BANGKOK, Aug 13 — Six people were injured after a gunman opened fire at a shopping event in Dan Khun Thot district, Nakhon Ratchasima province, north-eastern Thailand, on Wednesday night.
Organiser of the “Chim Shop Chai” fair Prakob Patin said the incident occurred at about 10.30pm when the assailants used knives and a homemade firearm to attack vendors and visitors at the event.
“The shooting occurred as the event was winding down and vendors were packing up, resulting in six people being injured,” he told reporters on Thursday.
Prakob said all six victims were taken to Luang Pho Koon Parisuttho Dan Khun Thot Hospital for treatment, with two seriously injured victims later transferred to Maharat Nakhon Ratchasima Hospital, where one remains in a coma.
Meanwhile, a police team led by Dan Khun Thot Police Station Deputy Investigation Inspector Pol Lt Col Akom Chutkhunthot arrested a 32-year-old male suspect and seized a homemade firearm.
Police said a preliminary investigation found that the suspect had allegedly attempted to steal a parked motorcycle at the event before being confronted by its owner.
Prakob said all six victims were initially taken to Luang Pho Koon Parisuttho Dan Khun Thot Hospital for treatment. Two seriously injured victims were later transferred to Maharat Nakhon Ratchasima Hospital, where one of them remains in a coma.
Meanwhile, a police team led by Dan Khun Thot Police Station Deputy Investigation Inspector Pol Lt Col Akom Chutkhunthot arrested a 32-year-old male suspect and seized a homemade firearm.
Police said a preliminary investigation found that the suspect had allegedly attempted to steal a parked motorcycle at the event before being confronted by its owner.
“The confrontation prompted the suspect to flee the scene before returning with accomplices armed with knives and firearms,” police said.
Police said the suspect will be charged with jointly attempting to murder others using a firearm, while efforts are continuing to track down the remaining suspects.
The incident is the third shooting in Thailand within a week, following the Aug 7 shooting at Debsirin Nonthaburi School, in which nine people were killed, and the alleged shooting of the president of the Nonthaburi Provincial Administrative Organisation (PAO) by a former Thai lawmaker on Monday. — Bernama