Thai media reported on February 10 that the death toll from a soldier shooting civilians in Nakhon Ratchasima Province, Thailand, has risen to 30, and another 58 people have been injured. The local government will issue aftercare and pensions to victims and their families.
However, after the gunman shot and killed the officer guarding the armory, he easily took away a large number of weapons and ammunition, which raised questions about the safety of gun control across the country. Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha ordered a review of the security of the national armoury.
< h1 toutiao-origin="h5" > the perpetrator of the shooting, Zhajiapan Toma</h1>
According to the latest data released by Nakhon Lat Hospital, the shootings have so far killed a total of 30 people, including 3 police officers and 1 military member, and injured 58 others.
Nakhon Ratchasima will pay the dead and injured and their families with aftercare payments and pensions, of which 120,000 baht (about 26,800 yuan) will be received for the civilians killed, and 3 police officers who have died will receive a total of more than 2.1 million baht pensions.
The killer of the shooting was 32-year-old Sergeant Major Jakrapanth Thomma. Toma stole weapons from a military barracks in Nakhon Ratchasima province on February 8, shot a 48-year-old boss and the boss's mother and drove to the local Terminal 21 shopping mall on February 8 and took hostages, killing him in the early morning of February 9 after more than 10 hours of confrontation with police.
During the massacre, Thomas broadcast the attack live on social media Facebook. Nearly 5 hours later, Facebook withdrew his post and shut down the stream after receiving the information.
< h1 toutiao-origin="h5" > police rescue civilians</h1>
According to media reports, Toma attacked a guard in the barracks and seized his HK33 assault rifle. He then took a large number of weapons, including 5 guns, 800 rounds of ammunition and 2 grenades, without any obstacles, and drove away the Hummer military vehicle. He wore a camouflage suit and helmet when he committed the murder in a shopping mall.
Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha ordered a review of the security of the national armoury on February 9. "If standard safety procedures are fully followed, we will be able to mitigate the level of violence in this incident." Even if the correct procedures have been fully followed, the question is what else can we do to improve the efficiency of our security measures? ”
Apirat Kongsompong, the commander-in-chief of the Thai Army, explained that Toma, who knew the armory guards well, had let down his guard. The military has issued urgent orders to all forces for stricter security measures, including the removal of firearms from the armory post and their separate custody by the post director. Under the new measures, ammunition and machine guns will no longer be stored in any guardhouse.
Compiled/written by: Nandu reporter Shi Minglei
Image source: Bangkok Post