BANGKOK – Police are hunting for a 36-year-old man who pulled out a gun while parked near the Chachoengsao Provincial Court, prompting a concerned bystander to alert highway police.
When officers moved in to check the vehicle, the driver sped away, then allegedly fired at police and civilians during the chase. Two people were injured, and the suspect later abandoned the SUV after it crashed into a pond. Officers used drones and ground teams to search the area, but they had not located him as of the latest update.
Chachoengsao City Police radio center reported they received a report to intercept a white Isuzu MU-X SUV from Chonburi, after a citizen reported seeing the driver display a firearm while stopped in front of the Provincial Court building.
When Highway police arrived to inspect the SUV, the driver accelerated away along Mahachakrapat Road, then turned back under the bridge near the Kasemrat intersection. Officers then attempted to cut it off by positioning their patrol vehicle in front.
During the confrontation, he allegedly pulled out a long gun and a handgun and opened fire. A highway police officer, Sgt. Anusorn Engphangsri, 36, suffered a gunshot wound to the right temple. In addition, a motorcyclist passing through the area, identified as Taksin Charoenchai, 29, was shot in the tailbone.
Siri Sa-ing, 46, a vendor working nearby, said he was sitting by his cart looking at his phone when he saw the white SUV raise a gun and fire many rounds at highway police. The shots were loud and continuous, so he and his wife jumped off the roadside to take cover. After the gunfire stopped, he saw the SUV drive off at speed.
After the shooting, senior officers ordered investigators and patrol units to seal off key areas across Mueang Chachoengsao. Later, officers received information that the suspect vehicle had lost control and crashed into a pond inside a lane in Ban Don Kha, Village 1, Bang Toei subdistrict. The location sits about 15 kilometers from the original scene.
Investigators coordinated with the Chachoengsao Provincial Special Operations team (NPP) and brought in drones to assist. Residents in the area told officers they had seen a suspicious man walking near Bang Toei railway station. Teams then searched on foot and by drone in the surrounding wooded areas.
By 7:00 p.m., officers still had not found the suspect, who was identified as Premnupong Phanomsingh, 36. Investigators also contacted the suspect’s parents, who live in Phanom Sarakham district, asking them to reach their son and encourage him to surrender as soon as possible.
