Thai man arrested for sexual attack on Chinese female tourist in Pattaya

The suspect admitted to the police he had initially planned to rape the tourist but when that failed, he switched to stealing her belongings, ThaiPBS World reported.

To avoid being caught, he attempted to kill her by setting her on fire, but the tourist luckily escaped.

The incident has been widely shared on Weibo, a Chinese microblogging website, with thousands of comments.

Many Weibo users still deemed Thailand a dangerous place for Chinese tourists, saying they are not confident about traveling to Thailand.

A commentator wrote, "Thailand is not the same as before and is not safe for female tourists."

On Sunday, the 29-year-old Chinese woman and her younger brother had been hitchhiking along Highway 331 in Chonburi Province when she planned to return to Pattaya, Khaosod English newspaper reported.

Two Thai men riding on motorcycles passed by and offered to give them a ride. They agreed and both sat on each motorcycle.

However, the man carrying the female tourist turned into the wilderness and forced her to get off the bike before tying her hands with a rope, as reported by Thailand News.

He then tried to attack her but was unsuccessful.

The female tourist said the suspect failed to rape her because she fought back.

The man who had offered her brother a ride turned up to the police on Monday, denying that he had committed any crime.

If found guilty, the man driving the woman could face between up to 20 years in prison and a fine of between 80,000 and 400,000 baht (US$2,200-11,000) for "raping the victim with violence," under Thai law.

Robbery is punished with imprisonment for a period of 5-10 years and a fine of 10,000-20,000 baht.