Thai man accidentally stabs New Zeland son-in-law in Buriram
A Thai man accidentally stabbed his New Zealand son-in-law at their shared home in the Isaan province of Buriram yesterday while attempting to attack his drug-addicted nephew.
Officers from Prakhonchai Police Station investigated the stabbing at a house in the Ban Bordin community in Prakhonchai district, Buriram, yesterday afternoon, February 6. They found the 60 year old New Zealand man inside with a serious stab wound to his stomach. He was rushed to Buriram Hospital.
The foreign man’s father-in-law, 75 year old Lek, turned himself in at the police station, bringing the 20-centimetre knife used in the incident.
Lek informed the police that his daughter and her New Zealand husband had arrived in Thailand only on February 5. They mostly lived abroad and came to Thailand to spend time with Lek and other family members.
Before marrying the foreigner, Lek’s daughter had been married to a Thai man and had a son named Thawat, now 32 years old. Thawat was addicted to drugs and frequently assaulted family members.
On the day of the incident, Thawat approached his mother to ask for money to buy drugs. She told him to wait as she needed to exchange currency first. This enraged Thawat, who then attacked his mother inside the house.
Lek stated that he had witnessed Thawat assaulting family members for a long time and could no longer tolerate it. Being old and with nothing to lose, he later told police that he tried to kill his drug-addicted nephew to end the ongoing problems.
Lek waited inside his room, knowing that Thawat would come to him for money at any moment. Holding a knife in his hand, he listened for footsteps approaching.
When the door suddenly opened, he immediately stabbed the person standing in front of it, believing it to be Thawat.
Tragically, it was not his nephew but his foreign son-in-law. Lek said he was shocked upon realising his mistake and immediately bowed down to apologise before going to the police station.
Lek’s other daughter, 40 year old Manit, told Channel 7 that her New Zealand brother-in-law was not angry at Lek but felt sorry for him. He asked his wife to bail his father-in-law out. Although he suffered a serious injury, he is now in a stable condition.
According to media reports, Thawat fled the house after the stabbing and has not returned since.
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