Drug dealer shot dead after opening fire on police in Bangkok house
Gunfire erupts as wanted dealer makes last stand against police
Police fatally shot a leading drug dealer during an attempted arrest in Bangkok yesterday, October 27, after he resisted and opened fire on officers.
Officers from Taling Chan Police Station received information that one of the country’s most wanted drug suspects, 44 year old Wichai “Boy” Sooksombatpaiboon, also known as Boy Bang Kluai, was hiding at a friend’s house on Chim Phli Road in Bangkok’s Taling Chan district.
Police obtained an arrest warrant and arrived at the property around 6pm yesterday. Upon the officer’s arrival, Wichai challenged them to arrest him before firing four gunshots towards the police. Officers returned fire, killing Wichai at the scene.
After the shooting, police inspected the house and found a .45-calibre pistol near Wichai’s body, believed to be the weapon he used during the shootout. Officers also seized over 100 methamphetamine pills, known locally as yaba, and an undisclosed amount of crystal meth from inside the property.
A nearby resident told police that the house belonged to a Thai couple. He said he had seen Wichai visiting the property previously, but did not know him personally. The suspect reportedly came to the house once every six months and had just arrived the night before the raid.
According to the police report, Wichai was a key member of a major drug network and had a long criminal record, with six previous drug-related convictions.
He was recently wanted by Nong Khai Provincial Court on a drug trafficking charge involving 200,000 yaba pills, with the arrest warrant issued on October 25. After the warrant was issued, Wichai fled from Nong Khai province in Isaan to this house in Bangkok.
Police are now expanding the investigation to identify others connected to him and to determine whether he continued selling drugs while hiding in the community.
In a related case, another drug dealer was shot dead during a police raid in Phuket in September, after he fatally shot a police officer during the operation. Two other suspects linked to him were arrested at the scene.
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