Taking on the teens, kids save a life, old man lashes out

No ordinary soi row

Anon lies dead in soi

A Chon Buri man who argued with a group of local teens paid the price when the father of one lad took him on in a shooting duel, and won.

Phan Thong police found Anon Phakdeekham, 40, owner of a small ice-making factory, lying dead in soi Saen Saeb of Nong Tamlueng sub-district with multiple gunshot wounds. They also found 11mm calibre and 9mm calibre shells around his body.

Police identified the chief suspect as Saranit Suksai, 35, father of a teen with whom Anon had clashed several days before. Anon had abused the teen for revving his motorcycle at him.

Unimpressed, the teen and his mates are said to have assaulted Anon, who decided to let bygones be bygones. Later, he called in the teens one by one to clear the air, according to some accounts.

Ekachai Darun, 46, the victim’s elder brother, said the lad whom he had abused initially told his father, Mr Saranit, who remained unhappy. Mr Saranit called Anon repeatedly, daring him to come out and clear the matter. “My brother didn’t want to go but changed his mind after the other side kept nagging,” Mr Ekachai said.

“He called to say he was heading out again but didn’t say where. I tried following him but couldn’t find the spot where they arranged to meet; next I heard, he was dead,” he told reporters.

Seri Ruangdej, a member of local Provincial Administrative Organisation and uncle of the victim’s, said he suspects the other side lay in wait and ambushed Anon.

Other media reports paint a dramatically different picture. They say Anon turned up at the teen’s home about 11pm and threw rocks at the roof. A couple of hours later he turned up again and shot at the place, prompting Mr Saranit to return fire.

The two men are said to have carried on their shootout in the soi, with Mr Saranit pursuing the victim, who taunted him with the words: “If you are going to shoot, try doing it accurately.”

A CCTV camera at a nearby noodle shop, which bore damage from the shoot-out, captured audio of the clash. At least 10 shots can be heard ringing out.

Mr Saranit fled and was still being sought by police. An aunt of his, Paewpan Suksai, said the row started when Anon argued with Mr Saranit’s son, and kicked over his bike, breaking his phone. The teen and the lads who were with him beat up Anon in response.

The young teen went home in tears and told his family. Mr Saranit apparently offered to take a beating on his son’s behalf to take responsibility for the clash, if that would placate Anon. However, Anon said he wouldn’t be happy until he had beaten both the boy and Mr Saranit’s wife.

“We are not an aggressive family,” Ms Paewpan insisted. “Those words triggered everything that followed. We tried every means to talk to the man.”

Provincial police asked the Chon Buri Criminal Court to issue a warrant for several men, including Mr Saranit.

‘Don’t shoot, Dad’

Manit is nabbed

A Chon Buri man can thank his sons for saving his life, moments after he killed his wife in a flash of jealousy. He was about to take his own life in turn but changed his mind when his sons called out his name.

Bang Lamung police nabbed Manit Charoenphu, 30, at his home in Nongprue sub-district where he had shot his wife of 10 years, Juthathip Chinfan, 28, on June 11.

Both were tattoo artists whose work is sought out by customers overseas. Mr Manit, who had recently returned from a trip to Greenland, and was having troubles with his wife, suspected she was secretly talking to other men.

They have two sons, aged 7 and 10, the younger of whom witnessed the shooting and could be seen in heartbreaking CCTV footage, wandering out to the mouth of the soi in search of help.

On the night of the shooting the younger boy asked his mother if she could share her internet connection, as he wanted to play games. She told him to eat his dinner first.

“Just then I noticed my wife appeared to be chatting with someone on the phone, and asked to take a look,” Mr Manit said. “However, she refused and ran into the bathroom. I kicked in the door in time to see her trying to climb through a hole in the roof to escape.

“Her phone fell to the ground and I saw that she was indeed talking to another man, and had posed with him on social media. The sight was too much to bear and I pulled out my handgun and shot her,” he said.

Mr Manit had bought her the 9mm calibre handgun for her own protection when he was away. Instead, it was to take her life.

Three shots were to ring out, one of them hitting her. CCTV audio suggests a gap between the first shot and the next two of 5–7 minutes.

After the first shot, the couple’s 7-year-old is seen walking down to the local market in search of his older brother, who was helping his grandmother sell fried fish. Moments later, the older boy is seen taking the younger one back home on a motorbike.

Reports say Mr Manit locked the house after shooting his wife the first time and while the boy was out looking for his brother. Later, two more shots rang out.

A neighbour said he could hear the sound of Mr Manit wailing as he apologised to his dead wife. The pair, who moved in about three months ago, had argued the night before. They had also split up previously but came back together for the sake of their boys.

Mr Manit said he contemplated taking his own life in remorse for killing his wife but his sons, who had returned home, called out “Dad!” to get him to stop. He changed his mind and waited for the police, who charged him with murder.

Beaten while asleep

Boon

An elderly Nong Khai man said he mistook his young wife lying under a blanket for her supposed fancy man and beat her over the head with an iron bar, killing her.

Boon Thaisinuan, 77, who admits he was drunk, came home one night last week to see his wife sleeping under a blanket. He could not see her head and assumed it was a secret admirer.

He grabbed the iron bar and struck the sleeping figure over the head. The blow killed his wife, Praiwan Intarich, 39. Later he set fire to the corpse, but decided to put the blaze out again as he was worried it would burn down his house.

Police nabbed gap-toothed, grinning Mr Boon at their rundown house in Sangkhom district. They say they suspect hit the body many times, not just the one he claimed, as blood was splattered about widely.

Where he killed his wife

Earlier, Mr Boon asked his neighbour Chanhor Boonprakob, 64, for a smoke. “He said he had set fire to his house and a man was inside,” he said. “I contacted Boon’s son and together we went and had a look.

“We had to prise open the door, as Boon had locked the place. We found the body inside and called the police.”

The victim’s mother, Liang Intharich, said Mr Boon asked her about three months ago if he could marry his daughter, and offered her a 2,000 baht dowry. They also tied strings around their wrists, committing to each other in a simple ceremony.

“I was reluctant at first as he was so much older, but my daughter said she loved him so I didn’t want to stand in the way,” Ms Liang said. Both had raised families and lost their partners, so wanted to start again.

Neighbours say the couple seemed happy enough, and cannot understand the attack. CCTV footage shows them heading into town on their motorcycle earlier that day, apparently without problems. “I know I have to face jail for the sin I committed,” Mr Boon said good naturedly. Police charged him with murder.