4 suspects questioned after murder of gay Thai man in Surin
Victim's gold accessories worth over 1 million baht missing
Police questioned four suspects after a gay Thai man was found dead in his home in the Isaan province of Surin on Wednesday, June 4, and his gold accessories, worth over 1 million baht, were reported missing.
The 63 year old victim, Pratheep Kongthawee, was discovered lifeless near a sofa inside his home in Surin’s Mueang district. He sustained a stab wound to the neck near his left ear. His body was found covered with a red blanket, with only a small amount of gold jewellery remaining on his body. All other gold accessories, valued at over 1 million baht, were missing.
According to his family, Pratheep regularly wore a significant amount of gold jewellery and usually carried over 50,000 baht in cash.
Officers from Sawai Police Station investigated the scene and discovered that the killer attempted to clean Pratheep’s blood using a yellow cloth. The suspect reportedly tried to wash the cloth but was unable to remove the bloodstains.
In the victim’s bedroom, police found evidence of an attempted break-in on the door. The intruder was unsuccessful in entering, leaving the cash and valuables in the room untouched.
Initial reports from the media stated that a 20 year old rescuer had discovered the body. However, Channel 8 later confirmed on today, June 6, that it was a 15 year old boy named Benz who found the deceased. Benz is also among the four men under suspicion.
Benz told police he often visited Pratheep’s home to use the WiFi for video games, usually arriving in the afternoon and leaving in the evening. On the day in question, he noticed the house was unusually quiet. Upon entering, he found Pratheep under the red blanket and discovered the stab wound after pulling the blanket off.
Police summoned three additional individuals for questioning: 44 year old We, 26 year old Kung, and a man named Kritsana. We is Pratheep’s nephew and reportedly borrowed 100,000 baht from him. Kritsana is Pratheep’s ex-boyfriend, while Kung was known to be close to Pratheep and visited frequently.
We told both the police and the media that he last saw Pratheep on May 1. He previously borrowed 100,000 baht to invest in a business that later failed. It remains unclear whether he had repaid the loan in full.
Kung said he first met Pratheep ten years ago and last saw him on May 14. He had pawned a gold ring to Pratheep for 5,000 baht on that day and had repaid 1,050 baht before Pratheep’s death.
Kung admitted to having entered Pratheep’s bedroom and seen valuables in there but denied any intention of stealing them, adding that Pratheep trusted him.
Kung also insisted he had no romantic involvement with Pratheep and had a girlfriend. He emphasised his innocence, stating that he was working from 7am to 5pm on both June 3 and 4 and spent the nights at his girlfriend’s rented room.
To support his claim, Kung showed the media his arms and hands, stating they bore no scratches or injuries, which he said indicated he had no part in the murder.
However, police told Channel 8 that Kung appeared nervous during questioning, with his hands and arms visibly shaking. He attributed this to his depression and panic symptoms.
Kritsana, another suspect, stated that he last saw Pratheep in March. He said they were no longer in a relationship and that he had no idea who could have committed the murder. He added that Pratheep did not have known conflicts with anyone.
Kritsana also remarked that Pratheep seemed to have strong feelings for Kung, saying he liked him more than any of the other men who frequently visited his home.
The investigation is ongoing, and police have yet to confirm the identity of the perpetrator.
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