A Thai drug dealer died in an extrajudicial killing after resisting arrest and fatally shooting a police officer at a rented room in Phuket yesterday, September 8.
Officers from the Investigation Sub-division in Phuket had earlier arrested three drug suspects and questioned them until they revealed the identities of more senior dealers in the province. The suspects identified a couple living in a rented room in the Wichit district of Phuket.
Police rushed to the third-floor room and forced entry into the accommodation. Three people were inside, including the wanted couple and a male friend. The couple reportedly cooperated with officers, but their friend, later identified as 24 year old Sompon, hid in the bathroom.
Officers ordered Sompon to surrender, but he remained silent. When police broke into the bathroom, Sompon opened fire on them.
Several bullets struck Police Sub-Lieutenant Prachak Thahanthai. The other officers immediately returned fire into the bathroom, killing Sompon.
Sompon’s body was found in the bathroom. He was dressed in a black T-shirt and black shorts and had several tattoos. He had sustained five gunshot wounds to the neck, legs, and arms.
The injured police officer was rushed to the hospital in critical condition but, unfortunately, succumbed to his injuries.
The couple, identified as leading drug dealers, were taken to the police station for further interrogation. Officers later searched the room and seized 500 methamphetamine tablets along with two firearms: a 9mm pistol with 12 rounds of ammunition and a Thai-made Pradit gun.
According to MGR Online, Sompon had a long criminal record and was wanted for numerous offences in Karon, Wichit, and Mueang Phuket districts, most of them drug-related.
He had previously been arrested and imprisoned but had been released around a year ago. Despite this, he had resumed his criminal activities.
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