Jealous Thai man turns himself in after setting fire to disabled wife
In a horrific scene, a Thai man set fire to his disabled wife outside her home in the central province of Nakhon Pathom yesterday. He fled the scene before turning himself in to police later that night.
The Wat Chan Rescue Foundation was alerted to the brutal attack yesterday, June 12, and rushed to transport the victim from her home to a nearby hospital. Rescuers told Channel 3 that the victim’s condition was severe, with about 90% of her body affected and her skin peeling off.
A witness revealed to the media that the 36 year old victim, Pornthip, had deformed legs and sat on a hammock before the incident took place. The witness saw Pornthip engaged in a heated argument with her 40 year old husband, Phan, but did not pay much attention to it.
Suddenly, the witness heard Pornthip scream and saw her body engulfed in flames. The witness and her cousin rushed to help and carried Pornthip to a nearby canal to extinguish the fire.
The witness tried to contact the National Institute for Emergency Medicine via the hotline number 1669, but the communication was unsuccessful. A family member then rode a motorcycle to the Wat Chan Rescue Foundation to seek help.
Pornthip’s younger brother-in-law told the media that Phan poured fuel on Pornthip and set her on fire due to jealousy. He added that Phan was unemployed and addicted to drugs, so he may have committed the crime under the influence of narcotics.
According to the brother-in-law, Phan and Pornthip argued over jealousy multiple times before, as Phan suspected his wife of having an affair. Pornthip previously filed a complaint against Phan at Ban Pong Police Station in the central province of Ratchaburi for repeatedly harassing her.
KhaoSod reported that Phan, accompanied by his mother, surrendered to the police at 10pm last night. During the questioning at Mueang Nakhon Pathom Police Station, Phan admitted to taking three tablets of methamphetamine, also known as Yaba, before attacking his wife.
Phan claimed he could no longer tolerate Pornthip’s alleged deceitful conduct. He accused her of engaging in conversations with numerous men on social media and scheduling rendezvous with them during his absences from work.
Phan insisted that he was not unemployed and had been working to support Pornthip and their child for over 20 years, only to feel betrayed by her actions.
