The parents of brothers Hamish and Oscar Day have spoken of their distress.
Video / NZ Herald
Hamish and Oscar Day were arrested on Saturday and held in custody after a police officer was assaulted;
The incident was captured on video and has caused outrage and upset in local and expat Phuket communities;
Now the Phuket governor has called a press conference to condemn their alleged actions.
Kiwi brothers locked up in Thailand after a roadside wrestle with a police officer have been lambasted by the governor of one of the country’s most loved tourist destinations.
Video showed Oscar Day - more commonly known by his middle name Mattson - on top of the police officer, while some of the footage showed his brother, Hamish, holding the officer’s automatic pistol.
Phuket governor Sophon Suwannarat spoke at a press conference in Phuket where he condemned the Days’ behaviour.
“Such an attack, no matter whether it happens to our officials or [ordinary] people, is intolerable,” the Bangkok Post reported.
“The behaviour was improper and illegal. It sets a very bad example in a tourist province like Phuket. Serious action will be taken to protect the tourism atmosphere of Phuket. Visitors and Thai people in Phuket must be safe.”
It’s the second major incident in Phuket involving foreign tourists this month. Sophon was forced to return from a diplomatic visit to Germany after the arrest of a Swiss man who allegedly kicked a Thai doctor in a dispute over property boundaries.
Visitors at Kamala Beach in Phuket, Thailand, March 1, 2022. Photo / Adam Dean, The New York Times
The incident sparked outrage among locals and expats, which soared to fresh heights as the video of the Days’ altercation with the officer spread across Thai and social media. The pair were in custody with reports saying police intended trying to keep the brothers longer while preparing a prosecution.
Sophon described the incident as a serious violation of Thai law that was unacceptable and said the New Zealand embassy in Bangkok would be told. Local officials have said they would seek to have the brothers banned from Thailand once the court process was finished.
Sophon said: “The behaviour was improper and illegal. It sets a very bad example in a tourist province like Phuket. Serious action will be taken to protect the tourism atmosphere of Phuket. Visitors and Thai people in Phuket must be safe.”
Why police targeted brothers
The Bangkok Post reported Phuket police chief Major General Sinlert Sukhum described the incident as sparked by the Days riding rented motorcycles at speed past the Chalong police station in Phuket about 4.10pm on Saturday.
He said the men had not been using the left lane of the road as traffic law required, leading to a pursuit by Senior Sergeant Major Somsak Noo-iad.
The officer ordered the pair to stop but the demand was ignored, leading to a pursuit and a call for backup.
Sinlert said when the pair stopped they were told by the pursuing officer they had broken traffic law. It was alleged a request for their licences led to the offer of a bribe, which was rejected by the officer who told them it had to be paid at the police station.
Sinlert said the pair walked towards their motorcycles in what Somsak interpreted as an attempt to escape, leading him to take photographs with his mobile phone.
Hamish Day can be seen with the police officer's pistol in his hand while his brother Oscar Day can be seen on top of the officer. Photo / Thapapong Trs
The Post reported Sinlert alleging the Day brothers then became angry and one of the pair wrestled the officer to the ground.
Sinlert described the person who grappled with the officer as a “large, strong mixed martial arts fighter”. The video footage showed the officer in the grip of Oscar Day who is listed online as competing in MMA through a gym in Hamilton.
He said the altercation involved one of the brothers taking the police officer’s gun, described in some reports as a Sig Sauer model P365 gun, and handing it to the other brother.
“During the struggle, the gun was fired once but no one was hit,” the Post reported. Shortly after, reinforcements arrived which “prevented the incident from escalating further”.
Sinlert said the men were charged with robbery, obstruction of a policeman on duty, assault on a policeman, attempted bribery and driving without a licence. The officer involved in the altercation suffered light injuries to his fingers and bruising on his body.
Video captured claims and details
In video captured of the altercation, a woman can be heard shouting at the men: “You stop, you stop. He have gun. You stop.”
A voice with a New Zealand accent can be heard saying: “The policeman was trying to attack us.”
The video shows Hamish Day standing at the roadside watching as his brother Oscar tussles on the ground with the officer.
“He’s trying to kill him,” a voice can be heard shouting, although it is unclear who it is directed at.
When the video was broadcast on Thai television, it used a red ring to highlight an object Oscar Day and the police officer appeared to be wrestling over. Thai police have said the officer’s pistol was taken during the incident and discharged.
As Oscar Day attempts to separate himself from the officer, Hamish Day can be seen moving closer with a mobile phone pointed at the men on the ground as if trying to video the pair.
Two New Zealanders have been arrested in Thailand after they allegedly assaulted a local police officer in Phuket. Photo / Thapapong Trs
Then in another frame, Hamish Day can be seen approaching the pair on the ground holding an automatic pistol in an open-handed fashion as if offering it.
In another part of the video, the Day brothers can be seen standing at the roadside next to two motorcycles facing the police officer as reinforcements arrive.
The father of the men, Laurence Day, said the pair had their own families and children in New Zealand who were concerned for their wellbeing.
“They were just on holiday. It’s very difficult. At the moment they’re okay. It’s a very trying time.” He said Hamish Day had managed to get a single text message out to his wife but they had received no other communication.
Laurence Day said his sons had been in Thailand for about a week travelling and sightseeing. Both had been to the country previously, he said, and “they thought it was a wonderful country”.
He said they had about 10 days to go before their return to New Zealand when the incident happened.
Laurence Day said he had no further information about what had happened other than what media had reported. He said the men had a lawyer whom they were working with in Thailand and he was considering flying to Thailand himself to see if he could assist.
David Fisher is based in Northland and has worked as a journalist for more than 30 years, winning multiple journalism awards including being twice named Reporter of the Year and being selected as one of a small number of Wolfson Press Fellows to Wolfson College, Cambridge. He joined the Herald in 2004.
