A former Thai lawmaker has been arrested in connection with a shooting at a government office outside Bangkok that resulted in the death of one official and injuries to another. The incident occurred Monday at the Nonthaburi Provincial Administrative Organization.
The suspect, identified as Chalong Riewraeng, reportedly admitted to the shooting, stating the motive was personal and stemmed from an argument over money he had lent to the victim, Thongchai Yenprasert, the chief executive of the organization. Yenprasert died from his injuries, while his driver, who was also shot, is in stable condition.
Riewraeng told reporters that he followed Yenprasert to his car and intended to apologize, but opened fire when he perceived the driver as drawing a weapon. "I wanted to apologize to the people of Nonthaburi," Riewraeng said. "I had no intention. We were friends and I thought we could talk it out, but he wouldn’t talk to me."
The shooting follows a separate incident on Friday in the same province where a 14-year-old student allegedly killed at least eight people before apparently taking his own life. That attack targeted his school and family home, resulting in the deaths of a schoolgirl and five staff members, in addition to two grandparents.
Investigators are examining the 14-year-old student's electronic devices and interviewing witnesses to determine the motive for that attack, though preliminary findings suggest issues related to his family and school. The student reportedly consumed violent online content and had shown an interest in firearms for approximately one to two years. He had also previously brought a BB gun to school, which was confiscated by a teacher.
Thailand has a high rate of gun ownership in Asia, with civilian gun ownership estimated at 15.1 guns per 100 people in a 2017 study. The country's firearm death rate was 3.49 per 100,000 people in 2023, according to World Population Review, which is relatively high within Asia. While mass shootings are uncommon, Thailand has experienced an increase in high-profile fatal shootings in recent years, including incidents at a public high school in the south and a shooting at a Bangkok shopping mall in 2023.