Panpakorn “Aon” Suwanrit, 36, was taken into custody by Crime Suppression Division (CSD) police and local police officers at a house in Moo Baan Palm Phattana, in Moo 7 of Satun’s Muang District.
The house, where police said Panpakorn had been hiding out for a month, belongs to Matlaad Lisiri, a male relative of Panpakorn’s father. The exact relationship was not disclosed.
Panpakorn faces charges of attempted murder, illegal possession of a firearm and carrying a firearm in a public area without a permit, police confirmed.
Panpakorn denied that he shot the three family members over a barking dog, as claimed in reports at the time, but he did not explain any other alternative motive.
He just said, “For personal reasons.”
Police have yet to recover the gun used in the shooting, though Panpakorn told police that he threw it away “in water”.
Panpakorn is being escorted back to Phuket today to face the charges against him, Lt Kwansirinat Thairat of the Wichit Police confirmed to The Phuket News today.
“I don’t know when he will arrive, but we still have to conclude our investigation, which includes questioning him,” Lt Kwansirinat said.
The hunt for Panpakorn led police to believe that he had fled to Phang Nga after officers caught his father driving towards the bridges heading off-island soon after the shooting. (See story here.)
Officers took Panpakorn’s father into custody for questioning, but have yet to reveal whether he, too, faces any charges for aiding and abetting a murder fugitive.
Lt Kwansirinat told The Phuket News that two of victims in the shooting – traditional Thai dance teacher Somchai Kieingchan, 42, and his wife Mrs Urarat, 43 – were still recovering at Vachira Phuket Hospital in Phuket Town.
However, he did not reveal any details of their medical condition.
Mr Somchai had been shot in the left side of his neck and was bleeding profusely when emergency responders arrived.
His wife, Mrs Urarat, had been shot twice in her lower back, once in an arm and once in a leg, and had a broken finger on her right hand.
Their son, Thanawat, 20 was shot in his right leg and in his lower back, though Lt Kwansirinat made no mention of his condition or whereabouts.
Additional reporting by Eakkapop Thongtub