The father of the infamous baby driver was fined THB2,000 by Surat Thani police yesterday after videos of his 9-year-old driving to school went viral to wide condemnation and admitted she’s been driving for two years.
Yongyuth Kangkaprathum, 38, apologized to society in a Thairath interview, claiming he didn’t know better, and he wouldn’t let the third grader drive anymore.
READ: Third-grader shows off her skills behind the wheel (VIDEO)
When asked if he thinks it’s wrong to let a 9-year-old drive, he said never gave it any thought.
“It’s wrong, but I forgot to think about it,” Yongyuth said. “I let her drive since she was 7. Now she’s 9. My daughter likes everything about cars, and she asked to drive my car.”
Yongyuth said his little girl usually drives to school, and she’s even driven long distances before.
“Usually she drives from home to school, about an eight-kilometer route. The longest she’s driven is from Surat Thani to Phuket for a family vacation. There was no accident.”
Worse, the girl has been allowed to drive without supervision before.
“I’ve let her drive alone, but I always drive after her. We have four cars.”
Yongyuth then sought to deflect blame and begged the internet to stop condemning him.
“I admit I’m wrong. I didn’t know better, but you should not use harsh words to condemn my family,” he said. “My daughter is very upset. She said she hasn’t hit anyone or had any accident. She asked me what she did wrong. I tried to sooth her and said it’s about the laws.”
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