Tourist police reunite lost 9-year-old Russian boy with mother

SURAT THANI — 19 September 2026, Tourist police on Koh Phangan reunited a 9-year-old Russian boy with his mother early Friday after he became separated from his family and was found alone on a road, frightened and seeking help.

At 04:15, a Dutch passerby contacted the Tourist Police hotline at 1155 after seeing a boy, believed to be about 9 years old, running along the road and crying for help.

Pol. Lt. Col. Winit Boonchit, deputy inspector of Tourist Police Station 5, Division 2, Tourist Police Bureau 3, ordered officers on Koh Phangan to investigate.

Officers found the boy in an extremely frightened state. He spoke Russian and could not communicate in English, so police arranged for a Russian interpreter to assist with the investigation.

The boy, identified as Jaromir, 9, told the interpreter that he had been staying at a house with his mother. At around 04:00, he woke up and discovered that his mother was not there.

Frightened, he left the house and walked to a main road about 5 kilometers from the residence. He could not remember the way home and began asking passing people for help.

With few people and tourists on the road at that hour, the boy eventually ran along the road until the Dutch passerby spotted him and called 1155, concerned that he could be in danger.

Tourist police took the boy to their Koh Phangan service center and began searching for his family. Officers checked CCTV footage from the area where he was first found, which helped them identify his mother, a Russian national named Alisa.

Police also checked the Tourist Police Station on Koh Samui’s system and obtained information about her accommodation and telephone number.

Officers contacted Alisa and informed her that her son was safe and in police custody. She was asked to come and collect him.

Alisa told police that she had put her son to bed as usual. After he fell asleep, she went to a close friend’s house because the friend was due to return to Russia the following day. She left her sleeping son alone at the residence.

She said she was extremely shocked when she learned what had happened and apologized for the incident.

Alisa thanked the tourist police and the Dutch passerby for helping her son and ensuring his safety. She said she would take greater care of him and would not allow a similar incident to happen again.

The tourist police then escorted the mother and her son back to their accommodation, where they were reunited safely.

The incident was highlighted by authorities as part of efforts to strengthen confidence in tourist safety and promote Koh Phangan as a safe destination for visitors.