The case has been reported to the prosecutor, and the American is currently detained, awaiting court proceedings, Pol Col Ekkarat confirmed to The Phuket News.
The American man was arrested by officers from an investigation team of the Phuket Provincial Police, joined by officers from Phuket Immigration, after the girl’s mother filed a complaint with Chalong Police on Sept 23.
According to the complaint, the woman who reported the incident to police said that she returned from a friend’s house around 8am on Sunday, Sept 22.
When she arrived at the home, in Moo 6, Rawai, she saw the young girl, who is 3 years and 4 months old, lying on the sofa. The foreign man, not identified in the complaint, was sitting next to the child.
The girl told the woman that she was experiencing pain in her genitals. The foreign man then took the child to the bathroom to shower her and put a diaper on her afterward. The girl and the man returned, and the girl went back to sleep on the sofa but continued to complain of pain.
The woman then called a man to remove the diaper and check the child. They found blood on the diaper.
The woman took the girl to Rawai Health Promoting Hospital and later went to Chalong Police Station to file a complaint.
Pol Maj Gen Sinlert Sukhum, Commander of Phuket Provincial Police, questioned the 45-year-old American man at Chalong Police Station on Sept 25, Pol Col Ekkarat said.
The American denied the charge, claiming that he did not sexually assault the child.
“Investigators have collected various pieces of evidence, which was enough to proceed with the charge. The case has officially been handed over to the prosecutor for further legal proceedings, and it is expected that the Phuket Provincial Court will be able to hold the trial soon,” Pol Col Ekkarat said.
The suspect is currently being held in custody and will remain detained as the court prepares for the trial, he added.
“The child is now under care at a centre at Vachira Phuket Hospital operated under the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security, specifically the Department of Children and Youth,” Pol Col Ekkarat said.