A former police officer facing a drug charge burst into a day care center in Thailand and killed dozens of children and teachers. In the nation's history, at least 36 people were killed.
The man who was fired took his own life after murdering his wife and child.
The school's floor was littered with the tiny bodies of children still on their blankets, where they had been napping. There were gunshots to their heads and pools of blood in the pictures.
A teacher told Thai PBS that a man got out of a car and shot a man outside. The teacher had an opportunity to flee when the attacker paused.
The young woman said that the children were asleep when she ran to the back. Two or three year olds were the children.
A witness said that staff at the day care locked the door after the man shot his way in.
The witness said that the teacher who died had a child in her arms. He shot at the door and hit it.
Police spokesman Archayon Kraithong said at least ten people were wounded.
The rural town of Uthai Sawan in Thailand's northeastern province of Nongbua Lamphu was the site of the attack.
A video taken by a first responders arriving at the scene shows them rushing into a single-story building with blood visible on the ground in the entryway.
Family members could be heard weeping outside the building in the video. There was blood on the floor where sleeping mats were scattered. There were pictures of the alphabet on the wall.
The attacker was a former police officer. The police general told PPTV that he was fired from the force because of the drug charge.
The man, who had been a sergeant, was due in court Friday for a hearing in the case involving methamphetamine, and he may have chose the day care center because it was close to his home.
The main weapon used was a 9mm pistol that the man had bought himself, according to the man. He had a knife and a gun.
According to initial reports, the former officer was having personal problems.
He said this shouldn't happen. I feel sad for the victims and their families.
At least 22 children and two adults were killed at the day care, according to police. The deaths of at least two more children were1-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-65561-6556
The scene of the attack was still being visited by some family members of the victims. Mental health workers sat with them, trying to make them feel better.
In Thailand, firearm-related deaths are lower than in countries such as the US and Brazil, but higher than in Japan and Singapore, which have strict gun-control laws. In the US and Brazil, the rate of firearms deaths was 11 and 23 per 100,000, respectively.
Thailand has one of the highest civilian gun ownership rates in Asia, with a rate of 15.1 weapons per 100 population, which is higher than Singapore and Japan. The U.S. rate is 120.5 per 100 people according to a survey.
In 2020, a disgruntled soldier opened fire in and around a mall in a northeastern city, killing 29 people and holding off security forces for 16 hours before being killed by them.
More than 50 people were wounded in that attack. The 2015 bombing at a shrine in Thailand that killed 20 people was the worst attack on civilians. Human traffickers are said to have carried it out in order to retaliate.
Two co-workers were killed and another was wounded in a shooting at Thailand's Army War College.
That's right.
The police chief's name was incorrect and the TV station's name was wrong.
That's right.
The rising was reported from Thailand. The report was written by Associated Press writers in Thailand.
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