PHITSANULOK: A 30-year-old man was arrested in this northern province Saturday night for strangling his girlfriend, 28, right after returning from a five-day island trip.
Pol Col Watcharapong Sitthiroongrote, chief of Muang Phitsanulok police station, said on Sunday that Surasak Khamtanode was arrested at about 7pm on Saturday for the premeditated murder of Kittikan Chapan.
According to the station chief, Mr Surasak told police that he had taken Kittikan to Koh Chang island in the eastern province of Trat from Tuesday to Saturday.
He was quoted as saying that he and his girlfriend had disputes throughout the trip and their quarrels continued even when they returned to their room in Muang district of Phitsanulok on Saturday.
He told police that his girlfriend challenged him to kill her. So, he squeezed her neck once but she survived. As the arguments continued, he used a phone-charging cable to strangle her.
He said he planned to commit suicide but was too reluctant to do so even after drinking beer to intoxicate himself. Later he fled their room and kept its air-conditioner on while the body remained inside on Saturday evening.
Police took him to the room for re-enactment late Saturday night.
The suspect worked with racing car paints and was well-known among young drivers of racing cars in Phitsanulok. He had begun his relationship with the ill-fated woman recently, police said.