Brit Kills Self at Koh Samui Shooting Range

A 35-year-old British tourist shot 10 times at a paper target in a Ko Samui shooting range. For his next shot, he put the .38 caliber gun under his chin and pulled the trigger. The shocked employee nearby had no time to react. Police have not found a motive for the suicide.

SURAT THANI -- December 2, 2012 [PDN]; a report of a tourist shooting himself at a shooting range was received by Pol. Maj. Capt. Suteep Chadakarn, officer of the shift, Ko Samui, Surat Thani. He rushed to the scene with Pol. Lt. Col. Thanawat Sukata, detective inspector of the Ko Samui police station.

The incident was reported by the staff of the shooting gallery, the Surat Thani Shooting Association, third branch, at 33/3 Moo 2, Muang, Ko Samui.

At the scene, police found the body of the foreigner lying in a supine position. He was wearing black-and-white plaid shorts and a short-sleeved black shirt.

The man had died from a self-inflicted gunshot that went through his brain. There were traces of carbon powder from the wound under his chin. The gun he had fired was a .38 caliber with a cylinder head. His passport identified the victim as Zach Smith, age 35, nationality British. He also had 7,000 baht in cash.

Police questioned the shooting gallery employee, Mr. Sittichai Nuicharern, age 26. He told police that Mr. Zach had driven up in a black Suzuki F1 vehicle. The Britisher had rented a .38 caliber handgun and bought 21 bullets.

Mr. Sittichai followed him to the shooting channel, where people could shoot at a paper target 12 yards away. Mr. Sittichai was standing to the left of Mr. Zach while he was firing his gun. After shooting 6 bullets, Mr. Zach then reloaded another 6 bullets into his gun.

Full story: http://www.pattayada...shooting-range/

-- Pattaya Daily News 2012-12-04

May he rest in peace

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Sad

I'm going to go for women, money problems or both as a motive. R.I.P anyhow.

Permanent solution to a temporary problem...

RIP

would have thought he would have left a suicide note somewhere if he planned to do this or maybe a moment of madness implusive dicession who knows.

would have to check his phone i suppose to see if he had any bad news or problems

would have thought he would have left a suicide note somewhere if he planned to do this or maybe a moment of madness implusive dicession who knows.

would have to check his phone i suppose to see if he had any bad news or problems

The clear majority of suicides do NOT leave notes. Studies have shown (and logic would indicate) that there are many reasons why someone would not leave a note and by no means is it always the due to the act being an impulsive one.

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I'm going to go for women, money problems or both as a motive. R.I.P anyhow.

More Crystal Balls

I'm going to go for women, money problems or both as a motive. R.I.P anyhow.

More Crystal Balls

Yeah, genius wasn't it. We need medals for this kind of thing...

May he rest in peace

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+1

would have thought he would have left a suicide note somewhere if he planned to do this or maybe a moment of madness implusive dicession who knows.

would have to check his phone i suppose to see if he had any bad news or problems

The clear majority of suicides do NOT leave notes. Studies have shown (and logic would indicate) that there are many reasons why someone would not leave a note and by no means is it always the due to the act being an impulsive one.

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Could that be because writing a note makes many potential victims change their minds?

Requiescat in pace

Also, the poor employee who had to witness this gruesome sight, when he's probably just working a low-paying job.

It amazes me how this place gets to so many people. Is this place such a dead end that these people think they have no other option? I would guess there is a woman at the core of this.

Maybe the thought of going back to Britain during the winter was the cause. Hopefully he's at peace now regardless of the motive.

It amazes me how this place gets to so many people. Is this place such a dead end that these people think they have no other option? I would guess there is a woman at the core of this.

It amazes me how so many people make assumptions based on so little. And how many don't understand the concepts of causality and correlation (ie because people commit suicide in Thailand it doesn't mean they commit suicide because of Thailand or wouldn't have done so in another place.)

Having said that, this place does get to people and I can see why. It doesn't surprise me a bit that some of them are to weak to survive it (not sure it's "so many").

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Maybe he thought the gun was empty. Bad at math.

Also, the poor employee who had to witness this gruesome sight, when he's probably just working a low-paying job.

I'm sure, no matter what the poor guy salary is, it must be just as gruesome to witness ! RIP

I'm going to go for women, money problems or both as a motive. R.I.P anyhow.

gee, if this is some sort of guessing game, I'd say it must be in the gun-restrictive British DNA, just can't quite grasp the idea of a personal firearm

Can anybody tell me why there's so many death involving outsiders in Thailand? Why...?

It amazes me how this place gets to so many people. Is this place such a dead end that these people think they have no other option? I would guess there is a woman at the core of this.

It amazes me how so many people make assumptions based on so little. And how many don't understand the concepts of causality and correlation (ie because people commit suicide in Thailand it doesn't mean they commit suicide because of Thailand or wouldn't have done so in another place.)

Having said that, this place does get to people and I can see why. It doesn't surprise me a bit that some of them are to weak to survive it (not sure it's "so many").

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Why do you say 'weak' ?

would have thought he would have left a suicide note somewhere if he planned to do this or maybe a moment of madness implusive dicession who knows.

would have to check his phone i suppose to see if he had any bad news or problems

The clear majority of suicides do NOT leave notes. Studies have shown (and logic would indicate) that there are many reasons why someone would not leave a note and by no means is it always the due to the act being an impulsive one.

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As an ex police officer,I can tell you about 90% of suicides DO leave notes,where do you get your facts,another expert!

It amazes me how this place gets to so many people. Is this place such a dead end that these people think they have no other option? I would guess there is a woman at the core of this.

Yes very sad indeed, RIP

Its my own previous experience that Thailand can provide tremendous highs but at the same time extreme depressions and it takes considerable time to adjust to the cultural divide and balance the two emotional states. Its not always apparent to an individual just how quickly this country can affect your state of mind and in particular where communication of personal feelings can be difficult because of language barriers.

It amazes me how this place gets to so many people. Is this place such a dead end that these people think they have no other option? I would guess there is a woman at the core of this.

It amazes me how so many people make assumptions based on so little. And how many don't understand the concepts of causality and correlation (ie because people commit suicide in Thailand it doesn't mean they commit suicide because of Thailand or wouldn't have done so in another place.)

Having said that, this place does get to people and I can see why. It doesn't surprise me a bit that some of them are to weak to survive it (not sure it's "so many").

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I suppose you are correct on the "so many" statement. I may be counting too many of the balcony leaps as suicides.

It amazes me how this place gets to so many people. Is this place such a dead end that these people think they have no other option? I would guess there is a woman at the core of this.

Yes very sad indeed, RIP

Its my own previous experience that Thailand can provide tremendous highs but at the same time extreme depressions and it takes considerable time to adjust to the cultural divide and balance the two emotional states. Its not always apparent to an individual just how quickly this country can affect your state of mind and in particular where communication of personal feelings can be difficult because of language barriers.

I like your statement but I would say the cultural divide is more of a discovery of how you are less than a second class citizen here once you have been here a while. In the beginning, Thailand is a bit euphoric and after reality sets in it can be depressing at times.

Tragic. Suicides seem to be an all too common occurrence these days.

It amazes me how this place gets to so many people. Is this place such a dead end that these people think they have no other option? I would guess there is a woman at the core of this.

Yes very sad indeed, RIP

Its my own previous experience that Thailand can provide tremendous highs but at the same time extreme depressions and it takes considerable time to adjust to the cultural divide and balance the two emotional states. Its not always apparent to an individual just how quickly this country can affect your state of mind and in particular where communication of personal feelings can be difficult because of language barriers.

I like your statement but I would say the cultural divide is more of a discovery of how you are less than a second class citizen here once you have been here a while. In the beginning, Thailand is a bit euphoric and after reality sets in it can be depressing at times.

Yes I think you sum it up very nicely, its being a second class citizen with effectively no rights.

would have thought he would have left a suicide note somewhere if he planned to do this or maybe a moment of madness implusive dicession who knows.

would have to check his phone i suppose to see if he had any bad news or problems

The clear majority of suicides do NOT leave notes. Studies have shown (and logic would indicate) that there are many reasons why someone would not leave a note and by no means is it always the due to the act being an impulsive one.

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As an ex police officer,I can tell you about 90% of suicides DO leave notes,where do you get your facts,another expert!

Where do I get my facts? From research -- though I haven't claimed to be the expert that you apparently see yourself as.

In 2005, Gelder, Mayou, and Geddes concluded it was about 1 in 6 that left a note. Another researcher (Dr. Leenaars - who is internationally renowned for his work in suicide prevention and his study of suicide) estimates it ranges from 12 - 37% of suicides that leave a note. Dr. Howard Rosenthal says it's between 15 - 25%. Other research indicates it's 25 - 33%.

I've never seen anything anywhere near 90% -- and it defies logic -- but if you can show me some evidence of my error, I'd be pleased to know of it.

how do these gun ranges work. I walk past the one in pattaya where a guy recently shot himself and can see the guns and targets. is there anything to stop them turning around and shooting a few pedestrians before shooting themselves?

It amazes me how this place gets to so many people. Is this place such a dead end that these people think they have no other option? I would guess there is a woman at the core of this.

It amazes me how so many people make assumptions based on so little. And how many don't understand the concepts of causality and correlation (ie because people commit suicide in Thailand it doesn't mean they commit suicide because of Thailand or wouldn't have done so in another place.)

Having said that, this place does get to people and I can see why. It doesn't surprise me a bit that some of them are to weak to survive it (not sure it's "so many").

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Why do you say 'weak' ?

I would have thought it obvious, even if one doesn't agree.

By "weak" I mean lacking sufficient strength to overcome whatever psychic pain and turmoil one is facing. When we speak of how the country gets to people, we are obviously excluding those who commit suicide for reasons of terminal illness etc who have made a decision that is based on reason and arguably courage and strength.

And for the record: I've lost a loved one to suicide. I myself have been despondent and in dire enough straits to contemplate it. I honestly don't feel I am being unfairly judgmental when I say that someone is weak if the kill themselves rather than pick themselves up and carry on in the face of tremendous hardship - as many of us do. We are all weak sometimes, it doesn't mean they are bad people.