Men in black deny harassing rare white elephant
Three men met with police at Muang Nakhon Nayok station on Friday to clarify that they were not harassing Plai Ekachai, a rare white elephant at Chang Thongkhum Elephant Conservation in Saraburi’s Kaeng Khoi district as alleged by the establishment.
Somchai, 34, Jiraphan, 57, and Phanuphong, 34, (last names withheld) said they were among a group of five men wearing black who visited the conservation site on August 2, the last day of the six-day holiday.
The conservation site on Friday posted on Facebook a video of five men dressed in black, all wearing shades and hats, and alleged that they were harassing Plai Ekachai, an elephant that will be presented to the King. The post titled “Men in black harassing Plai Ekachai” went viral and drew over 3,000 comments.
The three men said the allegation has damaged their reputations. All they did was take photos of the elephant, they said.
Staff at the site asked them to leave their bags at a table and alleged that one of them had a gun holster on his belt. He lifted his shirt and showed them it was just a case for a mobile phone.
The three men said they were shocked after seeing the video on Facebook and urged the owner of the conservation site to show CCTV footage so that the public can see what really happened.
Golden Elephant (Thailand) Co Ltd, which owns Plai Ekachai, was preparing to transport the 36-year-old animal to the Royal Elephant Stable, which earlier confirmed that the elephant has the seven attributes of a white elephant that legally requires that it be presented to the King and be classified as owned by the state.
