Teenager faces years in Thailand prison for ‘$100 crime’ at airport

18-year-old Loukas Rainger was apprehended by airport officials and arrested in Thailand after spending a month travelling with his best mate.

He was preparing to fly home to New Zealand on 16 July when he was stopped by Thai immigration at Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok, according to his mum Natasha Rainger.

It is alleged that Loukas had picked up a watch two weeks earlier during a security bag check at another airport in Surat Thani.

The teen allegedly pocked the timepiece, which is thought to be worth roughly $100 (£43.60) - but apparently, the young holidaymaker had no idea that what he had done was a crime.

It is said that Loukas could now face a maximum penalty of five years in prison, as well as a fine from 20,000 to 100,000 Baht (£442.50 to £2212.50).

Loukas' mum Natasha said 'dealing with this has been the hardest thing in her life' (Instagram)

This comes per a legal documentation of the case summary and charges, obtained by Stuff.

The teen faces being convicted of ‘theft in an airport’, which is classified as a more serious crime than theft.

It’s said he took a ‘Swatch women's wristwatch with a silver coloured steel band’, which Natasha said she was told typically sell on eBay for between $80 and $100 (£34.90 and £43.60).

Having been ‘told by immigration that there was a warrant out for his arrest’, Loukas was apparently ‘completely confused’. He told his mum he ‘knew nothing about it’.

The teen was taken into custody and his checked bag was retrieved, while he was then detained overnight at the Bangkok police station.

Teenager allegedly swiped a woman's watch

"The next day he spent 12 hours handcuffed to a chair while being taken on a train from Bangkok back down to Surat Thani, where he was taken to a police station and only then interviewed," Natasha told Stuff.

Legal documentation says Loukas ‘denied all charges’ when interrogated.

It is believed that a woman travelling from Surat Thani airport on 3 July removed her wristwatch and put it into an airport inspection tray at 8:30 am during security checks, before it was then mislaid.

She then apparently didn’t realise she hadn’t picked it back up, leaving it on the tray.

The documents go on to state: "At approximately 8:58am, it was discovered that a foreign male identified as Loukas Rainger had taken the watch with him."

The 18-year-old had been travelling across Thailand with his pal prior to his arrest (Instagram)

The woman filed a complaint to initiate legal proceedings with police gathering evidence before a warrant for arrest was obtained on 10 July.

"That watch… he told me it was on the airport tray with his belongings… so he just picked it up too," Natasha said.

"His lawyer applied for bail but it got denied because he didn’t have the right visa."

In order to secure bail, the court demanded proof of three months’ accommodation booking in Thailand. Natasha’s own visa expires 18 August.

Werabhat Hemthansarp, managing partner at Phuket-based Lawyer Republic, told Stuff that he had been working to 'change Loukas' visa so that he can stay in Thailand until his sentencing'.

Not 'out of the woods' yet

The lawyer also said he was arranging ‘compensation’ for the ‘victim’, in reference to the watch’s owner.

"I have been told the watch was around $80 to $100 on Ebay, and the watch has been returned to her, and she has also received an apology from Loukas in prison," Hemthansarp said.

"I have been told that she accepts the apology and will accept $1,000 (£435.90) in compensation, which I said I would pay."

Natasha then told the outlet that Loukas' had been released on bail after they stumped up 100,000 Thai Bhat (£2,212).

The mum said they weren't 'out of the woods' yet, but added: "The only thing that matters right now is seeing my son walk through the gates ... we’ll take it from there."

The New Zealand native has since been bailed, but has to remain in Thailand (Instagram)

Despite supporting her son, Natasha acknowledged that Loukas should’ve handed the watch over when he found it at the airport.

"He didn’t maliciously steal it or intend to steal someone’s belongings, he didn’t think, he’s inexperienced, young," she said.

"He’d been on a long boat trip just right before, and had been really sick. He should have left it or handed it in but that doesn’t deserve years in a Thai prison."

The mother and son must now remain in Ko Samui until the legal process has been carried out. The pair are required to check in with the local police station every two weeks, Natasha said.