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Published on November 10, 2007

Ruengsiri Sriphram filed "restraint of freedom and nuisance-causing" charges with Crime Sup-pression Division against Somchai Onkham, 41, Suthep Lernthaisong 30, and Prakit Kanjanakate, 24, who she said were working under contract to Thanachart Capital, the company Ruengsiri had bought the vehicle from

The woman, 31, said she had decided to file the complaint after consulting the Foundation for Consumers. She said the complaint had nothing to do with her unpaid debts to Thanachart, but she meant to press charges against the men, who had told her they were contracted by Thanachart to make the repossession.

Reungsiri, who owns a printing house in Khon Kaen, said two Honda sedans occupied by the three men had sandwiched her truck while she was travelling inbound on Vibhavadi Rangsit Highway. One of the men showed a document and signalled her to pull over. One Honda lightly bumped her truck before she decided to stop her vehicle.

She said the men had got out and told her that she had just committed a hit-and-run. Police arrived on the scene after she made an emergency call, and everyone then went to the Vibhavadi Rangsit traffic-police station.

After several hours of discussion, traffic officers said they did not have jurisdiction over the hit-and-run case brought by the men and told Reungsiri to sort the matter out with them at Don Muang police station.

Reungsiri said she had later found out that her truck had disappeared and unnamed policemen had told her the three men had towed it away after they produced documents issued by Thanachart Capital to the custodian officers.

Reungsiri said she paid monthly payments of Bt8,828 and had bought the pick-up for Bt354,000 under a 60-month instalment package with Thanachart.

She was seeking to have the truck refinanced with an other company when Thanachart cancelled her deal after she defaulted on four payments.

The Nation