KANCHANABURI: A retired Muay Thai boxer is wanted by police for allegedly shooting dead his good friend, who is said to have ignored warnings not to give his wife's phone number to deliverymen.
The violence flared at a snooker club run by the 43-year-old victim, Sawang Charoenmak, at his house in Moo 10 village of tambon Don Cha-em in Tha Maka district, about 8.17pm on Thursday.
Sawang was shot three times in the chest, and in an arm and a leg. He succumbed to his wounds at the local hospital.
The victim's mother-in-law alleged to police that the gunman was Noppasit Jinjaiyen, 40, a retired Muay Thai boxer who previously fought as Saneh Sitmonchai and who was a close friend of Sawang.
Earlier in the evening, the suspect had played snooker and chatted with Sawang at the snooker club.
He left, but later returned, shouting at Sawang that he had been warned but failed to listen. He then allegedly produced a gun and started shooting at Sawang, while other young men were still there playing snooker.
Sawang tried to flee, then fell to the floor, bleeding copiously. Police found five spent 9mm bullet cartridges at the scene.
The mother-in-law told police that Mr Noppasit's wife, who was in Bangkok, had a row over the phone with her daughter and son-in-law, because they had given her phone number to a carpet supplier.
Carpet delivery men had called her repeatedly, asking for Sawang and his wife's address. The couple were local carpet traders.
Mr Noppasit had previously warned Sawang to stop giving people his wife's phone number, she said.
Prior to the shooting, an order of carpets had arrived at her son-in-law's house. The mother-in-law believed a delivery man had again phoned Mr Noppasit's wife to ask for her son-in-law's address.
She had no idea why Sawang had repeatedly given carpet suppliers the phone number of Mr Noppasit's wife.
Mr Noppasit has disappeared. Police said they would get a warrant, find and arrest him.