That's an insane story and one I wouldn't believe if I had heard it second-hand or if you weren't a long-time member. Glad you're ok and comfortable enough to talk about it now. A few questions pop to mind:
1-What time was it?
2-Did they stop somewhere before/after they demanded your belongings? Was this going on while the guy was driving or what? I don't understand how this could happen. Was it in a fairly public area or along the main highway? Why the coughing and all that? It makes zero sense.\, but there must be a reason for it. A bit of a joke, but I would have just pretended I didn't understand them and then looked out the window or put on some headphones. Works most of the time, even with cops.
3-How did you know they hinted about acid? It's such a random weapon, even here.
4-What was the women's role in this? They sat at the back and gave directions, or followed them?
5-Were they aggressive? You've given no indication that they were threatening at all. No yelling or threats? Holding a weapon at you? I don't understand how someone can "hint" at you giving away valuables without a weapon in sight...
Edwardo wrote:Could happen to any of us, really. Even if you get in a "taxi" with just the driver, he could easily divert course a bit to where his buddies are waiting. Few people bother to take down the cab number even when there is one. You'd have to remember to send that info to someone in a SMS, since your phone would surely be stolen and too difficult to remember afterwards. Such robberies make the news in Thailand often, although the whole acid attack drama is a new insane local twist. You gotta figure most such encounters go unreported.
Poi Pet needs to be nuked.
To be fair, this sort of thing can't "just happen" to anyone. I'm not trying to blame the victim, but she was obviously targeted for a reason. Better that she analyse the situation and figure out what she did wrong to prevent it from happening again. I also highly doubt they actually had any acid. Such an attack when robbing someone, even if they were willing to kill a foreigner and attempt to dispose of the body, is really risky as most know foreigners are off-limits as it attracts a lot of attention. Plus how can you douse someone in acid in the back of a car? Talk about a recipe for disaster... Sounds more like two couples doing an armed robbery/scam. Not sure why they'd bring acid into it, maybe they assume that acid is used as a common weapon in the west? I read it as though you were on the side of the road and they used it as a tactic to keep you from looking at them or the car as they drove off... But that's obviously not the case. Extremely bizarre...
A few things in the future: try to get the number plate and make/model of the car before you even get in. Also, you should know where you're heading even in a new setting and use your phone's GPS to track your movements. No excuse nowadays since everyone has a phone with maps and a GPS. I always do this in unknown cities to make sure I'm heading in the right direction or being taken off-track by a taxi driver. Makes it look like you know where you're going.
Anyways, what's important is that you're physically alright and have one hell of a story to tell!