Chinese pair nabbed over stolen diamond
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TWO Chinese have been arrested for allegedly stealing a diamond worth over Bt10 million from the Bangkok Gems & Jewellery Fair.
An exhibitor at the fair reported the alleged theft on Thursday, the first day of the five-day fair.
Based on CCTV footage, police quickly obtained arrest warrants and alerted immigration police.
The two suspects were nabbed while preparing to board a flight at Suvarnabhumi Airport on Thursday. They denied any wrongdoing.
“They asked to see a diamond piece in our show cabinet,” Mantana Wiyakaew, a sales assistant at the exhibition, told police. “After discussing the Bt10-million price for a while, they returned the ‘diamond’ piece to me. I checked the diamond and found that the returned piece is a fake.”
The sales assistant was able to identify the suspects but officials could not find the missing diamond. Police are investigating further, relying on witnesses and CCTV footage.
Central Institute of Forensic Science’s spokesman Dr Suranarong Srisuwan said the DNA swabs from the suspects were now being examined with other items of evidence.
“The results should come out in a week,” he said.
