Swiss man loses visa, gets charged with assault for kicking woman in Thailand

An assault on a Thai woman, who was sitting on the steps of his luxury villa, has cost a Swiss national his visa.

Urs Fehr, 45, is accused of kicking Tarndao Chandam, 26, near a beach in Yamu Cape, Phuket at around 7.30pm on Feb 24.

Fehr, who is the managing director of an elephant sanctuary, was charged with physical and mental assault, said Phuket's police chief on Wednesday (March 6).

The assault has sparked online outrage after a Facebook post by the woman's father on Feb 28 went viral.

He shared that his daughter and her friend were viewing the full moon and had sat on the steps as they believed it was public property.

However, Tarndao was suddenly kicked in the back by Fehr, who was purportedly recording them on his phone.

The victim also claimed Fehr and his Thai wife verbally abused them after the attack.

Fehr's wife was quoted as saying: "Hey, b******. Don't you know that you shouldn't sit outside my home?

"I can shoot you two right away, and no one could arrest me because my son is a police officer. I know the police chief, and I will put you in jail. I will call the chief now!"

A 17-second clip of the incident, filmed by Fehr, shows him walking toward Tarndao and her friend and shouting, "Get the f*** out of here!"

A thud sound can then be heard.

Swiss man says he slipped on steps

Subsequently, Phuket authorities found that the steps of the beach villa were illegally constructed and built on public land, reported Bangkok Post. The couple were ordered to demolish the structure.

On March 1, Fehr apologised to the victim at a press conference but denied the assault, saying that he had slipped on the steps and accidentally kicked the woman.

His wife explained that some Chinese tourists had recently entered the villa when she was swimming and frightened her.

A doctor who treated Fehr's wounds purportedly confirmed that they were caused by slipping, said the wife.

She also apologised to the victims, explaining that she was sleepy and angry at the time. She stressed that she did not mean to threaten or insult anyone.

But the couple's apologies seem to have gotten no sympathy from locals.

Around 500 people gathered outside the villa on March 3 to demand Fehr's expulsion as well the restoration of public access to the Phuket beach, reported the South China Morning Post.

Deportation up in the air

The Immigration Bureau commissioner said on March 7 that Fehr's business visa will be revoked.

The Swiss national can file an appeal against the visa revocation within 48 hours.

The possibility of deportation depends on the resolution of his criminal cases, said the commissioner.

Fehr, who was also involved in a past road rage accident against an ambulance driver, was fined 1,000 baht (S$37.50) for defamation and 4,000 baht for reckless and dangerous driving on March 7, reported the Bangkok Post.

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lim.kewei@asiaone.com