NAKHON SAWAN – Police have arrested the main suspect in the case of a man shot and killed in a sugarcane field and later found in a water barrel at Takhro reservoir, Phaisali. The suspect claims the shooting happened during an attempted theft.
The investigation started after officers arrested three men: Parawi Charoenprom, known as Game, aged 35, along with Chaloem Khetkan (Mam) and Prasong (Beer). Game is accused of shooting the victim, Jutaphet, while Mam and Beer are suspected of helping hide the body.
On the afternoon of 29 May, police took the suspects back to the scene to reconstruct the events. The field, in Nong Maka village, Khok Charoen district, Lopburi, is where Game found Jutaphet trying to steal a solar battery.
Game says he saw Jutaphet with a knife and, fearing for his safety, fired a shotgun, killing him instantly.
He then dragged the body onto the porch of the hut then forced the body into a 200-litre chemical drum. He admitted he did this part alone, moving the drum onto his pickup truck before seeking help from Mam and Beer.
The three men then took the drum containing the body to the edge of the reservoir. They brought another drum with holes already drilled into it, likely to let water and fish get in.
Together, they transferred the body to the new drum, placed five large rocks inside to weigh it down, and rolled it into the reservoir. They later burned the first drum in a nearby cassava field without the landowner’s knowledge.
After the reconstruction, police returned the suspects to the station for detailed questioning. So far, Game and Mam have been formally charged. The game is held for murder, while Mam faces charges for helping to hide the body and destroy evidence.
Police are still questioning Beer before implementing murder charges.
In Thailand, murder is punishable under the Thai Criminal Code, specifically Sections 288-294. Whoever commits murder shall be punished by death or imprisonment for 15 to 20 years, and in some cases, the death penalty.
Capital punishment is carried out by lethal injection at Bang Kwang Central Prison in Bangkok, known as the “Bangkok Hilton.” There is a delay for appeals to two higher courts and the possibility of a King’s pardon.
Thailand retains the death penalty for 35 crimes, including murder, treason, and drug trafficking. Since 1935, 326 executions have occurred, with 319 by shooting (last in 2002) and 7 by lethal injection (last in 2018).
As of March 2018, 510 people were on death row, including 59 women, with 58 for drug-related crimes.
