"They Said 'Too Expensive,' Then Returned to Steal"...Two Korean Women Flee After Swimsuit Theft in Phuket

Crime Caught on CCTV as It Happened
Dividing Roles to Steal...Local Police Launch Investigation

Two women believed to be Korean stole swimsuits from a clothing store in Phuket, Thailand, the country's leading resort destination, and fled, prompting the local police to launch an investigation.

In a clothing store in Phuket, Thailand, women believed to be Korean were caught on the store's CCTV stealing swimsuits. Facebook screenshot

According to Thai media outlet The Thaiger and others on the 10th (local time), the two women visited a clothing store in Phuket the previous day and disappeared with high-priced swimsuits.

During their first visit, they tried on several swimsuits and asked about the prices, but left without making a purchase, saying they were "too expensive." About 30 minutes later, the two returned to the store, this time appearing to divide roles.

While one of them stalled for time by asking staff in the fitting room for additional sizes, the other slowly walked around inside the store, took swimsuits out of a storage compartment under a display stand, and put them into her bag. They then casually walked out of the store, saying there was nothing they liked.

The entire sequence of events was captured on the store's closed-circuit (CC)TV. After the store realized that items were missing, it checked the CCTV footage to confirm their actions and then released the video on social media (SNS).

The swimsuits they stole were imported from Colombia and were reportedly more expensive than regular products. The store owner said, "It appears that during their first visit, they checked the location of the items while I was taking stock out to show them, and then came back to commit the theft," adding, "I released the CCTV footage and reported the incident to the police to prevent further damage."

Local police are working to identify them and track their whereabouts based on the released footage and other evidence.