Singapore authorities are seeking assistance from Thai government to repatriate Canadian bank robbery suspect, David Hames Roach to Singapore.
The Singapore Police Force also said that they have made a “mutual legal assistance” request to Thai authorities to send evidence seized from the 26-year-old suspect over to Singapore.
In the event where the suspect is unable to be repatriated to Singapore directly by the Thai authorities, SPF said they will pursue his return from whichever country Thailand decides to send him to.
The Thai police had earlier shared on July 13 at a press conference, “Yesterday the Canadian embassy came to see him. We think the Canadians would like to send him back to Canada but first we need to follow Thai legal procedure.”
Singapore and Thailand do not have an extradition agreement in place while Thailand has an extradition treaty with Canada.
The suspect was earlier apprehended at his backpacker hostel at Soi Phetchaburi Road, Phayathai in Bangkok at around 3pm on July 10.
The robbery on July 7 was reported to have happened only within the span of a few minutes. The suspect walked toward the teller unarmed then handed her a note. She took the money and handed him $30,000.
The Singapore Police Force was then informed of the case of robbery at the said branch by the bank after the suspect had left the scene. The suspect had subsequently entered Thailand via Suvarnabhumi Airport on the same day.
The suspect, suspect, David Hames Roach had intended to press on to Chiang Mai and Dubai from Bangkok, according to a notebook that was found on Roach when he was arrested.
The notebook also contained the text he had allegedly written and presented to the StanChart teller, Pol Col Nithithorn told reporters last week.
Other items found on Roach were US and Singapore dollars, as well as Thai baht totalling 700,000 baht (S$27,047) and a laptop.
When he was nabbed by the Thai police, he was presumably in his upper bunk bed in a 12-bed dormitory.
To avoid detection, Roach starved himself and slimmed down to appear different from his passport photo, according to Thai police.
Since his arrest, he has been held at an immigration detention centre in Bangkok. The Thai police cancelled his right of stay in the country after Singapore issued a warrant for his arrest.
Last week, Pol Col Nithithorn said Roach could be extradited here if Singapore pressed charges against him within a week, via the Thai Attorney-General.
The robbery at Holland Village was the first successful bank heist here in more than a decade.
