Three members of a family were shot at their house by a lone gunman south of Phuket Town last night. Police are hunting for the suspect, who they believe has fled to Phang Nga.
Wichit Police Chief Col. Nikorn Somsuk, along with other officers and Wichit Municipality rescue workers, arrived just before midnight at the scene inside a quiet residential housing estate off Chao Fa West Road.
Somchai Kieingchan, 42, who is a traditional Thai dance teacher and a member of a dance troupe, was bleeding profusely and had been shot in the left side of his neck.
His wife, Urarat, 43, had been shot twice in her lower back, once in an arm and once in a leg, and had a broken finger on her right hand.
Their son, Thanawat, 20, had been shot in his right leg and in his lower back.
All three were rushed to Vachira Phuket Hospital in Phuket Town.
Police recovered 11mm bullet casings at the scene.
One officer said that a neighbor reported seeing Somchai come home from work as usual and the lights went off as if the family had gone to bed for the night.
At about 11:30pm the neighbour heard seven shots ring out and ran out of the house to find Thanawat with gunshot wounds on the ground on the street calling out for help.
Another neighbor called police and rescue workers for help, the officer said.
Police said that through “initial investigations” they believe the gunman was a neighbor, who they named only as “Aon.”
An alert was broadcast for all police to be on the lookout for Aon, which led to officers stopping Aon’s father while he was driving towards Tha Chat Chai checkpoint.
Officers took Aon’s father into custody for questioning.
They believe Aon was fleeing to Phang Nga and are coordinating with police there in the hopes of tracking him down.
Police have yet to determine a motive for the shooting as they say they yet to question the victims in detail.
Meanwhile, the hunt for Aon continues.
Story: The Phuket News
