No neighbourly love
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| Anusak Kittirattana |
Chalong Nuansiri, 62, says he cannot accept the shooting death of his son, Kobsak, 30, a drug addict with psychiatric problems, at the hands of neighbour Anusak Kittirattana, 72.
Mr Anusak, who lives alone, said he was resting at his Bang Nam Prieo district, Chachoengsao home on Jan 22 about 1pm when he heard the sound of an intruder.
The thief, thought to be the same man, had broken into his place repeatedly over the past year, including five times since Jan 12 alone.
“When I confronted him, he rushed at me so I grabbed a 9mm calibre gun at the head of the bed and shot him as a warning. I didn’t know if I hit him as I ran out to seek help,” he told reporters.
The bullet entered the thief’s hand and passed through his neck close to the shoulder, killing him.
Mr Anusak said he was afraid he could be attacked. However, he knew the identity of the thief, as he had argued with the young man’s father just the day before, asking him why he couldn’t keep better control of his son.
Mr Chalong said he warned his son many times to avoid the house, but he did not listen. “I could not be there all the time to control him as I still have work to do,” he said.
Mr Anusak said Kobsak had stolen 500,000 baht worth of goods from his house since he started thieving from him and must have grown complacent, as he was able to get away with it so often.
“You could have filled two 10-wheeler trucks and it would still not be enough,” he said, referring to the goods stolen.
The house had been converted into a car repair yard, with repair equipment stored there, along with four old vehicles.
Don Chimphlee police, called to the scene about 3pm, found the young man’s body about 20m from the door. Mr Chalong later was able to identify the body as it lay inside.
Mr Chalong said he noticed his son had gone missing about midday, and wandered over after hearing from neighbours that a dead man had been found inside.
A canal separates the two houses, which sit about 50m opposite. Mr Chalong said he had installed iron bars over his son’s bedroom window to keep him inside, to no avail.
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| Kobsak |
He suspected he had gone back to Mr Anusak’s house, so paid a visit where he found the owner’s son. “I asked him to look inside. He took a quick look around the outside of the property and found no one, so I went home,” he said.
While the two sides were at odds over the young thief, Mr Chalong asked why the homeowner did not discipline his son, or call the police, when he found him inside.
“Why did he have to shoot him? He claims he shot him from the top of the stairs, but I reckon he shot Kobsak up close, and my son raised his hand to ward off the bullet or beg for his life.”
He had left his younger sister and wife to look after his son’s funeral, as he felt too miserable.
Police had caught Kobsak previously and sent him to detox. However, his son kept lapsing back into drugs. “I give my son money every day but not enough to pay for drugs, so I suspect he steals to pay for his habit,” he said.
Another neighbour, Som, (assumed name) said he felt sorry for the young man, as he spoke well and was a good kid overall.
“He used to bike past my place and we’d chat. The kid didn’t make much sense and sometimes I saw him talking to himself.
“I think the homeowner went too far, as he knew the kid was ill and hooked on drugs. Locals around here feel the same way, that he shouldn’t have shot him."
Police say Kobsak has a history of drug use and theft. They sent the body for an autopsy. No word was to hand on what charges Mr Anusak will face.
Stepson has his revenge
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| Theeraphong Abphosai |
Kaeng Khoi police found Warorat Kessomboon, 54, dead with a single stab wound to the chest at a rental house on Jan 21. His stepson, Theeraphong Abphosai, 23, admitted arguing with the older man, who stabbed him in the groin first.
Mr Theeraphong, his mother Ratree Muan-Ngern and the victim had been drinking a white spirit (lao khao) when Warorat, who was a possessive type and liked picking fights when drunk, smashed a bottle over Ms Ratree’s head. “That will get rid of some of your bad blood,” he remarked.
Mr Theeraphong asked why he had to attack his mother, and Warorat flared up, pulling out a knife and stabbing him in the groin. Mr Theeraphong, who was left with minor injuries, wrested back the knife and stabbed his stepfather in the chest, killing him.
Earlier, Ms Ratree said, her husband had picked a fight over two portable gas stoves stored at her mother’s place. “He said he wanted them back so he could sell them,” she said.
He called her mother and abused her, which upset her. He also went outside and tried to reverse his pickup, but was so drunk drove it into a roadside ditch.
Ms Ratree, who works on a construction site, said she and her husband argued often. However, this was her son’s first argument with the victim.
Warorat had agreed to let her and her son stay with him, and they had been living at the house with him for less than a week.
After Mr Theeraphong stabbed his stepfather, he prostrated himself at his Mum’s feet, asking for forgiveness. “He said he didn’t mean to do it,” she said.
“I have no regrets, as he has been treating me poorly for years,” she added.
She had no money to pay for her husband’s funeral, and would have to leave that to his family to organise. Nor could she pay for her son’s bail.
In CCTV audio at the house, obtained by reporters, Ms Ratree at 12.37am can be heard urging her son to put the knife down: “Don’t, don’t,” she says.
At 12.43am, her son can be heard saying, “Are you dead yet, you bastard?”
Finally, at 2.45am, police send Mr Theeraphong to the station for processing.
A neighbour said she felt sorry for victim Warorat, who was a good man who had helped her out in the past. He had sounded off to her a week before about his fears that his wife was playing around.
“If they had alerted the police straight away, he might have lived. A witness said he overheard Mr Theeraphong say to his Mum, ‘Don’t call the hospital just yet, let him die,’” she claimed, without offering proof. Police charged Mr Theeraphong with assault causing death.
Oddball stare begets attack
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| Kantaphat, blue T-shirt, being attacked on the street |
Kantaphat Hiranrasmee, 16, was stabbed seven times in the arms, chest, and back in the nighttime attack on soi Pho Khun Thale, Muang district on Jan 22.
Police also found a 15cm knife at the scene which had come loose from its handle. A bystander took a clip of the attack. It shows the assailant chasing Kantaphat across the road and stabbing him repeatedly. Later, he kicks him as he lies on the ground before fleeing on his bike.
Speaking from Surat Thani hospital, where the boy was being treated, his mother, 49, said the person who took the video at first could not see the knife and thought it was an “ordinary” assault.
Kantaphat’s overturned motorcycle was on the other side of the road. His mother, unnamed in news reports, said both were travelling in the same direction and both appear to have overturned at the same time.
The young man who attacked her son may have thought mistakenly that Kantaphat gave him a hostile look. A bad look is often enough to prompt the most brutal attacks on the street, especially between teen gangs.
“He started attacking Kantaphat where the bikes overturned, and chased him across the road. My son did not fight back,” she said.
Her son was a good kid with plenty of friends. “Based on what I heard from locals, the attacker may have thought my son was looking at him in a provocative way. In fact, he is cross-eyed. Many people think he’s looking at them in the face but he’s not,” she said.
“I think the attacker went too far and am urging police to track him down.”
Her son was being treated and recovering, she said. No word was to hand on police progress in the case.
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