Officer kills colleague, wounds two others
MUHAMMAD AYUB PATHAN and MALUDING DEETO
YALA : A policeman shot his neighbour, a fellow policeman, and then shot dead the officer who interrogated him during a rampage in Muang district yesterday.
At the centre of the tragedy was Pol Lt Boonchuan Jantarawat, of Bannang Sata police station. He was granted leave on Friday after showing signs of severe stress and paranoia.
Around 7.30am yesterday, police were called to the scene of a shooting. They found Pol Lt Boonchuan in a state of panic with a pistol in his hand.
He had just shot his neighbour, Pol Snr Sgt-Maj Decha Chuay-iam, four times - in the hand, leg and torso. He was in intensive care at the provincial hospital last night.
Pol Snr Sgt-Maj Decha's wife said her husband had gone out to open the gate when he saw Pol Lt Boonchuan standing outside his home, which is opposite theirs.
The lieutenant suddenly walked towards her husband, pulled out a gun and started shooting at him.
Her husband ran back to the house for cover while the lieutenant kept firing until he had emptied his magazine.
She said that her husband and Pol Lt Boonchuan had never been involved in a conflict.
Pol Lt Boonchuan was taken to Muang district police station.
While in the interrogation room, he seized an 11mm pistol from Pol Lt-Col Danai Ratajai. A witness said Pol Lt Boonchuan was not handcuffed during the questioning.
Pol Lt Boonchuan shot Pol Lt-Col Danai four times at close range, killing him, before fleeing from the room.
When he saw deputy provincial police chief Pol Col Chaitat Intanujit, he fired at him too.
The senior officer ducked for cover and then leapt through a window.
Pol Lt Boonchuan ran downstairs towards the detention cells and opened fire at duty officer Pol Snr Sgt-Maj Biding Jogo, but missed.
Pol Snr Sgt-Maj Biding returned fire and killed him on the stairway.
The duty officer said he heard several gunshots and then the deputy police chief jumped out of the building from the second-floor window.
Pol Lt Boonchuan then went down the stairs from the second floor and fired at him, forcing him to shoot back.
Pol Col Chaitat suffered a dislocated shoulder in the fall and was grazed in the back by a bullet. He remained in hospital yesterday.
Bannang Sata police chief Pol Col Sompian Ake-somya said he had told Pol Lt Boonchuan on Friday to take leave because he seemed under severe stress and was acting paranoid.
"He was a good cop who gave his all to the job," Pol Col Sompian said.
"He was well-liked because he was a nice man. We would never have thought he would do such a thing."
Deputy provincial police chief Pol Col Phumpetch Pipatpetchpum said the stress of working in the restive South might have driven Pol Lt Boonchuan over the edge.
More than 3,000 people, including many police officers, have been killed by militants in the southernmost provinces over the past four years.
However, at this stage, investigators had not ruled out personal conflict as a possible cause for the breakdown, he said.
Pol Lt Boonchuan had been transferred from Prachuap Khiri Khan to Yala in 2006.
He was seriously wounded in an encounter with militants in tambon Bajoh in the district and had not recovered fully from his injuries.
He had not been feeling well and developed paranoia. His worsening mental condition became apparent only last week.
Funeral rites for Pol Lt Boonchuan were held at Wat Muang Yala and for Pol Lt-Col Danai at Wat Buddha.
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MUHAMMAD AYUB PATHAN and MALUDING DEETO
YALA : A policeman shot his neighbour, a fellow policeman, and then shot dead the officer who interrogated him during a rampage in Muang district yesterday.
At the centre of the tragedy was Pol Lt Boonchuan Jantarawat, of Bannang Sata police station. He was granted leave on Friday after showing signs of severe stress and paranoia.
Around 7.30am yesterday, police were called to the scene of a shooting. They found Pol Lt Boonchuan in a state of panic with a pistol in his hand.
He had just shot his neighbour, Pol Snr Sgt-Maj Decha Chuay-iam, four times - in the hand, leg and torso. He was in intensive care at the provincial hospital last night.
Pol Snr Sgt-Maj Decha's wife said her husband had gone out to open the gate when he saw Pol Lt Boonchuan standing outside his home, which is opposite theirs.
The lieutenant suddenly walked towards her husband, pulled out a gun and started shooting at him.
Her husband ran back to the house for cover while the lieutenant kept firing until he had emptied his magazine.
She said that her husband and Pol Lt Boonchuan had never been involved in a conflict.
Pol Lt Boonchuan was taken to Muang district police station.
While in the interrogation room, he seized an 11mm pistol from Pol Lt-Col Danai Ratajai. A witness said Pol Lt Boonchuan was not handcuffed during the questioning.
Pol Lt Boonchuan shot Pol Lt-Col Danai four times at close range, killing him, before fleeing from the room.
When he saw deputy provincial police chief Pol Col Chaitat Intanujit, he fired at him too.
The senior officer ducked for cover and then leapt through a window.
Pol Lt Boonchuan ran downstairs towards the detention cells and opened fire at duty officer Pol Snr Sgt-Maj Biding Jogo, but missed.
Pol Snr Sgt-Maj Biding returned fire and killed him on the stairway.
The duty officer said he heard several gunshots and then the deputy police chief jumped out of the building from the second-floor window.
Pol Lt Boonchuan then went down the stairs from the second floor and fired at him, forcing him to shoot back.
Pol Col Chaitat suffered a dislocated shoulder in the fall and was grazed in the back by a bullet. He remained in hospital yesterday.
Bannang Sata police chief Pol Col Sompian Ake-somya said he had told Pol Lt Boonchuan on Friday to take leave because he seemed under severe stress and was acting paranoid.
"He was a good cop who gave his all to the job," Pol Col Sompian said.
"He was well-liked because he was a nice man. We would never have thought he would do such a thing."
Deputy provincial police chief Pol Col Phumpetch Pipatpetchpum said the stress of working in the restive South might have driven Pol Lt Boonchuan over the edge.
More than 3,000 people, including many police officers, have been killed by militants in the southernmost provinces over the past four years.
However, at this stage, investigators had not ruled out personal conflict as a possible cause for the breakdown, he said.
Pol Lt Boonchuan had been transferred from Prachuap Khiri Khan to Yala in 2006.
He was seriously wounded in an encounter with militants in tambon Bajoh in the district and had not recovered fully from his injuries.
He had not been feeling well and developed paranoia. His worsening mental condition became apparent only last week.
Funeral rites for Pol Lt Boonchuan were held at Wat Muang Yala and for Pol Lt-Col Danai at Wat Buddha.
Discuss
Add this link to...
Tell a friend
Bury
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