North Pattaya warzone: One injured in teenage gang clash involving rocks, knives, homemade grenades

A recent clash between rival teenage gangs in north Pattaya has left one person injured after the gangs used rocks, knives, and homemade grenades as weapons. The violent incident took place at 5am on Saturday, April 22 at the Photisan Fresh Market, where a 17 year old employee of the Jay Nooch fruit shop suffered a blow to the head from a thrown rock during the brawl.

Warunee Nangngam, a 29 year old shopkeeper at the market in Pattaya, revealed that the teen and other boys who work with her had a conflict with a group of teenagers during Songkran, the Thai New Year festival. Warunee recalled that on the night before the incident, the rival gang appeared to have made peace with the Jay Nooch employees. The relieved shopkeeper thought the conflict had been resolved, but unfortunately, she was mistaken.

The next morning, as the market opened, the rival gang returned to the scene. Other vendors at the market quickly alerted the police, causing the gang members to flee as law enforcement officers arrived. However, it didn’t take long for the group to regroup and return to the market, this time blocking all the exits and directly confronting the employees of Jay Nooch fruit shop.

As tensions escalated, a full-blown fight broke out between the rival groups. The assailants were seen brandishing knives, and some reported that one of them even pulled out a gun and fired it into the air several times. Rocks were hurled back and forth between the two groups, and handmade bombs were thrown as well. One unexploded grenade was discovered near a tree and will be examined for fingerprints to help identify the culprits.

The melee ended when nearly 20 teenagers fled the scene once again as police arrived to intervene.

This incident serves as a stark reminder of the increasing violence and gang rivalry issues that have been plaguing Pattaya in recent years. While some may argue that the city’s vibrant nightlife scene and booming tourism industry could be contributing factors, the teen gang problem appears to be a wider issue that warrants further attention from both locals and authorities alike.