Chaiyaphum police yesterday (August 19) arrested Prathan Wangson, 50, who was accused of rape and hiding out in a mountainous forest near Wat Amphawan in Khon Kaen’s Manjakhiri district after villagers tipped off officers when Prathan came down from the mountain to ask for food and water.
On Sunday, a 35-year-old Chaiyaphum man lodged a complaint with police that his daughter, 11, told him she was allegedly raped by Prathan, who had taken her away on a bike while he was sleeping.
The girl reportedly told officers that Prathan took her to an abandoned temple and forced her to drink alcohol and take an amphetamine pill, before allegedly raping her.
Witnesses said they saw Prathan fleeing toward Phu Pha Daeng forest that connects Manjakhiri district in Khon Kaen province.
After a preliminary investigation, police have found that Prathan was recently released from prison. He was also convicted of drug and theft offences, as well as raping a minor girl and an elderly woman.
