Gunman in Thailand kills 34 people at day-care centre

A former policeman killed 34 people, including 22 children, in a gun rampage at a daycare centre in eastern Thailand on Thursday, later shooting dead his wife and child at their home before turning his weapon on himself.

Police identified the attacker as a former member of the force who was dismissed from his post last year over drug allegations.

He was facing trial on a drugs charge and had been in court in the hours before the shooting, police said.

District police official Chakkraphat Wichitvaidya cited witnesses as saying the gunman was also seen wielding a knife in the attack in the town of Uthai Sawan, 500 km northeast of Bangkok in the province of Nong Bua Lamphu.

About 30 children were at the centre when the gunman arrived, fewer than usual, as heavy rain had kept many people away, district official Jidapa Boonsom, who was working in a nearby office at the time, told Reuters.

"The shooter came in around lunch time and shot four or five officials at the childcare centre first," said Jidapa, adding that among them was a teacher who was eight months pregnant.

"At first, people thought the shots were fireworks," she said.

"It's really shocking. We were very scared and running to hide once we knew it was shooting. So many children got killed, I've never seen anything like it."

The gunman forced his way into a locked room where children were sleeping, Jidapa said. She said she thought he killed children there with a knife.

Police spokesperson Paisan Luesomboon told broadcaster ThaiPBS the gunman had been at a court hearing in connection with a drug case earlier on Thursday and had gone to the daycare centre to find his child, but the child was not there.

"He was already stressed and when he couldn't find his child he was more stressed and started shooting," Paisan said, adding that he had then driven home and killed his wife and child there before taking his own life.

Gun laws are strict in Thailand, where possession of an illegal firearm carries a prison sentence of up to 10 years, but ownership is high compared with some other countries in the region.

Illegal weapons, many brought in from strife-torn neighbouring countries, are common.

However, mass shootings are rare. In 2020, a soldier angry over a property deal gone sour killed at least 29 people and wounded 57 in a rampage that spanned four locations.

More from International News

  • Thousands of Australians without power as cyclone Alfred hits

    Hundreds of thousands of people in Australia's Queensland state were without power on Sunday after Alfred, a downgraded tropical cyclone, brought damaging winds and heavy rains, sparking flood warnings.

  • Israeli airstrike kills two in southern Gaza

    An Israeli airstrike killed two Palestinians in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Saturday, medical sources said, as mediators pushed ahead with talks to extend a shaky 42-day ceasefire agreed in January between Israel and Hamas.

  • 12 people injured in Toronto pub shooting

    Toronto Police said early on Saturday they were searching for three male suspects in a shooting that injured at least 12 people at a pub in the Canadian city.

  • Cyclone Alfred downgraded as millions stay indoors

    Ex-tropical cyclone Alfred lingered off the south-east Australian coast on Saturday and forecasters said Brisbane is likely to miss the worst of the storm, a relief for millions of residents in the region who have been staying indoors.