A man accused of beating and set his wife ablaze in a fit of jealousy was captured by the police this morning.
Identified only as Samraeng, the man was taken into custody north of Bangkok and brought to the Bang Khen Police Station after allegedly using a can of gasoline Saturday night to set fire to his wife, Suratana Buachum. The 47-year-old woman sustained third-degree burns at their Phaholyothin Road residence in Bangkok’s Bang Khen district and remains in critical condition at Mongkutwattana Hospital.
Witnesses told reporters that the husband, whose nickname is Lek, arrived in a blue sedan with a 5-liter can of gasoline that he poured on a parked motorcycle belonging to another resident he was said to be jealous of.
Residents told reporters that they often heard the couple bicker. As she was being taken to the hospital, Suratana said that she had gone to the unidentified owner of the motorcycle for help after Samraeng struck her in the head three days earlier.
She said that, after dousing the motorcycle, Samraeng knocked on the door and used the gasoline to set her on fire when she answered the door.
Engulfed in flames, Suratana fled out the back door, where residents quickly helped douse the flames. Samraeng then torched the motorcycle before escaping in his car.
Arriving on the scene, rescue workers found a burned, floral-patterned shirt and red bra near the gasoline can with Suratana, who was wearing only black shorts and covered with burns to her face and body.
