A 57-year-old Thai woman wanted for a fatal hit-and-run accident in the United States on Jan 1 has been arrested in Ratchaburi and will be extradited for trial, police said.
Tubtim Howson had returned to Thailand on Jan 5 and was staying in Chon Buri, said Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn, deputy national police chief.
After the Jan 1 accident in Oakland, Michigan, made headlines, she moved to a room in Suan Phueng district of Ratchaburi on Feb 10.
Police found her there and she confessed to her involvement in the accident, Pol Gen Surachate said on Wednesday.
Ms Tubtim reportedly admitted that she hit and killed Benjamin Kable, 22, a Michigan State University student. She said she flew back to Thailand right away because she was “in shock”, according to the deputy national police chief.
She was cooperating and would return to the United States to enter the justice system there, Pol Gen Surachate said.
Ms Tubtim is a US citizen living in Oakland, a suburb of Detroit. She was present with the deputy police chief at a news conference at the Royal Thai Police Office.
Recalling the crash in Oakland on Jan 1, Ms Tubtim said she saw a man on the roadside signalling her to stop. She also saw a parked Uber car.
“I thought I was about to be robbed. … I was looking at the car on the roadside. It was dark, and then I hit something in front of me. … At first I thought I hit a deer, but later realised I hit a man,” she said.
After the crash, she returned home and drove another car to work. She decided to return to Thailand because her younger sister was here and she wanted to consult her about the accident, Ms Tubtim said.
Pol Gen Surachate said Ms Tubtim regretted the incident and was ready to enter the justice system in the US.
