BANGKOK – Police have arrested a 26-year-old man who claimed to be part of a special forces unit, after he grabbed a gun from a police officer and fired, injuring two officers in Bangkok’s Din Daeng district on Thursday morning. Police managed to restrain him soon after and took him into custody.

The shooting happened around 11 am in the garden area of a condominium on Ratchada Soi 16, in Din Daeng. Earlier, Sutthisan police had received a report of a man acting strangely at the building and sent officers to check.

When officers arrived, they met a 26-year-old man, later identified as Jirasak, who said he belonged to a special operations unit. Officers noticed he seemed to be under the influence. They tried to convince him to come with them to the station.

During the discussion, Jirasak suddenly snatched a gun from one of the officers. In the chaos that followed, two shots were fired. One bullet hit the bulletproof vest of an officer on his left chest, while the other struck a different officer in the upper left arm.

The officers hurt in the incident were Pol Cpl Woradon Thirathanaboon and Pol Cp Jirayut Racha-ard. Both were quickly taken to the Police General Hospital for treatment.

Police brought the suspect under control and took him to Sutthisan police station for questioning. The situation was handled quickly with no further trouble. Officials are still investigating the motive behind the attack.

Police Officers Charged

In a separate case, seven traffic police officers have been charged by public prosecutors and the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) for their role in an assault on a former police officer’s son at a drink-driving checkpoint last December.

The event occurred due to a misunderstanding, as officers believed the victim was trying to avoid a breathalyser test.

The officers now face charges under the Prevention and Suppression of Torture and Enforced Disappearance Act, failure to perform duties under Section 157 of the Criminal Code, breaching Section 172 of the Organic Act on Anti-Corruption and other related offences.

The charges were officially filed on 18 June, and the officers reported acknowledging them yesterday.

Angsuket Visuthvattanasak, who heads the DSI’s Justice Facilitation Division, said the seven officers were not held as they responded to the summons and did not attempt to escape.

They have been given 15 days to respond to the accusations. The DSI plans to finish its investigation and hand the case to the public prosecutor for corruption cases by next month. After this, the case will move to the Central Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases.

The officers charged include Pol Capt Taweepong Audthum, Pol Sgt Weerapong Manee, Pol Sgt Paponthee Lertanan, Pol Sgt Keerati Prasopchok, Pol Sgt Watcharawee Thaweeburut, Pol Sgt Jakkarin Kraikruan and Pol Cpl Natthapong Dutsadee.

The incident happened on 4 December last year when Thananop Koedsri, the son of former Pol Lt Col Thanachai Koedsri, was allegedly attacked by the officers on Prasert Manukit Road.

The officers later admitted they had confused Mr Thananop’s car with another that left the checkpoint. All seven have been suspended from duty while the investigation continues.