Man Arrested After Shooting Motorcycle Mechanic Dead in Saraburi

[Georgealbert]

 

Picture captured from CCTV.

 

A man has been arrested after fatally shooting a motorcycle mechanic at a repair shop in Ban Mo District, Saraburi. The suspect, identified as Mr. Phot 43, was apprehended by police after fleeing the scene of the crime on 5 January.

 

Police were alerted to the incident at approximately 17:30. Upon arrival at the repair shop, located in Moo 3, Ban Mo, officers found a large pool of blood. The victim, Mr. Teerawat, known locally as "Kae," aged 32, had been rushed to Ban Mo Hospital but was pronounced dead en route.

 

The victim sustained three gunshot wounds from a 9mm firearm one to the neck, one to the left side of the chest, and one to the right chest. Two spent cartridges were recovered at the scene.

 

The suspect, a neighbour residing just 200 metres away, fled the scene on a white Honda Wave 125i motorcycle. More than 20 police officers and local authorities surrounded the suspect's single-story home but found it empty.

 

Later, villagers informed police that Mr. Phot had abandoned his motorcycle near a field hut approximately 2 kilometres from the crime scene. Officers located and arrested him nearby without resistance. He was found shirtless, wearing black shorts, and appeared exhausted.

 

When questioned, the suspect gave incoherent statements but admitted to discarding the firearm in a ditch 500 metres from where he was captured. Officers retrieved the weapon, a 9mm pistol, from a waterway approximately 60 centimetres deep, with four live rounds still in the magazine.

 

Mr. Phot alleged that the victim had insulted his family for two years, threatened to corrupt his child with drugs, and tried to commit indecent acts against his child. He claimed he had endured these provocations for too long. The suspect admitted to purchasing the firearm for 50,000 baht shortly before the incident.

 

The victim's grandmother, Mrs. Surin 79, said she was at home behind the repair shop when she heard three gunshots and Mr. Phot shouting, "You think you're untouchable?" She came outside to find her grandson lying on the ground.

 

Mrs. Surin alleged that the suspect was likely hallucinating due to drug use, insisting that her grandson had never had any issues with him.

 

The victim's wife, Ms. Narumon 33, who was in their bedroom during the shooting, also claimed Mr. Phot had a history of drug abuse. She had previously filed a police report about his threatening behaviour on 27 October 2024. She added that the suspect had repeatedly harassed and threatened her husband without apparent reason, once saying, "Do you want to die that badly?"

 

Police have charged Mr. Phot with premeditated murder and the illegal possession and use of a firearm in a public area. The victim's body has been sent to Srinakharinwirot University Hospital in Nakhon Nayok.

 

-- 2025-01-07