced staff to hand over two 10-baht necklaces and two 9-baht necklaces, then fled the scene with the gold stuffed into a bag.
A plainclothes policeman in the area tried to apprehend the suspect, resulting in a struggle during which the officer was injured but managed to seize the suspect’s gun.
Suspect Jumps from Condo
Around 11:30 a.m., Donhualor police and rescue workers responded to reports of a man who had fallen from a condominium building in tambon Donhualor.
Emergency teams found an unidentified man, about 45 years old, critically injured and without identification documents. He was transported to Chonburi Hospital, but later died.
Police discovered a motorcycle parked beneath the building, believed to belong to the victim.
By 3:30 p.m., senior officers reviewed surveillance footage and confirmed the man who jumped from the building was the same suspect who robbed the gold shop earlier that day.
Financial Troubles Uncovered
The suspect was identified as a resident of tambon Nong Ri in Muang district. After the robbery, he reportedly rode his motorcycle to the condominium where he had lived a decade ago.
Police searching his home found numerous debt collection documents stored in a filing cabinet, suggesting financial problems may have motivated the robbery.
Authorities continue investigating the location of the 38 baht of stolen gold and are questioning the deceased’s relatives in hopes of recovering the jewelry to return to the shop.
