Suspect says fatal Bangkok shooting stemmed from traffic dispute

Metropolitan police have been questioning a 37-year-old man today, who was arrested in Trat province in connection with the fatal shooting of a motorist on the Si Rat Expressway in Bangkok’s Bang Sue district in the early hours of December 23.

The suspect, identified as ‘Songkran’, reportedly confessed to the shooting, claiming he was driving a minivan when he fired at the victim after being cut off in traffic.

The incident, which occurred around 4am when traffic was light, has gone viral and dominated headlines across local news outlets.

Preliminary investigations indicate that the suspect’s minivan and the victim’s sedan cut in front of each other about 500 meters before the toll booth.

After passing through the plaza, the suspect slowed down, pulled alongside the victim’s car and fired three shots. The victim was struck once in the neck and twice in the arm.

Songkran fled the scene but now faces multiple charges, including premeditated murder, attempted murder, illegal possession of firearms and ammunition, carrying a gun in public without a permit and discharging a firearm in a populated area without justification.

A court issued an arrest warrant and he was apprehended yesterday on Chang Island in Trat province.

Police also seized the suspect’s minivan, found parked at a hotel in Nakhon Pathom province. Investigators noted that the vehicle’s license plate had been obscured with a false plate, in an attempt to conceal its identity.