Thai man stabbed to death near Bangkok due to innocent question

A Thai man with a toddler in arms stabbed a man to death outside the Major Cineplex mall in the central province of Nonthaburi, near Bangkok. The attack took place after the victim asked why the attacker was filming him.

A 26 year old woman, Wilaiwan Parnpit, witnessed the stabbing at around 6am yesterday, October 9, and called the emergency services and Mueang Nonthaburi Police Station. Officers rushed to the scene and found the victim, 66 year old Kampon Kritsophi, lying outside the mall with serious stab wounds.

Kampon was taken to Phra Nag Klao Hospital with five stab wounds, two in his stomach, one on his right side and two more in his back. Kampon died in hospital but officials have still not been able to contact his family.

The witness, Wilaiwan, told police that she had seen the attacker, aged about 35 to 40 years old, and his child, aged about three to four years old, sitting outside the mall since early morning.

According to Wilaiwan, the situation escalated when Kampon entered the scene and lit a cigarette. The attacker, for reasons still shrouded in mystery, began filming Kampon on his mobile phone. Kampon, naturally perplexed by this invasion of his privacy, confronted the man with a simple question.

“Why are you filming me?”

The attacker did not answer the question but pulled out a knife and immediately stabbed the victim. The victim shouted for help, but no one came to his assistance. Wilaiwan said she heard the victim screaming that he had been stabbed and decided to come to his aid.

Wilaiwan said she did not believe the two men knew each other personally and did not know the motive behind the incident.

The attacker fled the scene on his motorcycle with the child, and police are now reviewing the CCTV from the mall hoping to identify and apprehend the assailant.

As Wilaiwan speculates, the motive behind this act may have been linked to the victim’s smoking which affected the attacker’s child. Nevertheless, such a minor transgression should never have escalated to the fatal stabbing.

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