Phuket

Ko Noi killers sentenced

Published

12 years ago

March 13, 2008

PHUKET: Two former police officers were sentenced at Phuket Provincial Court February 28 for their part in the assassination of well-known businessman Preecha “Ko Noi” Kraitas, who was shot dead on March 14, 2006.

According to a report released by Phuket Provincial Court, Wanchana Polpalangkul, who pleaded not guilty to all charges, was sentenced to death for conspiracy to murder for organizing the hit.

Pongsak Kosiratanapibal, who pleaded guilty to all charges, was sentenced to life imprisonment for accessory to murder for identifying K. Preecha to gunman Samrerng Klaising.

Petchaburi native Samrerng was arrested at a wedding in Petchaburi’s Baan Laem District March 9, 2007, only to go missing and remain at large after being granted bail.

K. Preecha, who owned Fisherman’s Way housing estate and Phuket Shooting Range in Rawai, was driving his Jeep Cherokee along Wiset Rd with his wife and nine-year-old son at about 11 pm when Samrerng and a driver pulled up alongside them in a red sedan.
Samrerng opened fire and hit K. Preecha twice in the head with two 9mm bullets.

K. Preecha’s vehicle collided with a minivan, then careened off the road, scraped along a wall and crashed into a tree.

K. Preecha died the following day at Phuket International Hospital. His wife and son escaped without serious injury.

The driver of the sedan has never been identified.

In Mach 2006, police said they believe Samrerng and the driver were hiding in Central Thailand.

Wanchana and Pongsak, who were formerly attached to the Phuket Elite Special Operations Unit, were arrested on March 18, 2006 by a group of police led by the deputy chief of the Bangkok-based Central Investigations Division.

Pongsak, who allegedly cracked after more than four hours of questioning by police, confessed to having pointed out the target to Samrerng prior to the hit.

Wanchana and Pongsak were released on bail and suspended from duty pending trial.

Police initially said they thought the motive for killing may have been related to a business deal, although this has never been confirmed.

Jurairat Kraitas, K. Preecha’s wife, 37, declined to comment citing that the case must now go through the Courts of Appeal.

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Hua Hin

Southern Thailand braces for rough weather and rain

Published

2 hours ago

October 19, 2019

May Taylor

Southern Thailand braces for rough weather and rain | The Thaiger

The Thailand Meteorological Department issued a weather warning for southern Thailand with torrential rain forecast to hit the region throughout the weekend. The heavy monsoon over the Gulf of Thailand and south of the country is being blamed for the rough weather, with the TMD predicting flash flooding in many areas.

(Phuket, Hat Yai and Hua Hin’s forecast below)

“Waves are expected to reach 2 metres in height in the lower Gulf of Thailand and possibly higher at the height of the storm. Ships are advised to proceed with caution.”

For the north and northeast of Thailand, the TMD forecasts strong winds and cooler mornings as the arrival of the “winter” season, coupled with a moderate high-pressure system, causes temperatures to dip.

Hua Hin’s five day forecast

Phuket’s five day forecast

Hat Yai’s five day forecast

SOURCE: The Nation | weather.com

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Crime

Now you see him, now you don’t… Patong Police hunt foreigner over $30k theft

Published

1 day ago

October 18, 2019

Greeley Pulitzer

Now you see him, now you don’t… Patong Police hunt foreigner over $30k theft | The Thaiger

PHOTO: Patong Police

Patong Police have yet to develop any tangible leads tracking down a foreigner who made off with US$30,000 in cash from a currency exchange booth in Kalim, north of Patong in Phuket, last Tuesday.

The man is about 168 centimetres tall with grey hair and around 60 years old, Patong police told The Phuket News.

“We have no clue what nationality he is.”

He was last seen at the currency exchange booth wearing a purple polo shirt, blue jeans and black cap. Police have checked hotels in the area, police stations across the island and Phuket Immigration, but have yet to join the dots and come up with firm leads.

“Investigators have checked CCTV in the area and collected what evidence we have but we still do not know the man’s name or where he was staying.”

The man had visited the booth several times before Tuesday, when he disappeared with the $30,000 in US banknotes, according to police.

“It was always small amounts”, he added, noting that the amounts didn’t warrant staff at the exchange booth to check the man’s passport before making the exchange.

The man arrived at the booth again at about 1pm on Tuesday, saying that he had 900,000 baht cash to exchange.

SOURCE: The Phuket News

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Crime

Mystery surrounds security guard found dead in his Phuket room

Published

2 days ago

October 17, 2019

The Thaiger

PHOTOS: Phuket Hot News

The security guard of a hotel in Nai Yang, northern Phuket, 52 year old Yingyot Butsabong, from Maha Sarakham province, was found dead yesterday (October 16) in his room. Police remain mystified how the man came to grief.

A woman named Supattra received a call from the hotel he worked at and was informed that he didn’t show up at work yesterday, so she went to his apartment to check on him.

She saw that his room was locked from the inside, so used the key she had in her possession to open the room and found Yingyot laying on the floor, face down. She thought he was just sleeping so she tried to wake him up but once she flipped him, she found that he already passed away.

She immediately called Saku police, and once on the scene, police found that there was some blood on the floor. The man had a 2 centimetre wound on his left eyebrow which was deep into his skull. There was also a wound on his chin about 1 centimetre long and about a centimetre deep. His left eye had a bruise which looked like he was attacked by a hard object.

Police report that he had been dead for around four hours in the room.

The room was not ransacked and there was no sign of fighting or theft. His body has been sent to Thalang Hospital for a detailed autopsy and to look into the cause of death.

SOURCE: Phuket Hot News

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