Why kill my sick son? Thai father demands answers

The Thai father of a young man gunned down in a neighbouring junkyard is asking why the owner didn’t just chase him away rather than shoot him.

The weekly dive into the backwaters of the kingdom’s crime scene has thrown up another story which exposes the everyday horror of living with mental health problems in rural Thailand, Bangkok Post reported.

Kobsak, 30 years old, was a drug addict with psychiatric problems. He was gunned down by a neighbour in his seventies, Anusak Kittirattana.

Anusak was alone at his home in Chachoengsao last weekend when at about 1pm he heard the distinct sound of an intruder. Thieves had broken into his place repeatedly over the past year, five times this year alone.

“When I confronted him, he rushed at me so I grabbed my gun from the head of my bed and shot at him. I didn’t wait to find out if I hit him and ran out to seek help.”

The bullet had passed through the Kobsak’s hand and into his neck, killing him almost instantly.

Anusak said he was afraid he would be attacked because he knew the thief. He had argued with the man’s father just the day before, asking him why he couldn’t keep better control of his son.

Anusak’s house was in a car repair yard, with equipment stored there, along with four derelict vehicles. Chalong Nuansiri, Kobsak’s father, said he warned his son many times to avoid the place, but he would not listen.

Thai father Chalong said…

“I could not be there all the time to control him as I have work to do.”

The family left Kobsak locked up at home on the day of the shooting and went to the temple. Chalong had recently installed iron bars on his son’s bedroom window but to no avail. When they returned, Kobsak had cut the bars on the window and escaped.

Suspecting he had gone to Anusak’s place, Chalong paid a visit and spoke to the owner’s son. A canal separates the two houses, which sit about 50 metres from each other.

“I asked him to look inside. He took a quick look around and found no one, so I went home.”

Anusak claims Kobsak stole goods worth around 500,000 baht (US$15,000) from him. The killer said…

“You could have filled two 10-wheeler trucks and it would still not be enough for him.”

In the quarrel that followed the killing, Chalong asked why.

“Why did he have to shoot him? He claims he shot him from the top of the stairs, but I reckon he shot Kobsak up close, and my son raised his hand to ward off the bullet or beg for his life.”

Don Chimphlee police arrived on the scene at about 3pm and found the young man’s body about 20m from the door. Police had many previous dealings with Kobsak and had sent him to detox more than once, but he kept lapsing back into drugs.

The Thai father said…

“I gave him money every day but not enough to pay for drugs, so he steals to pay for his habit.”

Another villager said he felt sorry for Kobsak, as he spoke well and was a nice young man overall. The neighbour said…

“He used to bike past my place and we’d chat. The kid didn’t make much sense and sometimes I saw him talking to himself. I think Anusak went too far, as he knew the kid was ill. Locals around here feel the same way. He shouldn’t have shot him.”

No word is to hand on what charges, if any, Anusak will face.