Thai teacher accused of abusing autistic boy by cutting him with ruler, locking him in locker

SHAH ALAM - A Thai teacher is being investigated after she was accused of abusing a 12-year-old autistic boy by cutting him and locking him inside a locker at a school in Nonthaburi province.

According to Thai news portal Thaiger, the boy’s 45-year-old mother claimed police were slow to act on her report and has since sought help from Porramate Chaipatcharakunpong, an adviser to Thailand’s Education Minister to follow up on the case.

She lodged a complaint at the Bang Bua Thong police station after noticing worrying changes in her son’s behaviour.

The mother said her child cried more often, repeatedly wrote words such as "locker" and "sad" on paper and kept saying phrases like "hurt" and "go in the locker."

After repeatedly comforting him, the mother said her son later revealed that a female teacher at the school had abused him.

The boy claimed that the teacher punished him by cutting his leg with a sharp ruler before locking him inside a locker for almost an hour.

Following the incident, he became afraid of going to school and showed signs of emotional distress.

The mother said the incident allegedly took place on Dec 12, last year.

She claimed closed-circuit television footage from the school showed the teacher taking her son out of the classroom, during which he appeared upset and walked as though he was in pain.

She said his condition was clearly different from earlier that day.

A classmate of the boy also reportedly shared an audio recording with the mother, in which the teacher could be heard speaking angrily.

The classmate claimed the teacher pinched the boy before putting him inside the locker as punishment.

The police report was lodged on Dec 17, that year.

It was reported that during questioning, the teacher denied harming the child and also denied that there was a locker involved, despite one being located outside the classroom.

Meanwhile, the superintendent of Bang Bua Thong police station dismissed claims of delays, saying officers needed time to question everyone involved, including the child.

Police added that the teacher would be called in again for further questioning.

Authorities said the case was currently being looked at as possible inappropriate punishment rather than deliberate abuse, while investigations continued to determine whether the incident met the legal definition of physical abuse, Thaiger reported.