SURAT THANI - A policeman who opened fire on a crowd after a brawl at a pub on Koh Samui overnight has been dismissed from the force and faces multiple charges of murder and attempted murder.
Two people were shot dead, one a fellow policeman, and five others wounded, two of them also policemen, during the rampage.
Pol L/Cpl Narongsak Khamjai, of Bo Phud police station, fled from the scene after the shooting and was later caught and arrested.
Reports said he had been charged with murder, attempted murder and carrying a gun in a public place.
Pol Col Kritsana Pattanacharoen, deputy spokesman to the Royal Thai Police Office, said on Friday afternoon that Pol L/Cpl Narongsak had been dismissed from the police force.
The five other policemen involved in the brawl before the shooting, including the wounded officers, had been transferred to inactive posts at the provincial police operations centre pending a disciplinary investigation, he said.
The violence erupted at Camp Beer pub in tambon Bo Phud around 2am, said Pol Lt Ratthakarn Chanwong, a duty officer at Bo Phud police station.
The shooting left seven men lying on the ground with bullet wounds - three policemen from Bo Phud station and four pub staff.
All were rushed to hospitals, where two were later pronounced dead. They were Pol L/Cpl Jaerasak Sroisangvarn and Kraisorn Mingsakul, a guard at the pub.
The other five with bullet wounds were identified as Pol L/Cpl Sitthisak Ngamkhom, Pol L/Cpl Kritsana Boonyin, pub guard Voravit Yimyong, pub manager Thepthinnakorn Thongphet and pub waiter Veerapong Jarusenee.
Police investigators reported that seven policemen attached to Bo Phud police station were having a night out at the pub.
While dancing they became involved in a brawl with a group of young men. Security guards intervened and asked them to leave.
After emerging from the bar, Pol L/Cpl Jaraesak pulled out a pistol. The pub manager tried to stop him and the chaos then erupted.
Another policeman, identified later as Pol L/Cpl Narongsak Khamjai, fired shots from his 9mm pistol into the crowd gathering in front of the pub. The bullets hit three fellow policemen and four pub staff, including the manager. After the shooting he drove off in his car.
Police sent to the scene found bloodstains and six spent cartridges in the parking lot of the pub.
CCTV footage showed Pol L/Cpl Narongsak opening fire at the crowd. He was later caught and arrested on charges of murder, attempted murder and carrying a weapon in a public area.
A woman seeks shelter by a table during the shooting outside Champ Beer pub in Koh Samui district, Surat Thani, in the early hours of Friday. (CCTV footage from Supapong Chaolan)