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A hungry wild elephant raids a grocery store in Thailand for snacks
- A 27-year-old male wild elephant named Plai Biang Lek entered a convenience store near Khao Yai National Park in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand, on June 2, 2025.
- The elephant entered the store around mid-afternoon to search for food, reflecting a pattern of increased visits by elephants to human settlements in the area.
- Plai Biang Lek spent about 10 minutes inside consuming roughly 10 bags of sweets costing 35 baht each, while another elephant waited outside, prompting shopkeepers and customers to flee for safety.
- After the incident, a wildlife protection group compensated the shopkeeper with 800 baht for the snacks, explaining they were sponsoring the elephant's snack bill and emphasizing the elephant's local notoriety.
- Experts warn that wild elephant populations in Thailand, now estimated at 3,000-4,000, face ongoing threats from habitat loss and human encroachment, increasing encounters like this one which can sometimes turn violent.
93 Articles
93 Articles
An Elephant Casually Shoplifted Snacks From a Thai Grocery Store
A wild elephant named Plai Biang Lek walked into a grocery store in northeastern Thailand, near Khao Yai National Park, did some perusing with its trunk, and casually and nonchalantly walked out with snacks as casually and nonchalantly as an elephant can. This elephant was no stranger to the area. It’s a 30-year-old local legend, in fact. In what could be interpreted as a rare abuse of its familiarity with the area and its people, Plai Biang Lek…
Wild elephant wanders into Thai grocery store, raids snacks
A wild elephant walks into a store… It may sound like the opening line to a groaner of a bar joke, but it’s what actually happened this week at a Thailand grocery store near a national park. Plai Biang Lek, a 27-year-old male already known locally for breaking into homes, was on a mission to find sweets. Security footage caught him hesitating outside the store before ducking in and heading straight for the snacks. “Around 2 p.m., the elephant ju…
A wild elephant from Khao-Yai National Park in Thailand caused a stir on Monday: he entered a grocery store in Pak Chong District and provided himself with snacks. The animal, known as Plai Biang Lek, is no stranger in the region. The approximately 30-year-old elephant bull is regularly seen near human settlements. Around 3 p.m. local time, the animal entered the small store, which is only about a kilometer from the park entrance. The owner was …
It happened at a food store near Khao Yai National Park
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