CHIANG MAI — The mentally ill man who allegedly hacked to death five boys and injured a pregnant woman in Chai Prakan district was a former drug addict, the local police chief said Monday,
Pol Maj Gen Montree Sumboonnanon said 24-year-old Asapa Seewuawa, who lived next door and was related to the victims, was transferred from Chai Prakan hospital to Nakhon Ping hospital in Mae Rim district on Sunday night to be treated for bleeding in the brain after he was assaulted by residents following the grisly attack.
Two police officers were deployed to guard the hospital to prevent relatives of the slain boys from retaliating. After he is released, police will take him to Suan Prung Psychiatric Hospital in downtown Chiang Mai for mental examination before taking further legal action.
Records show Mr Asapa has received continual mental treatment at the Suang Prung hospital from the Department of Mental Health.
Mr Asapa, the boys and Mrs Yikor Sae Jin -- the lone survivor in the attack -- were Lisor hilltribe natives living in the same village and all were related, Pol Maj Gen Montree said.
Paritat Silpakij, acting director of Suang Prung hospital, said Mrs Yikor, who is eight months pregnant and sustained a deep hacking wound to her face and body, was now stable, as was her unborn child. But she was put under close observation as she was experiencing severe emotional trauma after losing three sons and two nephews.
A preliminary investigation pointed to previous drug use as a reason for Mr Asapa's alleged attack on the boys. But the hospital director admitted a blood test showed the suspect was not high at the time.
Pol Maj Gen Montree said police were investigating why Mr Asapa was released from the Suan Prung hospital about a month ago and why doctors deemed him no danger to others.
Asked whether the suspect or his family could use his mental disorder as a legal defence, Pol Maj Gen Montree said Mr Asapa had the right to do so, but police would continue to presume he had a motive for the killings.
The rights of mentally ill offenders are protected under Thai law, principally through Section 14 of the Criminal Procedure Code and Section 65 of the Criminal Code.
Section 14 allows a court to suspend legal proceedings if the defendant is deemed not of sound mind. Until the defendant recovers, he or she can be committed to a mental institution.
Section 65 stipulates that a defendant judged to be insane cannot be jailed for the offence, but placed in an institution. Those deemed to be partially in control of their faculties can see their punishments lessened.