The shooter was upset over the “laughing stickers” and uploaded a photo of a gun to his Facebook story.
When: December 30th, 2020
Where: Ratsada subdistrict, Phuket
Perpetrators: Mr. Akarawat Maneebuarat, 37
Victims: Mr. San Petchthongchai, 31, deceased; Mr. Akarapol Srithongma, 31, injured
What: Police in Phuket were notified of a shooting at the Super Cheap Market in the Ratsada subdistrict of Phuket on December 30th, 2020. Investigators rushed to the scene and found one dead and one injured from the shooting.
The deceased is identified as Mr. San Petchthongchai, 31, who was a manager at the Super Cheap Market. He was found on his back in a pool of his own blood. The injured is Mr. Akarapol Srithongma, 31, who was shot through the neck. He was taken to the hospital and is in stable condition.
The shooter is Mr. Akarawat Maneebuarat, 37, who called 191 and surrendered to police after the incident. The report states that Mr. Akarawat and the deceased Mr. Petchthongchai worked at the same Super Cheap Market.
They’d recently had problems from social media. Mr. Akarawat said he had posted a personal Facebook story and the victim would send “laughing stickers” in response, causing Mr. Akarawat to become upset. The suspect then uploaded a photo of a gun to his Facebook story. Then the suspect sent a personal message to the victim asking, “why did you send a laughing sticker?” and the victim replied “why not?”
Before the shooting, Mr. Petchthongchai sat on the back of a motorbike in front of the Super Cheap Market with Mr. Akarapol, waiting for Mr. Akarawat. When they saw him, Mr. Petchthongchai approached Mr. Akarawat with a steel rod and was going to attack the shooter, who then opened fire on the two, killing Mr. Petchthongchai and injuring Mr. Akarapol.
Mr. Akarawat then fled the scene and called police to surrender, and he drove to the Patong police station to do so. He brought the .38 revolver, the gun used in the crime. Officials are reviewing CCTV and are investigating the scene of the crime.
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My take: Think twice before you send “laughing stickers.” You never know how it’s going to make somebody feel.
This is one of those stories that will be studied in a university somewhere when looking at the insanity of social media. Then again, was it social media or was it just a crazy bastard who couldn’t handle a “laughing sticker”?
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