Former Policeman Held for Murder after Nearly 10 Years on the Lam

Police in Southern Thailand have captured a former policeman accused of shooting his girlfriend to death in Songkhla province. The former policeman who allegedly shot his girlfriend and then set her body on fire has been on the run for nearly 10 years.

The former policeman identified as Mr Phayak Ounseechan, 54, was wanted on an arrest warrant issued by the Songkhla Provincial Court on Dec 13, 2012. He was wanted for premeditated murder, concealment or destroying a body and carrying firearms in public.

The suspect, who was a senior sergeant-major attached to Provincial Police Region 9 in 2011, had been dating Miss Wichuda Thongsaneh, 22, a nursing assistant at Kantang Hospital in Trang province.

Mr Phayak reportedly became jealous as he feared the woman would betray him. He asked two aides to abduct Miss Wichuda and take her to a rubber plantation in Ratthaphum district of Songkhla. Once there he shot her to death. He then covered her body with used car tires then set them on fire to burn her body.

After the murder, the trio left the area and led normal lives as if nothing had happened. Police investigators finally tracked down the two accomplices a few months later. After their arrest on Aug 24, 2012, they implicated the officer as the person who had killed Miss Wichuda. By that time, the police officer had fled to Laos.

The suspect later returned to Thailand to work at a rubber plantation in Loei province in northeastern Thailand. He was caught there this week. The former policeman is being held in custody without bail. Police are arranging for his transfer to Songkhla province in southern Thailand where he will stand trial for murder.

Meanwhile, the Provincial Police Region 4 chief said teams of officers were continuing to track down other crime suspects believed to be in the Northeast. All of whom are wanted on warrants in connection with crimes committed elsewhere in the country.