Thais Have Temper, Watch Out

[BKKDUDE]

Problem is unlike thailand many big citis, phuket has lot of undecent outsider thais.

Imagine this guy was in bangla rd, how many farang could have been shot?

http://www.phuketgazette.net/news/index.asp?id=5826

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Man surrenders over road rage shootings

PHUKET CITY: After a four-day manhunt, a Patong man wanted in connection with the shooting murder of two youths in front of Kaset Market, the fresh market near Robinson department store, turned himself in to police early yesterday morning.

The suspect, 33-year-old building contractor Sukkasem Charoenrat, has denied the charges.

Police say they have testimonies confirming that Sukkasem was pulling his Honda Phantom chopper out onto Ong Sim Phai Rd around 10 pm July 5 after having a meal with his 10-year-old son at the Jay Nang khao mun gai stall outside the PS Inn.

Witnesses said that as he began to accelerate away from the stall, two youths approached at high speed on another bike and crashed into the chopper, Phuket City Police Duty Officer Lt Theeradet Jiraksa told the Gazette.

The youths approached the man, whose son was slightly injured, and tried to apologize.

Instead of accepting their apologies, Sukkasem allegedly pulled out a pistol and began firing.

Many people eating at street side stalls in the popular dining area ran for cover or fell spread-eagle to the ground.

After firing about seven shots, the man and his son calmly got back on the chopper and rode off.

A restaurant owner who witnessed the incident alerted police.

Officers arrived to find Phuket Technology School student Nuttapong Naweewong, a 17-year-old native of Koh Yao, dead at the scene. A 9mm bullet had entered his left temple and exited from the right.

Witnesses said the other youth, 19-year-old Sarawut Jitlang of Satun, was shot once in the head while trying to flee. He was rushed to Vachira Phuket Hospital, but died soon after arrival. Sarawut was a crew member for a speedboat ferry service to Koh Phi Phi Don, police said.

Also rushed to Vachira Phuket Hospital was bystander Anucha Waree, 18, who was shot in his left arm.

Lt Col Amponwat Sangruang from Phuket City Police said that investigators visited Sukkasem’s home in Patong on Friday, but he was not there.

A 9mm handgun was discovered at the house, police said.

A warrant was issued for Sukkasem’s arrest on Saturday. He turned himself in at Kathu Police Station yesterday at 5:30 am.

Sukkasem has been charged with two counts of murder, attempted murder and carrying a gun in public without a permit, added Col Amponwat.

The case has been sent to Phuket Provincial Court. Sukkasem is being detained at Phuket City Police Station.

[donna]

im not sure about your comment about how many farang would ahve been killed had the incident taken place on bangla road, but i do get what you are saying. this type of incident has the potential to kill and maim many people, regardless of nationality, if it happens in a crowded area.

back on topic: this sort of thing disgusts me. i just dont understand the whole gun ownership thing. firing seven shots for a minor traffic misdemeanour is ridiculous.

i hope the families involved seek and get justice.

[Ping]

Not sure about the heading - a man goes stupid/crazy with a gun, so that equates to 'Thais have temper'? I think you should have been a sub-editor for a tabloid with a heading like that. Can I pose to you these questions: 1/ We have all witnessed Thai people in anger - is there something abnormal about this (by global standards)? 2/Some Thais can fire-up more than others - is there something abnormal about this? I am also not sure what you mean by 'phuket has lot of undecent outsider thais' (sic). Do you have information that the offender was not a Phuket local? If not, why the comment and if so, what's the point? He seems to have been a legitimate working man who has 'snapped' - this is hardly a matter of someone coming to Phuket for the purpose of engaging in violent crime.

The article itself, however, is indicative of the apparent increase in gun-related crime over the years on the island. I have not checked the stats (no doubt someone will), but my observation is that there has been a steady increase in violent crime over the past twenty years; thankfully, not to the apparently alarming extent of some other places such as Pattaya (leaving aside the south). It is mainly confined to Thai versus Thai on Phuket (with the occasional smattering of incidents involving Burmese). In the west, perception of crime - itself measured statistically through surveys (feeling of safety/security), is as important a measure as statistical fact. How safe do expats feel now compared with 20 years ago? Most would probably say no problem, but I know that in comparison, I now stay far more conscious of the environment when I go out.

The article is an excellent example of the problems attending the ease of obtaining handguns - but I have seen a drunken and angry farang waving one in a bar, so I suppose I should say that 'Farang have tempers'.

Edit typo (blissfully ignoring the golden rule always proofread your work)

Edited July 12, 2007 by Ping

[Lithobid]

Ping I would have to say that was a "Fair and Ballanced" report. BKKdude, I agree with your statement, although this article, dosen't really back it up. It's the main reason why I don't venture to places like Bangla RD. anymore. I think the truth is, there are dangerous people where ever you go, and you never know when they are going to snap. The problem as Ping points out is that the law, or apparent lack of enforcement of the law allows these people to have loaded guns in their hands when they do snap. Angry Thai, American, Canadian, Afgani, European, dosen't matter, + loaded gun = bad situation.

What I am really curious about is, what will be enough (vilonce), in places like Pattaya and Phuket, to have the police put up the funds to step in and do something other than picking up bodies, and filling out reports. I wonder (in total agreeance with Ping) what would have happened if there had been 1 or 2 police patroling that night fresh market. Would the man not have shot those boys? My heart goes out to them and their families more than anyone else on this topic. May they rest in peace.

[BKKDUDE]

Here another new story, another rage over road accident, this time hitting with "home made" gun to produce less injury. These stories tell when problems rise with thais and farang, always consider high probablity that thai own a gun

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http://www.phuketgazette.net/news/index.asp?id=5827

Thursday, July 12, 2007

Students charged over roadside beating

RASSADA: Two second-year university students were arrested after allegedly assaulting a man at an accident scene on Soi Phaneang on July 2.

When Phuket City police arrived at the scene, they found the two students, named by police as “Wit”, 22, and “Karine”, 23, both from Pattani province, beating 30-year-old Jaroonsak Khongjit, an employee of Phuket Adventure company.

Pol Capt Atthapol Wannasaengthong of Phuket City Police Station told the Gazette that the incident happened after the students’ motorcycle and Jaroonsak’s motorcycle bumped while they were riding on Soi Phaneang.

The collision caused the student’s motorcycle to crash to the ground. K. Jaroonsak was assaulted when he went to apologize to the students, said Capt Atthapol.

“I asked them why they beat him and they said that they were angry,” he said.

“People at the scene reported that one of them had a gun and used the gun to hit Jaroonsak. When we frisked them we found a homemade gun with bullets,” Capt Atthapol added.

Both students were charged with committing bodily harm and illegal possession of a firearm.

Edited July 13, 2007 by BKKDUDE

[sbk]

And you know what's amazing? The english have tempers too, so do the Americans, the Canadians, the Germans and everybody else.

Think Thailand is bad? Read the newspaper every day, doesn't matter where, this kind of "road rage" behavior is everywhere.

A VIOLENT thug bludgeoned a man so hard with a golf club that fragments of his skull were driven into his brain, after following him home after a road rage attack. The UK

[Prakanong]

And you know what's amazing? The english have tempers too, so do the Americans, the Canadians, the Germans and everybody else.

Think Thailand is bad? Read the newspaper every day, doesn't matter where, this kind of "road rage" behavior is everywhere.

A VIOLENT thug bludgeoned a man so hard with a golf club that fragments of his skull were driven into his brain, after following him home after a road rage attack. The UK

In the UK its news because its quite rare - in Thailand its daily someone gets shot for a minor incident or a little loss of face - an ego so low in self worth it hurts so much they kill.

Thailand is 3rd in the world for gun deaths - nuff said - a violent place getting more so.

[sbk]

Those statistics are nearly 10 years out of date, if you are using the nationmaster as a source.

And my point was merely by combing a few newspapers you are bound to find stories of violent behavior wherever you go, that is what sells the papers, so that's what they report.

[Prakanong]

"And my point was merely by combing a few newspapers you are bound to find stories of violent behavior wherever you go, that is what sells the papers, so that's what they report. "

Of course they do - they are there to make money and they are aimed at a certain market segment.

Reading the Straits Times you would think Singapore is a very violent, crime ridden place - they report everything in the "Home" section ;-)))

Even though some of them are trash back in the UK I do miss a good English paper - esp on a Sunday morning.

[Luckydog]

Those statistics are nearly 10 years out of date, if you are using the nationmaster as a source.

And my point was merely by combing a few newspapers you are bound to find stories of violent behavior wherever you go, that is what sells the papers, so that's what they report.

No SBK they are NOT ten years out of date. Thailand IS no3 in the World for Gun Crimes Per capita of the population.....OK?

I don't know what's wrong with you Pal. Whenever anyone says anything bad about LOS YOU ALWAYS say "It's a lot worse in where ever!".......Do you work for the Tourist Board ?

OK. Nobody was shot, or mugged today in Pattaya. You happy now?

[BKKDUDE]

No doubt farang has temper, everybody knows that. I can't believe thais to show such temper for so minor problems.

I lived in middle-east, and public consensus here is that majority thais are soft, sissy, coward or gay,.....

Edited July 13, 2007 by BKKDUDE

[sbk]

Those statistics are nearly 10 years out of date, if you are using the nationmaster as a source.

And my point was merely by combing a few newspapers you are bound to find stories of violent behavior wherever you go, that is what sells the papers, so that's what they report.

No SBK they are NOT ten years out of date. Thailand IS no3 in the World for Gun Crimes Per capita of the population.....OK?

I don't know what's wrong with you Pal. Whenever anyone says anything bad about LOS YOU ALWAYS say "It's a lot worse in where ever!".......Do you work for the Tourist Board ?

OK. Nobody was shot, or mugged today in Pattaya. You happy now?

Seems you have a temper problem there, luckydog. And a research issue as well.

Please see this page, murders with firearms, scroll down to the bottom and read this little part here:

SOURCE: Seventh United Nations Survey of Crime Trends and Operations of Criminal Justice Systems, covering the period 1998 - 2000 (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Centre for International Crime Prevention)

[Ping]

BKK Dude - I would ask you to explain what you mean by your last post, but it would probably be pointless