Korat school shooting no accident, says parent

Korat school shooting no accident, says parent

Fourth-grader who brought soldier dad's pistol to class described as a bully

A pistol belonging to the soldier father of a fourth-grader at a school in Nakhon Ratchasima was used in a shooting in a classroom on Friday morning. Earlier reports said that the pistol discharged accidentally while the boy was showing off, but another pupil told his parents a different story.
A pistol belonging to the soldier father of a fourth-grader at a school in Nakhon Ratchasima was used in a shooting in a classroom on Friday morning. Earlier reports said that the pistol discharged accidentally while the boy was showing off, but another pupil told his parents a different story.

NAKHON RATCHASIMA: A fourth-grader who brought his soldier father’s pistol to school fired it deliberately, says a parent who disputes a claim that the gun went off accidentally.

And while the parent believes the boy did not intend to hit and seriously wound a classmate, someone ultimately must be held responsible for the incident. That person is the boy's father.

The parent, whose name was withheld, said that his son, who was in the same classroom at Sukhanaree School in Muang district, told him that the boy was aggressive and often bullied others. 

The incident happened on the third floor of Building 7 at the school at about 10.15am on Friday during a merit-making activity for the New Year.

Before the incident, the 10-year-old had been using his father’s pistol to intimidate a classmate he disliked but the classmate immediately ran out, the parent said, quoting the account given by his son.

This prompted the boy to fire the pistol and a bullet struck another boy who was walking out of the classroom, said the parent. The bullet entered the boy’s chest and pierced both lungs. He is in intensive care at Maharat Nakhon Ratchasima Hospital but is out of danger, doctors said on Saturday.

Earlier reports said the pistol discharged accidentally while the boy was spinning it to show off.

The parent quoted his child as saying that the shooting was accidental, in that the boy had no intention of hurting his classmate.

He said he did not want to put the blame on the boy or the school, but the father of the boy must answer for his carelessness in leaving the weapon in a place where the boy could take it.

School administrators plan to meet with the parents of the fourth-graders on Monday to explain the incident and discuss measures to prevent a recurrence.

The parent said he had several questions to ask the father of the boy, adding that if the boy remained in the same classroom as his son, he would seek to transfer his son to another classroom.

If his demand was not met, he would move his son to another school, said the parent.

Meanwhile, doctors on Saturday said the injured boy was safe after surgery. However, his spleen had to be removed to save his life. The boy remains under close medical care and will need to stay in hospital for at least one month.

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