Burglars Raid Home of Isaan Music Star Phaeng
Thieves stole around 100,000 baht from the home of prominent Isaan mor lam singer Phaeng while she was performing in Bangkok, with CCTV footage showing a female suspect in her 40s–50s entering the property on July 13.
A burglary at the home of Nattathidaporn Khankham, known as Phaeng of Isaan, a prominent mor lam singer and band leader, has resulted in losses totaling around 100,000 baht. While she was on a mini concert tour in Bangkok between July 8–19, 2024, thieves entered her residence and made off with 70,000 baht in fan donations that had been given to her during the season closing, as well as approximately 30,000 baht in savings kept in a piggy bank for performance expenses.
Neighborhood surveillance cameras captured footage of a female suspect, appearing to be between 40–50 years old, riding a bicycle to scout the area in the early morning hours of July 13, 2024, at 3:50 a.m., before parking and entering the home. The suspect was unfamiliar to neighbors and is believed to be from outside the community. Police at Muang Udon Thani Police Station were provided with the CCTV images and launched an investigation.
At 2:30 p.m. on July 23, 2024, police officers conducted an inspection of the two-story concrete house. On the ground floor near the television, thieves had taken all bank notes and emptied two wooden savings jars of approximately 10,000 baht, as well as 20,000 baht from a basket in a TV stand drawer. They left behind 20-baht and 50-baht notes.
Upstairs in the room where fan donations were stored, thieves took all 70,000 baht in 100, 500, and 1,000-baht notes that had been placed on the floor and hanging from iron rails. Theerawat Sriubonlee, Phaeng's 36-year-old personal manager, explained that the internal security cameras did not record footage but did alert to movement at 3:51 a.m. on July 13. Neighbor footage showed a female suspect, estimated between 40–50 years old, arriving by bicycle. Neighbors confirmed they did not recognize her.
Phaeng stated that she returned home late on July 19 after the concert tour and noticed nothing amiss initially. The following morning, upon opening the storage room to withdraw funds, she discovered the donations missing. She then checked the back door and found that the wooden frame had swollen, preventing the lock from functioning properly, and the steel gate had not been locked. The thief had pushed through the screen door, reached in to unlock the steel gate, and stolen the money. The suspect took all the larger denomination notes but left approximately 500 baht in 50-baht notes and 200 baht in 20-baht notes behind.
