Soldiers kill student after row over girl

PHUKET TOWN: Two Thai soldiers and a friend were arrested last night and charged with the murder of a Rajabhat Phuket Institute student earlier in the evening after an argument over a girl. The student, 23-year-old Sakda “Tuk” Thongsongsri from Trang, was riding his motorcycle past the Muang Mai auto dealership showrooms on Thepkrasattri Rd at 8:30 pm with his girlfriend, On-uma Khongkumnerd, 22, on the back. Two men on a motorcycle came up alongside and the passenger shot Sakda once through the head, killing him instantly. Acting on information provided by Ms On-uma, Phuket Town Police, led by Pol Col Chalit Thinthanee, Superintendent, and Pol Maj Songwuth Khunchan, Inspector, arrested Wirat Khundektang, 20, as an accessory to the murder. At Wirat’s home, police found a .38 pistol containing eight bullets, and a brown Honda Dream motorcycle matching the description given by On-uma. Col Chalit told the Gazette, “On-uma, who is Sakda’s girlfriend, told us that a week ago Sakda had an argument with 22-year-old Cpl Jeerasak Lanteng, a soldier based in Surat Thani. “The row was about an affair Sakda had had with Jeerasak’s girlfriend, Sirirat Srichanthong, 20, also a student at Rajabhat.” After questioning, Wirat admitted that he had helped Jeerasak and the gunman, Pvt Prapit Innurak, 21, another soldier based at Surat Thani, to plan Sakda’s murder because they were angry after the argument. “We were told Sakda was a good-looking person and liked to flirt with girl students at Rajabhat. He was aggressive and refused to discuss his relationship with Sirirat,” Maj Songwuth said. Jeerasak and Prapit were caught in Krabi on a bus from Phuket to Narathiwat just two hours after the murder. They admitted the killing and said they were making a run for the border with Malaysia.