Police have arrested a man suspected of killing former national sports shooter Jakkrit Panichpatikum and a woman said to be the agent who hired the gunman.
Nitiwadee Pucharoenyos, wife of former national sports shooter Jakkrit Panichpatikum, cries at her husband’s cremation ceremony at Wat Prasri Mahathat in Bang Khen district in late October. (Photo by Apichit Jinakul)
The suspects claimed they were hired by Jakkrit's wife, Nitiwadee Pucharoenyos, but police still have their doubts about the story.
The shooter was arrested in Krabi province on Friday night and taken for interrogation in Bangkok. Police said he told them he had accepted 100,000 baht to gun down Jakkrit from a motorcycle driven by a friend, according to a report in Thai Rath.
The man told the police that he did not know who actually hired him as he got the job through a couple living in the Ramkhamhaeng area. The police went to the house and took in a woman for questioning.
The woman admitted that she acted as a broker to find a gunman to kill Jakkrit by accepting a six-digit sum of money from Dr Nitiwadee, according to officers.
Police then sought arrest warrants for four suspects including the gunman, his friend and the couple. They said they want to obtain more information from the suspects before deciding whether to seek a warrant for Jakkrit's widow.
Earlier, Metropolitan Police Bureau chief Kamronwit Thoopkrachang said he believed the only possible motive for the murder stemmed from a dispute between the former athlete's family members and people close to him.
Jakkrit, 40, was shot dead on Oct 19 by a motorcycle pillion rider while he was driving his Porsche Boxster near Ramkhamhaeng Soi 166 in Min Buri district.
Jakkrit represented Thailand on the national pistol-shooting team at the 2012 Olympics in London. At the time of his death he was out on bail following his arrest on July 13 after a disturbance at his home.