Teenager raped in rehab, family claim

KHONKAEN: The family of an 18-yearold woman yesterday filed a complaint with police claiming their daughter was raped while receiving treatment at a drug rehabilitation centre.

The family said their daughter was admitted to the rehab centre run by Thanyarak Hospital in Muang district to treat her solvent abuse problem from May 22 to June 5.

The girl’s addiction, however, worsened when she was discharged from the centre and returned home, the complaint said.

The family said they confronted the teen, who told them she had been raped by a man identified only as ‘‘Plug’’ during her time at the clinic.

The family said they tried to raise the issue with the centre’s director but were turned away. The complaint also stated staff at the centre had tried to blame the family for admitting the teenager there for treatment.

The family said staff had initially refused to admit the teen out of concern she would be be subjected to sexual abuse because most of the patients were men. However, the family insisted she should be treated.

The teen was put in a single room with a shower, but the suspect had sneaked into her room and raped her, the family said. Police investigator Pol Lt Col Prasert Toonchim said the centre would be asked to hand over information about the accused rapist.