A young boy with special needs was found dead in a canal in Hat Yai, southern Thailand, after going missing, prompting a desperate overnight search by police, rescue teams and family.
The boy, known as Nong Inter, vanished on Wednesday afternoon, September 17, from a car repair shop in Hat Yai District 8. He was last seen wearing a camouflage shirt and maroon shorts, playing with a basket near the shop, while his father worked on a motorcycle.
In a desperate bid to find him, the boy’s mother took to Facebook that evening, posting in a local community group to appeal for help. She said that Inter could recognise her name but had difficulty speaking.
“Please help us find him. Share this post.”
Tragically, at 9.50am yesterday, September 18, police received a report from residents that the boy’s body had been discovered in the U-Tapao canal, about 200 metres from the Ball Turbo car repair shop on Sakornmongkol 2 Road.
Police Lieutenant Chaiyakrit Thongkham, Deputy Inspector at Hat Yai Police Station, responded to the scene along with medical staff and rescue volunteers from the Mitrapap Samakkhi Foundation. Inter’s body was later sent to Hat Yai Hospital for forensic examination.
The rescue team said that they had been notified about the missing child around 3pm on Wednesday. Family members had searched the area throughout the night, fearing he might be nearby. Their suspicion grew stronger after discovering a basket floating under a bridge, one that the father confirmed belonged to his son.
As rescue workers prepared to search the canal, a local informed them that a small body had surfaced further downstream, reported KhaoSod.
Inter’s father, devastated, recounted the events leading to his disappearance.
“He came home from school. I gave him milk and snacks and let him play while I fixed a motorbike. Then my other son came running and said Inter was gone.”
The stepmother said she had briefly gone to the bathroom and returned to find Inter missing.
“He was playing with his father when I left. When I came back, he was gone.”
Inter, the youngest in the family, was adored by everyone. He often played with the family’s two rescued cats in the area behind the shop, a space that was forested and difficult to monitor.
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