Trang plantation owner surrenders after fatal shooting of alleged thief

A confrontation in Trang between a palm plantation owner and an alleged thief ended in a fatal shooting. The owner, a 55 year old man, fired two rounds from his registered .357 revolver, killing a 42 years old man who he claimed was secretly stealing palm fruit from his plantation.

Later, the gunman surrendered himself to the Wang Wiset Police Station in the southern province, handing over the weapon used in the incident.

The incident took place yesterday, in the palm oil plantation owned by Kongwit Hengsipong, located in Ao Tong, Trang. The body of Sompong Kraitep was found lying face down, with two gunshot wounds, one under the right rib cage and another in the chest.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the victim had previously been prosecuted for drug possession in 2020.

After the shooting, Kongwit confessed to the police that he had discovered Sompong on his plantation stealing palm fruit and confronted the thief, firing his gun, and shooting him twice. The gunshot wounds caused his death.

The police believe that the incident occurred around midnight, approximately six hours before the shooting victim’s body was found by plantation workers, reported KhaoSod.

The incident was reported around 11am by Sawai Kaewjuea, head of the Trang Rescue Foundation, who said that the plantation, separated by a fence, was located about 1 kilometre away from the residence of the man who died in the shooting.

After a police examination, Sompong’s body was handed over to the rescue team to be taken to Songkhla Nakarin (Prince of Songkhla University) Hospital in Hat Yai, Songkhla, for an autopsy.

The police have collected evidence and are thoroughly investigating the case, intending to charge Kongwit with intentional murder. The case will then follow the course of the law.

A similar shooting took place on Sunday when a dispute over stolen crops escalated into a shooting incident in the quiet town of Thalang, Phuket. Frustrated with repeated crop thefts and ensuing confrontations, a landowner fired his Black Panther EVO airgun at a crop thief, shooting him in the arm.