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Based on the reports by NPR, on October 6, 2022, a former police officer killed 35 people in a mass shooting at a child daycare center in Thailand.
Thai authorities said that Panya Khamraa, a disgraced police officer who was involved in an active court case for selling drugs, went on a shooting rampage Thursday afternoon, killing at least 24 children and 11 adults at a daycare center in the northeastern town of Nong Bua Lamphu. The town is located 540 kilometers from Bangkok.
As per the outlet, after the shooting spree, the 34-year-old suspect fled home and killed his wife and two-year-old stepson before shooting himself dead.
The Associated Press cited a police statement that said that at least twenty-two children and two adults were killed inside the daycare center before the assailant left and continued to shoot after getting into his car.
As per the outlet, the policeman killed two children and nine adults outside the building. The death toll also included his wife and stepson.
Ex-Police Officer, who went on a shooting spree in Thailand, was suspended over drug allegations
According to multiple reports, Panya Khamrab, a former police sergeant at Na Wang Police Station in Nong Bua Lamphu Province in Thailand, was reportedly fired last year over drug allegations.
Hours before the former officer went on a mass shooting rampage, he was in court on trial to face the charges leveled against him. According to Reuters, Thai officials purported that the assailant was overwhelmed by the stress of the trial, which spurred him into committing the violent act.
Another outlet reported that the ex-policeman was at the daycare center to pick up his stepson. However, unable to find his son, who was not present at the daycare, he opened fire and killed innocent victims in the building.
Maj. General Jirapob Puridet of the CIB told CNN that the children were asleep inside a room during the violent attack.
Witnesses at the crime scene told police that the assailant was also wielding a knife inside the daycare
Paisal Luesomboon, a police spokesperson, corroborated the witness statement and told Thai PBS:
"He started shooting, slashing, killing children at the Utai Sawan daycare centre."
District official Jidapa Boonsom told Reuters that at least 30 children were present at the daycare at the time of the shooting. He also outlined a few key details of the incident, stating that the assailant forced himself into a locked room where the children were asleep and began slashing and shooting the kids.
He also added that an eight-month-old pregnant teacher was killed with a knife.
In a Facebook post, the prime minister of Thailand, Prayut Chan-o-cha, condoled the tragic incident. He said:
“According to the shocking incident reported in Nong Bua Lamphu this afternoon, I would like to express my deepest condolences to the families of the lost and injured.”
He added:
“I have ordered the commander. Police On the ground for immediate legal action and all involved parties to intervene to provide immediate recovery to all affected people.”
While mass shootings in Thailand are not a prevalent issue, firearm possession in the country is high compared to any other country in Southeast Asia. Thailand touts the second-highest number of homicides related to guns compared to any other Southeast Asian country.
