KHON KAEN: A man who became enraged after being unable to find marijuana in his home shot his mother-in-law in the back and beat her about the head until she died, police say.
Niran Phaphan, 36, refused to let police take him to the house for a re-enactment of the crime on Saturday for fear he might be attacked by angry relatives, said Pol Col Khachornsak Wongrat, chief of Kranuan police station.
The incident took place on Friday night at the suspect’s house in tambon Nong Ko.
Khambao Ektasaeng, 65, the mother-in-law of the suspect, was found lying dead with serious head injuries and a gunshot wound to her back when police arrived. Mr Niran was subsequently caught as he tried to flee.
During the interrogation, the suspect admitted he had taken speed pills and alcohol before he arrived home on Friday, police said. He wanted to smoke some marijuana but could not find any. He asked his mother-in-law, but she was forgetful as she suffered from Alzheimer’s, he told officers. At that point, he got angry and grabbed a home-made gun, which he used to fire at her back. She collapsed and he then used the gun to beat her repeatedly before striking her in the head with a large pry bar.
Police have pressed charges of murder, illegal possession of a weapon, taking illicit drugs and domestic violence against him. They took him to court on Saturday to seek approval to detain him.
Police display a home-made gun and a pry bar seized from the murder suspect’s house in Khon Kaen. (Photo: Chakrkapan Natanri)