A British tourist who was arrested for allegedly raping a six-year-old girl in Thailand was reported to police by the child’s mother, who he had been in a relationship with, investigators have said.
Luke Adam Lawrence, 30, from Leeds, West Yorkshire, was identified by sleuths at the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA) over a video allegedly showing a child being abused.
Officers worked with local cops and tracked Lawrence to the seaside ‘Sin City’ resort of Pattaya where he was living with his girlfriend, a Thai national who he had reportedly been with for around two years.
The 25-year-old mother, identified in Thai media only as ‘Ms B’, was reportedly shocked after seeing evidence that her partner had abused her child and immediately filed charges against him.
After locating him using the video evidence provided by the NCA, social media and phone tracing tools, armed police stormed his rented home at the Private Paradise Pattaya condominium block on Tuesday morning, December 3.
Footage shows Lawrence emerging from the bedroom shirtless followed by a woman. A translator in a blue denim jacket was present, reading the charges to the suspect.
Cops ordered Lawrence to kneel before he confirmed his name. He reacted by saying ‘what, woah, wow’ as the charges were read out.
Reading from the court arrest warrant, the translator says: ‘According to the illegal conduct you have done, there has been a charge of rape, statutory rape, of another individual, by force, by threat, by applying threats and force, violent threats and violent force, to a person that was in a position that could not resist, or a person that could not fight back.
‘Also, against a minor under the age of 13 years old, which is not your wife, not your legal wife.’
Luke Adam Lawrence, 30, from Leeds, West Yorkshire, was identified by sleuths at the National Crime Agency (NCA) in London over an alleged video of a schoolgirl being abused
Officers worked with local cops and tracked Lawrence to the seaside ‘Sin City’ resort of Pattaya where he was living with a Thai woman
Thailand’s Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) issued a media release confirming that the suspect had been identified by the NCA in England over the sexual abuse of the child
The translator went on: ‘Even if that child did or did not agree, this conduct has been done against a child, who has not reached the age of 13 years old, so even if the child did agree or not agree to that, the child was in a situation where they could not fight back or do anything about that.’
Lawrence was then formally arrested over the alleged rape of the youngster, who he is said to have known through a friend. He was frogmarched into a waiting police van.
Thailand’s Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) has since issued a warning to Thai women who meet foreign partners through online platforms, specifically cautioning about the risks of pedophilia.
The CIB earlier put out a media release confirming that the suspect had been identified by the NCA in England over the sexual abuse of the child.
Officers said the investigation was launched when the NCA claimed to have traced child abuse content to Lawrence’s phone.
A clip allegedly showed him raping a young Southeast Asian girl, which they believe happened in Thailand.
The cops in the UK then liaised with officers in Bangkok at the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Division. The Thai police said they analysed the footage and compared it with different locations in Pattaya and social media posts to find Lawrence.
They claim to have identified the victim as a seven-year-old girl who was abused when she was six years old. They believe that Lawrence had connections to the mother of the alleged victim.
An arrest warrant was issued for ‘raping a minor under the age of 13’ and Lawrence was caught at 7.15 am.
He was handcuffed and passed to the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Division for further legal action.
Cops ordered Lawrence to kneel before he confirmed his name. He reacted by saying ‘what, woah, wow’ as the charges were read out
Cops in the UK liaised with officers in Bangkok at the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Division to find Lawrence
Police Lieutenant Colonel Kiatkong Thongkham of the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Division said: ‘The suspect denied all charges and refused to testify during the arrest. He was detained at the police station.’
Investigating officers later informed the schoolgirl’s mother of the arrest. They allegedly presented evidence and she filed further complaints to be added to the charge sheet.
The CIB said in a statement about the case that local women should ‘beware’ of foreign men who visit the country looking for a girlfriend.
They said: ‘This is a warning to Thai women who seek foreign partners through various online channels, to be careful of the dangers of paedophilia, which is a mental disorder that causes patients to be sexually interested in children who have not yet reached puberty.
‘Being aware of, and protecting against dangers that may arise from those who behave in this way, is very important.’