Thailand's Criminal Court on Tuesday 25 August 2026, sentenced Sararat "Am Cyanide" Rangsiwuthaporn to death for the premeditated cyanide murder of Darinee "Fah" Thepwi in 2020. The ruling is the seventh judgment in 15 cases brought against Sararat. She denied the charges in the case, formally registered as Case No. Aor 1802/2568. Prosecutors said Sararat put potassium cyanide into food, medicine or another consumable item, causing Darinee to ingest it. They alleged the killing was intended to obtain or retain financial benefits arising from fraud. Darinee died on December 13, 2020, in Rai Khing subdistrict of Sam Phran district, Nakhon Pathom. She belonged to the same rotating savings group as Sararat and was owed 60,000 baht by her. Court accepts cyanide poisoning evidence The court said a Siriraj Hospital forensic medicine and toxicology specialist who carried out Darinee's post-mortem examination found that cyanide exposure caused her heart, lungs and liver to fail. It also heard that Sararat had been with Darinee shortly before the poison would have taken effect. After leaving Sararat and returning home, Darinee suffered convulsions, muscle rigidity, foamed at the mouth and lost consciousness, symptoms the court said were consistent with cyanide poisoning. The court further found that Sararat owed Darinee money and faced substantial other debts which meant she could not repay the victim. It concluded that Sararat caused cyanide to enter Darinee's body, either by making her ingest it or through another method. The prosecution evidence proved the case beyond reasonable doubt, it ruled, while the defence had not rebutted it. Death penalty under Criminal Code provisions Sararat was found guilty under Sections 289(4) and 289(7) of the Criminal Code, and Section 238 in conjunction with Section 236. As the offences stemmed from a single act that breached several legal provisions, the court applied the offence carrying the harshest punishment under Section 90. It convicted her of premeditated murder committed to obtain or retain benefits from another offence, conceal that offence or avoid punishment. Because it imposed the death penalty, the court said it could not add a further consecutive sentence. The remaining requests were dismissed. Join the discussion? 26 August 2026
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