Foreigner shot at Patong resort
PATONG POLICE HAVE confirmed the arrest of a Thai man for shooting a foreign man at a resort in Patong in the early hours of Jan 26.
A copy of the arrest report provided to The Phuket News confirmed that Thai national Somphot Piemsak, 54, registered as living on Phisit Goranee Rd in Patong, was arrested in front of the B-Lay Tong Phuket resort on the Patong beach road at 4am.
Somphot was found in possession of a 9mm semiautomatic handgun and bullets.
Patong Police were notified of the shooting at 1:50am. Police were told that a foreign man had trespassed into the resort and “caused chaos” inside the resort. The foreign man had been confronted and two gunshots were fired, said the report.
Police have not officially released any further details of the shooting or the arrest.
Police also have not released any details of the victim’s medical condition.
The arrest report did confirm that Somphot was facing charges of “attempt to kill someone” and “carrying a firearm in a city, village or public way without justifiable reason”.
Patong Police Chief Col Sujin Ninbordee later declined to reveal any details of the shooting to The Phuket News, saying that he had no authority to do so.
“Only the Phuket Provincial Police Commander has the authority to,” he said.
However, details already leaked to the Thai press gave very detailed accounts of the incident, all reported in Thai language only.
The reports even named the foreigner, identified as a Swedish national.
The reports claimed, through “investigation”, that the foreign man had trespassed onto the resort grounds and used the swimming pool.
The resort currently remains closed with security personnel patrolling the grounds.
Allegedly a child of the owner of the resort was staying at the hotel, and reported the foreigner’s presence to the security guards on duty at the time.
The security guards, now presumably including Somphot, responded and confronted the foreign man, who was reportedly swimming naked in the hotel swimming pool.
Security guard Somphot reportedly fired two warning shots, with one of the warning shots grazing one of the foregn man’s legs.
Police were then called and Somphot surrendered himself and the gun that injured the foreign man, said the reports.
However, it was not reported what exactly Somphot was threatened with by the naked foreigner.