Wife, 33, claims sister has stolen farang husband, 76

A Thai woman married to an elderly English man has accused her sister of taking advantage of her ill health to steal her husband in order to inherit his Bt12-million estate.

Pennee Talbot, 33, said she has been married to Roy Talbot, 76, a French teacher, for five years and that they have two children. She has a life-threatening immune-system disease and her husband suffers symptoms of senility, she said.

When her husband went missing from their home in Khon Kaen's Phu Wiang district in mid October, Penee said she suspected that her older sister, Samran Arksorn, and her sister's husband, Anurak Wangdamrongwong, had kidnapped him to get his money.

"On October 15, my sister took my husband to England because she knew that he had sold his house there for Bt10-12 million," Pennee said.

After discovering that Pennee might soon die and that her brother-in-law was suffering from memory lapses Samran suddenly stepped in to take care of him, Pennee said.

She said her sister had never before shown such interest in her family.

"She did that because she wants to grab my husband's money from the insurance company, from selling the house and from his pension," Pennee said.

She had officers from Bang Khen Police Station arrest her sister on charges of abduction and stealing personal documents, Pennee said.

After Samran was released on bail, Pennee contacted her. Samran admitted that she had taken Roy Talbot to England and was taking care of him. Soon after, Sanran sent someone to collect Bt500,000 from Pennee to defray her expenses on Roy Talbot's behalf, Pennee said.

"But I don't have any money left. Since Roy's been gone we've been having a difficult time," she said.

Next she received a letter containing divorce papers. "The reason stated for divorce was that I had an immune-system problem, but since the documents did not have my husband's signature the court threw the case out," Pennee said.

"I believe that my sister and her husband are behind it [her husband's disappearance and attempt to divorce her]," she said.

The Talbots had given a Khon Kaen neighbour and close friend named Jon permission to sell the house in England. The process took about a year and the house was sold on October 15, Pennee said. "I am the only legal recipient of all his money," she said.

Samran had tried to get her brother-in-law to adopt her son but failed because of legal complications, Pennee said.

"I've asked Samran many times where my husband is. She keeps avoiding my questions. I know that he must be somewhere in Thailand and they're hiding him from me and the police," Pennee said.

"I believe my husband is still alive because if he were dead, all the money would come to me, but if they keep him alive and I die first, all the money will definitely be Samran's," Pennee said.

Samran, who owns a small shop in Bang Khen, most likely plotted to get the money to pay off debts of Bt9-Bt10 million, Pennee said.

Source: The Nation Dec 15, 2002