On 17 July, police in Thailand’s Mae Hong Son province posted a clip of a woman who allegedly pretended to speak English to avoid trouble after she was confronted for a hit-and-run.
The clip quickly went viral, garnering over 42,000 likes and over 6,100 comments.
In the clip, the man recording can be seen opening the car door to begin scolding the woman before things got peculiar.
He began by telling her off for driving away after hitting him with her car.
“You hit me and did not even stop to check up on me or say sorry,” he said. However, all he got in response was a heavily accented “what” from her.
Initially confused as to what she was doing, he continued to scold her and asked her to take responsibility for her actions.
In response, she continued speaking in what could be best described as what English sounded like to those who had never heard English being spoken before.
By this point, the man caught on to what she was trying to do and told her to stop pretending to be a foreigner.
“Just by looking at your face, I know you’re Thai,” he told her. However, she did not relent.
“Speak English?” she said while bringing a hand up to her ear as if to ask him to speak up.
Source: สืบสวน สถานีตำรวจภูธรปางมะผ้า on Facebook
However, her one moment of English lucidity is short-lived as the next sentence descended into tongues once again.
“You don’t have to pretend you’re crazy,” he said and continued to insist on her taking responsibility. Despite her earlier implications that she did not understand Thai, she clearly said no before exiting her vehicle.
Source: สืบสวน สถานีตำรวจภูธรปางมะผ้า on Facebook
Their interaction continued with the woman speaking in said English-sounding language while the man continued to reiterate his scolding to no avail.
She continued even as he threatened to put the clip of their interaction online to shame her.
Source: สืบสวน สถานีตำรวจภูธรปางมะผ้า on Facebook
After a few minutes, she got back in the car where her English clarity appeared to return.
“I’m sorry,” she said just before the clip ended.
While the clip has since been shared by multiple Thai news agencies, it is unclear whether the woman faced any legal repercussions for the alleged hit-and-run.
Also read: Elderly woman sent to hospital after hit-and-run accident with car in Bukit Merah
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Featured image adapted from สืบสวน สถานีตำรวจภูธรปางมะผ้า on Facebook.