PHATTHALUNG: A police officer on his way to a crime scene was killed when his car ran off the road in the early morning and plunged into a pond in Pak Phayun district of this southern province.
Pol Capt Wichai Ampan, an investigator at Ko Nang Kham police station, said the accident happened at a curve on the Ko Mak-Ko Yuan road near Moo 1 village in tambon Ko Nang Kham.
The dead officer was Pol Maj Prachuap Suwannarat, 53, of Songkhla-based Provincial Police Region 9 headquarters. He was an experienced crime investigator.
He had left his home in Songkhla's Sathing Phra district about 4.30am on Monday, heading for Khao Chai Son district in Phatthalung to join Crime Suppression Division and local police in a murder investigation.
He was due to arrive there by 6am. He did not show up and could not be reached by phone.
His whereabouts were not known until a crashed car was reported on Monday evening.
Police and rescuers arrived at the crash scene about 9pm on Monday to investigate the accident. A white Chevrolet Captiva had nosedived into a roadside pond, and the front was submerged in the water.
When the vehicle was lifted from the pond, they found a body inside it.
The dead man was Pol Maj Prachuab. He was in the back seat and his neck was broken. He was believed to have been thrown there by the impact of the crash because he did not fasten his safety belt.
Police recovered a black strap bag containing three pistols and some ammunition, Pol Capt Wichai said.