After five years on the run, a 63-year-old Thai YouTuber was arrested on Thursday for the attempted murder of a truck driver in 2017.
Jantaphan “Taek” Worracate was arrested at his home in Nonthaburi province in central Thailand on charges of attempted murder and violating firearms laws, the Royal Thai Police announced.
In 2017, Jantaphan shot at a truck parked in front of his resort hotel, injuring the driver. The court sentenced him to five years in prison; however, he requested provisional bail after stating that the incident was accidental and unintentional. He did not return after his provisional release.
The 63-year-old is the father of two famous Thai actors: Jantaphan “Nicky” Nachat and Jantaphan “Mouse” Natcha.
On July 5, 2016, Jantaphan uploaded his first video to a YouTube channel called “Pai91.5 Resort,” where he uploaded various videos covering health, food and cooking topics, gaining more than 524,000 subscribers.
Central Bureau of Investigation Director Puridet Jirapob said fame does not protect individuals from the law.
“No matter how famous the suspect is, how many celebrities the suspect knows, how rich they are or how big their political position is, they will face the same legal process and the same standard of punishment as everyone else,” Puridet was quoted as saying by The Thaiger.
Jantaphan’s arrest was allegedly part of a Central Bureau of Investigation operation called “Operation Gangster Suppression. As part of the operation, 17 other suspects were arrested and charged, including six counts of murder, seven counts of attempted murder, three counts of theft and one count of assault.