German 'hacker', 27, hunted for 'destroying rented villa in cannabis-induced rampage'

A notorious German IT developer is being hunted for allegedly trashing his rented villa in a cannabis-induced rampage in southern Thailand.

Kai Enderes, 27, from Donauworth, was said to have been high on marijuana when he began wrecking the property at the Villa Maharaj housing estate in Krabi.

The German had broken up with his Thai girlfriend two months ago before reportedly hurling furniture across the living room and ripping paintings and light fixtures from the walls on August 25.

Neighbours said they were terrified as they heard him shattering the windows and smashing tiles and electrical appliances over the past two days.

Police were called to the scene on Tuesday, August 25, following a report from the shocked landlord, who arrived earlier to question Kai over the complaints, only to find the house in ruins.

Cops were immediately hit by the strong odour of cannabis upon entering the villa.

They found glass shards scattered across the ground floor, with glassware and equipment destroyed in the kitchen. Damaged appliances and more rubbish were discovered in the bedroom and second floor.

Cannabis paraphernalia and shotgun shells were collected from the scene.

Police estimated the property damage to be at least 500,000 baht.

Police Lieutenant Colonel Chanwit Chaemsai of the Mueang Krabi Police Station said Kai later returned to the villa at around 2 am local time on August 26.

However, they were unable to arrest him because 'he is still under a valid rental agreement and the property is still considered his residence'.

The investigator said: 'We therefore cannot simply enter the house and question him there.

‘I have already issued him a summons to come in for questioning, but we first need to question the complainant.'

Authorities were also unable to collect CCTV footage as Kai had unplugged the device when he moved in.

Police said three people - Kai, his Thai girlfriend, and her child - had initially been living in the house before the couple broke up.

They also confirmed that the German is allegedly a suspect in another criminal case and is awaiting a court date at Krabi Provincial Court in the south of the country.

Chanwit said: 'He would likely already be subject to arrest or detention in connection with that case. I probably should not disclose details of the other case because it concerns another matter, but I can confirm that it is a criminal case being handled by Krabi Provincial Court.'

Fern Prattaraporn, the property agent, said Kai had initially been a 'very good' tenant who always paid his rent on time before his recent rampage.

She said: 'The whole thing was shocking. I have rented out many houses and dealt with many customers, but I have never encountered anything like this before.

‘Even when customers have serious problems, are difficult, complain a lot, become angry or have hot tempers, it has never reached this level.'

Police Lieutenant Colonel Chanwit said the suspect would first be summoned for questioning, warning that failure to appear could lead to a second summons and an arrest warrant.

He added: ‘At this stage, I am not sure whether he will come in for questioning. We will have to proceed according to the legal process and gather the necessary evidence before taking further action.'

Kai is a German software architect, IT developer and online entrepreneur.

He became publicly known in Germany in 2021 for his connection to Attila Hildmann, a German conspiracy theorist and extremist.

Hildmann, a former German vegan chef and businessman, became a far-right figure, spreading anti-government, anti-Covid and antisemitic content before fleeing to Turkey in 2020 after German authorities issued a warrant for his arrest.

Kai reportedly infiltrated Hildmann's operation as a mole while working in IT for him, secretly collecting evidence about Hildmann and his far-right network.

He eventually obtained around two terabytes of data and passed it to the hacker collective Anonymous, with parts later shared with German authorities and the media.

However, accessing and removing Hildmann's private data may itself have been illegal, and German authorities were investigating Kai over possible violations of data-protection laws.