Pattaya Police says two women shot were wrongly targetted
Pattaya Police believe the two women wounded in a shooting in Pattaya in the early hours of this morning were wrongly targeted.
Pattaya Chief of Police Thanapong Photi reported a Thai woman and a Chinese woman were shot at about 2am today at the entrance of Soi Chalernprakiat 4/1 in Bang Lamung district.
Forensic officers and police discovered a black Mercedes Benz with Bangkok license plates parked at the location. The vehicle had bullet marks on its doors, side mirrors, and body, and there were bloodstains inside the car and on the road surface, reported Bangkok Post.
Six cartridges and a bullet were also found inside the car. The two women who were injured were taken to Pattaya Memorial Hospital before the officers arrived.
The Thai victim, 26 year old Nippawan Wola, suffered a gunshot wound to the face, through both cheeks, while the Chinese casualty, 24 year old Li Xinying, was shot in the left wrist.
Police were informed by the employees at the nearby Ying Club that a group of teenagers had an altercation with some South Korean tourists inside the venue before the shooting took place. The employees intervened and stopped the fight.
After the pub closed at around 2am, the South Korean tourists and the two women left the venue in separate cars and went in different directions. The teenagers drove off in the same direction as the victims’ car. Several rounds of gunshots were then heard.
The police suspect that the attackers may have targeted the wrong car, as they believe the South Korean tourists were the intended targets. Officers are examining surveillance camera footage to identify and track down the attackers.
Gun attacks in Pattaya are way too common.
Last month, a drunken Korean man was shot by a local in a Pattaya grocery store for being too noisy.
According to witnesses, the Korean, Namil Kim, was making a nuisance of himself early this morning and the customer lost his temper as a result. The gunman withdrew his gun and fired two shots, one hit the allegedly irritating Korean in the leg while the second shot hit a passing motorcyclist in the leg.
In January, the nephew of a former deputy mayor of Pattaya shot a British man in a road rage incident. The 32 year old man identified only by his first name Apichat later surrendered to Pattaya Police.
These are only two examples of several shootings in Pattaya this year.
