Road-rage bus driver lynched, stabbed

– Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community

PHUKET: A bus driver was lynched and fatally stabbed after he allegedly stole a minibus and crashed into 12 vehicles – including four taxies, a motorcycle and a fruit-vending cart – during a road-rage incident in the heart of Bangkok early yesterday.

Sirisak Saengsri, 19, died at Police Hospital after being stabbed four times.

Police were in the dark over who stabbed him as footage from a security camera showed that dozens of people went up the bus and attacked him.

Police said Sirisak, who worked on minibus No 1 on the Thanon Tok-Tha Tien route, took out one of the buses from the Mitr Transport Co depot on Soi Charoen Krung 11 on Wednesday night without permission and started a road-rage incident that ended at around 2am.

Pol Lt-Colonel Thanet Meethong, an inspector at Lumpini Police Station, said police had learned from witnesses and crash evidence that Sirisak drove from the depot along Charoen Krung Road heading to Rama I Road and then to the Ratchaprasong intersection and Phloenchit Road.

It was during the trip that he smashed into the 12 vehicles.

The bus hit at least two taxis in front of the Gaysorn Plaza, and Sirisak sped away to the Chidlom intersection and hit a fruit vending cart.

He then made a turn |down Rajdamri Road and hit another taxi driven by Somsri Talodpong

He then hit a motorcycle ridden by Sompoi Wangkhiri, 37, who was severely injured.

The collision with the motorcycle forced the bus to stop in front of the Grand Hyatt Erawan Hotel where Sirisak was killed.

— Phuket Gazette Editors