Edmonton Journal ePaper

Gunman shoots his way into Thai daycare

Ex-policeman kills at least 37 in deadly rampage

TASSANEE VEJPONGSA

BANGKOK • A former policeman facing a drug charge burst into a daycare in northeastern Thailand on Thursday, killing dozens of preschoolers and teachers before shooting more people as he fled in the deadliest rampage in the nation's history.

The assailant, who was fired from the force this year, took his own life after killing his wife and child at home.

A witness said staff at the daycare locked the door when they saw the assailant approaching with a gun, but he shot his way in.

At least 37 people were killed in the attack in one of the poorest parts of Thailand, according to police spokesman Archayon Kraithong.

“The teacher who died, she had a child in her arms,” the witness, whose name wasn't given, told Thailand's Kom Chad Luek television.

“I didn't think he would kill children, but he shot at the door and shot right through it.”

In footage posted online after the attack, frantic family members could be heard weeping outside the building, and one image showed the floor of a room smeared with blood where sleeping mats were scattered.

Police identified the suspect as 34-year-old former police officer Panya Kamrap. In a Facebook posting, Thai police chief Gen. Dumrongsak Kittiprapas said the man was due in court on Friday for a hearing in the case involving methamphetamine possession, and speculated that he may have chosen the daycare because it was close to his home.

Earlier, Dumrongsak told reporters that the main weapon used was a 9mm pistol that the man had purchased himself. He also had a shotgun and a knife.

Thailand's Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha, who planned to travel to the scene on Friday, told reporters that initial reports were that the former officer was having personal problems.

“This shouldn't happen,” he said. “I feel deep sadness toward the victims and their relatives.”

Police have not given a full breakdown of the death toll, but they have said at least 22 children and two adults were killed at the daycare. At least two more children were killed elsewhere. They said 12 people were wounded.

Mass shootings are rare but not unheard of in Thailand, which has one of the highest civilian gun ownership rates in Asia, with 15.1 weapons per 100 population compared to only 0.3 in Singapore and 0.25 in Japan.

The country's previous worst mass shooting involved a soldier who opened fire in and around a mall in the northeastern city of Nakhon Ratchasima in 2020, killing 29 people and holding off security forces for 16 hours before being killed.

I DIDN'T THINK HE WOULD KILL CHILDREN, BUT HE SHOT AT THE DOOR AND ... RIGHT THROUGH IT.

WORLD

en-ca

2022-10-07T07:00:00.0000000Z

2022-10-07T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://edmontonjournal.pressreader.com/article/281779928020599

Postmedia