A businesswoman has been arrested in Pathum Thani province for using fake licence plates on her BMW car and allegedly failing to pay toll fees 260 times, as shown in the official database.
Highway police apprehended Ms Thanatsupha, 35, on Kanchanaphisek Eastern Ring Road as she was heading to Bang Pa-in in Khlong Luang district, Pathum Thani, on Monday evening, the Central Investigation Bureau said on Tuesday. Her full name was not disclosed.
Her vehicle was intercepted after being detected by the Highway Police Division’s alert system.
The black BMW, with red Bangkok licence plates, was caught going through the Thanyaburi and Thab Chang toll gates on Kanchanaphisek Road. The licence plate numbers were deemed suspicious. The driver went through an M-Flow gate, which allows motorists to pay the toll later.
A system check showed the car plates had 260 unpaid toll fees, totalling about 7,000 baht.
During questioning, Ms Thanatsupha said she only recently took delivery of the car. She was awaiting the auction of auspicious licence plate numbers to use with the vehicle. In the interim she had purchased licence plates on Facebook for use on her car. She insisted she had always paid toll fees.
Police initially pressed charges of falsifying official documents or using them. She was held in custody for legal action.
A source said authorities would thoroughly investigate the unpaid tolls involving her car, because there were many red licence plates with the same numbers as this BMW.