One victim of the shooting at the Siam Paragon mall remembered coming face to face with the 14-year-old shooter as she ran up an escalator.
She believed she was running away to safety. She instead spotted the boy waiting at the bottom of the escalator. He turned to face her and pulled the trigger.
Anyapat Thipjirasakul remembered: “When I spotted him, I turned back right away and raced as fast as I could down the escalator. About four shots, I heard. I was hit by one bullet. Even though my left shoulder hurt, I continued to move.
“I ran off the escalator. I tripped and had to keep moving because I thought he would follow me down. In the midst of the mob, some of which were crying and yelling, she hurried toward the entrance gate.
“It was awful. I hardly got any rest the first night. She said from a hospital, “Whenever I close my eyes, I see him and hear the sound of the gun.
Anyapat was one of the seven people the teenager shot on October 3 in the late afternoon. Later, authorities from the Scientific Crime Detection Division discovered about 40 gunshot rounds, most of which were spread across the second and third levels.
Another survivor, Penpiwan Mitthampitak, 30, is in critical condition. She was shot twice in the right chest and once in the head.
Li Sha, a 30-year-old woman from China, was shot twice in the chest, once in the back, and once in the right arm. Her state is steady.
Kham Phiou, a 28-year-old woman from Laos, was wounded in the shoulder. Since her right side of the body is so weak and barely moves, a doctor is keeping a close eye on her.
Wichen Vijikhaki, a 41-year-old Thai national, was wounded in the back. Now he is secure. Zhao Jinnan, a 34-year-old Chinese national, was one of the two victims. She passed away there, while Moe Myint, a citizen of Myanmar, passed away later in a hospital.
On October 3 at about 3.15 pm, CCTV footage captures the long-haired boy travelling with a backpack from his condo to the BTS Skytrain while donning a cap, a black hoodie jacket, khaki military pants, and black boots.
At 3:35 PM, he boarded the train and arrived at the mall. He entered a bathroom on the M floor, removed his jacket, and set his bag on the lid of the toilet. He started his shooting spree at 4.10 p.m., first hitting Ms. Kham, a cleaner who was working in the men’s room.
A witness claimed that she heard gunshots coming from the restroom but refrained from leaving since numerous customers were crammed inside the women’s restroom and running for their life.
She said that it was fortunate that the shooter had passed the restroom for women. He began moving from one floor to the next. Even so, he stopped to check Twitter and liked stories about his crime.
Declaring his identity
The Special Operations Division, often known as the 191 Unit, got a call at around 4.46 pm inquiring if the police were aware of the shooting at the Siam Paragon mall. When the agent stated “yes,” he responded, “I am the shooter.”
The division’s commander, Phanop Worathanatchakul, claimed that the first agent switched his call to Pol Capt Possawat Jongjit, a skilled negotiator.
If there was anything the policeman could do, he enquired. He also requested his name and address.
The policeman reported that the person on the other end of the line indicated he was seated on a sofa but was unsure of exactly which floor he was on.
The officer, using his wits, inquired as to whether the man was at the third-floor furniture store. The teen acknowledged it. Another police squad on the ground received the information and conveyed it to them.
The shooter occasionally asked for his father during the chat, according to Pol Capt Possawat.
He claimed that he once pointed the gun towards himself. When asked if he would go to jail, he also sobbed. I’m just a 14-year-old. Will I be detained? Is it safe for me? Pol Capt Possawat remembered the exchange.
The officer instructed him to put down the weapon, which was later determined to be an online-purchased modified blank pistol.
The policeman instructed him to leave the store and go meet a group of officers who were waiting outside. The adolescent claimed he was immobile. He requested that the police come inside and fetch him since he noticed many black shadows outside the store.
Police Captain Thanamorn Nunarod, who oversaw the arrest squad, claimed to have seen the adolescent conversing on the phone as he instructed him to turn himself in.
“I instructed [the kid] to lay down his weapon, place his hands behind his neck, and kneel. He appeared to be thinking for some time. Then I had to demonstrate to him that I possessed a stronger weapon. He finally gave up. At 5:10 PM, the shooter was apprehended.
requesting attention
According to Pol Lt Col Kritsanapong Phutrakul, dean of Rangsit University’s college of criminology and justice administration, the shooter was well-prepared for his crime.
While traveling to the BTS station, he didn’t shoot anyone. In order to spread terror among the populace, he picked a busy time to strike at a sizable retail center right in the centre of the city, he added.
Because no one in Thailand can recall a person as young as 14 committing such a horrifying crime, there are concerns about the offender’s upbringing.
There is insufficient information, according to Dr. Woroj Chotipitayasunon, a spokeswoman for the Ministry of Public Health’s Department of Mental Health, to confirm or deny the shooter’s mental illness.
The shooter was admitted to the Galya Rajanagarindra Institute on October 6 for a five-day period of mental observation.
“The teen primarily shot women, with the exception of one security guard. We must learn how he chose his targets or whether they were chosen at random, the man said.
The teen enjoyed playing shooting games and was active online. He practiced his shooting in shooting ranges as well, going there more than a dozen times.
According to Dr. Woroj, there is no conclusive evidence linking playing violent video games to aggressive behavior.
The suspect’s father went to Wat Phasuk Manee Chak in Nonthaburi on Saturday to attend the funeral of assault victim Moe Myint.
He intended to apologize to Moe Myint’s mother Khin Win, who traveled from Myanmar to attend the funeral of her daughter, the family’s primary provider.
In front of Khin Win, the shooter’s father bowed and begged for mercy on his son’s behalf. As he attempted to give the mother compensation in a white envelope, which was instantly rejected, the mother drew the man closer to her.
“More valuable than everything in the world is my daughter. She’s not worth your money, the daughter told the father.
A close friend of her daughter provided a translation of her words into Thai.
“I don’t want to be mad at you. She said quietly, “I simply want justice for my daughter.
“At least I am lucky that I had a good daughter who cared for me and took care of me since she was 16,” she remarked as she placed her hands on his shoulders.
“I felt bad for you since your son is a bad man. Grief may affect you more than it does me. I want to convey my sadness and offer you my moral support as a parent,” she said.
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