Motorbike gunmen strike at Saphan Hin

PHUKET TOWN: A 21-year-old man was shot and seriously injured at Saphan Hin yesterday. The gunman fled on a motorbike ridden by an accomplice. Witnesses to the shooting took the victim, Niruj Mokakom, to Wachira Phuket Hospital about 3:20 pm. He was in the intensive care unit today with wounds to his chest and right arm, and in no condition to talk to police. Police are keen to talk to a friend of K. Niruj, who is believed to have fled the scene following the shooting. The shooting came amid a spate of killings and attempted killings said to have been ordered by drugs bosses keen to silence potential “squealers”. However, although K. Niruj has been arrested in the past for robbery, theft and assault, investigators say that until the people involved are interviewed, they cannot tell whether drugs were involved. Pol Maj Chokchai Sutthimet said, “Witnesses told me that the two gunmen looked older than 25. They heard many shots before the criminals rode away from the area.”