Joi (not his real name), 41, committed the act that left his 13-year-old daughter in a serious condition after arguing with her over the amount of time she spent on Facebook and Line and then locked her in a rented house in Phetchaburi’s Muang district on Sunday.

He was arrested at a checkpoint in Prachuap Khiri Khan’s Thap Sakae district on Sunday night while trying to flee with his youngest daughter.

Joi told police he attacked the girl out of rage after they argued about her spending too much time on Facebook and Line.

His wife, 44, corroborated that version of events.

She said her husband did not like the girl spending a lot of time on social media for fear it would impact negatively on her school work.

She denied the suggestion the attack was the result of sexual abuse.

The wife said her husband had a violent temper and had hit the girl before over her social media use.

She claimed Joi had previously threatened to kill all the family members as he was jealous and paranoid that she would return to her former lover.

She said her daughter was recovering in hospital under close medical supervision.

Police said the husband was wanted under a court-issued arrest warrant in relation to a murder case in Trang’s Muang district on August 14, 2007.