5-10-2023 (BANGKOK) Thai authorities are planning to question a shooting instructor to gain insights into the motives behind the recent tragic shooting incident that unfolded at Siam Paragon shopping mall in Bangkok. The incident, in which a 14-year-old boy went on a deadly shooting rampage, has sparked concerns about public safety and gun control in Thailand.
Police investigators have acquired information about the shooting range where the teenager had practiced and the instructor who supervised his sessions. Pol Maj Gen Nakharin Sukhonthawit, commander of Metropolitan Police Division 6, revealed that the range is situated at the Territorial Defense Command of the Royal Thai Army on Charoen Krung Road in Phra Nakhon district.
After the Siam Paragon shootings, a video emerged online, showing the teenager practicing at a range under the supervision of an instructor dressed in military camouflage. The exact date of this video is unknown.
Police officers intend to question the instructor to determine if anyone else accompanied the teenager on that day and to establish whether the boy used a rented gun at the range or brought his firearm. Shooting range regulations stipulate that individuals below the age of 20 must be accompanied by their parents for shooting practice.
The incident at Siam Paragon sent hundreds of shoppers fleeing in panic as gunshots rang out late in the afternoon. The young gunman was apprehended at a furniture shop inside the mall, following a rampage that resulted in the deaths of two foreign women and injuries to five other people. The teenager now faces charges of murder and other offenses and has been remanded to a juvenile detention center, where he will undergo a psychiatric assessment.
In a related development, the police have inspected a business in Thung Khru district that was involved in producing BB guns and blank guns. These guns have been linked to the shooting incident at the mall. The suspect allegedly modified a blank gun to fire bullets. As a consequence, three individuals were arrested on Thursday for allegedly selling a gun and ammunition to the teenager.
Authorities in Thailand have pledged to address a legal loophole that does not classify blank guns as firearms. This legal loophole allows owners of blank guns to remain unregulated, without any licensing requirements, and authorities intend to close this gap to strengthen gun control in the country.
