Thai man beats wife to death with pestle and dumps her in pond
Killer claims he murders wife before she could kill him
A Thai man beat his wife to death with a pestle and dumped her body in a pond in Yasothon province, northeastern Thailand.
A local in the Mueang district of Yasothon discovered the body of a woman floating in a pond behind the Bang Nam Pho Fresh Market at approximately 6.30am yesterday, June 9. Officers from Mueang Yasothon Police Station and medical personnel from Yasothon Hospital were called to investigate.
The woman, dressed in light blue shorts and a black tank top, was found floating face up near the bank of the pond. The water was reportedly around 50 centimetres deep.
Police identified the deceased as 51 year old Puangphet Krotpong, the owner of a grocery store located opposite the market. Her home and shop are situated around 100 metres from the pond.
A medical examination revealed that Puangphet was beaten with a hard object on the back of her neck and her leg. Blood was also observed on her nose. Police found drag marks on the ground, indicating that her body was pulled from the bank into the water.
Puangphet’s son, Supalerk Krotpong, was later informed of her death. He told police that he last spoke with his mother at around 9pm on June 8. He said they had no disputes, and she had no known conflicts with others.
Upon reviewing CCTV footage, police identified the suspect as Puangphet’s husband, 57 year old Sawian Krotpong. He was seen dragging a cart containing Puangphet’s body towards the pond at around midnight.
Officers arrested Sawian at the couple’s residence, which also operated as their shop. He was found sleeping in his bedroom, where police recovered the pestle used in the murder.
During questioning, Sawian confessed to attacking his wife, striking her once on the back of the neck. He was unsure whether she had died but placed her body in a cart and dumped it in the pond.
He claimed he acted out of fear, stating that if he had not killed her first, she would have eventually killed him.
Despite saying he loved his wife, Sawian described her as annoying and said they had a heated argument and physical altercation before the fatal attack.
According to the police report, Sawian suffers from depression and did not take his prescribed medication. He rarely helped with the grocery store and usually stayed in his bedroom due to his mental health condition.
Sawian faces two charges including:
- Section 288 of the Criminal Law: Intentional murder, punishable by the death penalty, life imprisonment, or imprisonment for 15 to 20 years.
- Section 199 of the Criminal Law: Secretly burying, concealing, moving, or destroying a corpse or parts of a corpse, punishable by up to one year’s imprisonment, a fine of up to 2,000 baht, or both.
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