Lop Buri, A young villager suffering from mental illness poured oil on the village headman, seriously injuring him. It is believed that the motive was a conflict over a previous drug case.
More than 20 police officers surrounded a house in Tambon Ngio Rai, Amphoe Mueang, Lopburi after Mr. Somchai (assumed name), aged around 40, poured oil on others, causing a fire, injuring 3 people, before riding a motorcycle to escape and hide in the house. Police tried to persuade the suspect to come out and surrender, but it was difficult because the perpetrator’s parents refused to let the officers arrest him, leading to an argument that lasted for several hours.
The mother of the perpetrator said that her son had a mental illness and had been treated in a hospital. She had documents from a doctor confirming this, but it is expected that he may have lacked continuous treatment until his symptoms developed. She will take her son to surrender to the police herself. The officers negotiated that it was a serious crime, an
d the charges were attempted murder by arson, with intent to kill. However, the parents still insisted on not arresting their son. The officers could only surround the house to prevent the suspect from escaping.
The incident occurred at 7:30 p.m. last night (July 29). Ban Kum Police Station received a report that someone had been doused with gasoline and set on fire opposite the village headman’s office in Village No. 10, Tambon Ngio Rai. They went to investigate along with volunteers from the Ruamkatanyu Foundation. At the scene, they found the bodies of Mr. Narongsak, 42, the village headman, and Mr. Sathit, 60, who were seriously injured by the fire. Rescue workers took them to the hospital while villagers worked to put out the fire to prevent it from spreading.
Asked Mr. Boonmee, 60 years old, the owner of the house where the incident occurred, who was injured with a blister wound on his left thigh, he said that at around 7 pm, he and his friend, Mr. Sathit, were sitting talking, drinking and eating wit
h the village headman, Narongsak. Suddenly, Mr. Somchai, the perpetrator, rode a motorcycle with an empty tank and walked into the coin-operated gasoline dispenser in the village headman’s office, approximately 15 liters, before walking out. Suddenly, Mr. Somchai threw gasoline into the drinking circle, hitting the first village headman. At that moment, Mr. Sathit took out a lighter to light a cigarette, so the fire quickly and violently flared up, burning the bodies of village headman, Narongsak, and Mr. Sathit. He himself was about to go to the bathroom, so he didn’t get much gasoline. Before the villagers helped put out the fire and notified the authorities, they were initially informed by their relatives that village headman, Narongsak, and Mr. Sathit were in serious condition.
Mr Boonmee continued that the village headman and the perpetrator used to be friends, but recently the perpetrator thought that the village headman had reported him for drug charges, which led to constant conflict between them.
T
he latest at 07.00 today (July 30), after more than 9 hours, the suspect came out to surrender. The officers therefore took him to Ban Kum Police Station. The suspect was still acting noisy and accused the police of bullying him. Before the officers tested his urine and found it purple, he also accused the testing of not having standards.
While Pol. Lt. Chiwanon Ratana, the officer in charge of the case, questioned Mr. Boonmee, one of the injured, to submit an arrest warrant to the Lopburi Provincial Court to arrest Mr. Kongkiat, 40, to press charges. The injured, village headman Narongsak and Mr. Sathit, suffered burns on 90 percent of their bodies and are still in critical condition in the intensive care unit of Phra Narai Maharat Hospital. As for Mr. Kongkiat, he has a history of murder and multiple drug cases. He is currently waiting for a court warrant to arrest and press charges.
The mother of Mr. Kongkiat cursed at those who came to testify for the injured person at the police station. The mother cla
imed that her son had been mentally ill for more than 10 years. In the past, her son committed a murder and was imprisoned for 5 years. While in prison, he was physically abused until he lost his mind. After returning home, he had symptoms all the time. As for the village headman, Narongsak, he was a close friend. They went everywhere together as usual, but they had a quarrel because they were suspicious that he was looking for something wrong and reporting it to the police, until her son committed the aforementioned incident.
Source: Thai News Agency