The murder of a police officer at his wedding ceremony in Pattani is connected to the southern insurgency, investigators say.
Pol Col Kongath Suwankham, chief of Mayo police station, said yesterday investigations were focusing on the insurgency as there was no evidence suggesting Pol L/C Sarawut Kingsa-nga had enemies.
Pol L/C Sarawut, of Bacho police station in Narathiwat, was shot dead on Monday by a gunman at 7.40pm during a party at his house in Mayo district celebrating his marriage.
The shooting took place in front of his new bride, friends and family.
It happened after police guarding the event withdrew, leaving only the newly-weds' close friends and neighbours.
A .38 bullet, believed to have pierced the victim's body, and bullet casing of a 9mm-handgun were discovered at the scene.
Pol Col Kongath said three guests were under suspicion and will be questioned. They had dined with other guests before the attack.
Their DNA samples will be sought and crosschecked with samples from recent cases.
Meanwhile, a soldier was wounded in a roadside bomb blast during a patrol in Bacho district of Narathiwat yesterday.
Bacho police were alerted to the explosion on Phetkasem Road between Pattani and Narathiwat in tambon Koyormatee about 7.10am.
Pvt Panithan Boonprasert was injured by the blast and rushed to Bacho Hospital. He suffered chest pains and temporary deafness.
Officers found debris from an improvised explosive device believed to have been hidden in a 25kg gas cylinder near an electricity pole at the site of the blast.
According to an initial probe, eight troops were patrolling the area on four motorcycles when the bomb went off.
Authorities believe southern insurgents are behind the attack.
Officers of the State Railway of Thailand (SRT) say they are on track to complete 80% of the repairs on railway tracks damaged by a bomb blast in tambon Tanyongmas of Narathiwat's Rangae district.
The explosion, on May 14, caused 1.7 million baht in damage to the railway line.