Thai police have indicted the 14-year-old suspect in the Bangkok shopping mall shooting, who faces five charges, including premeditated murder and illegal possession of a firearm. Police said the suspect used a modified pistol that could fire empty bullets.
The so-called empty bullet is a bullet with only a cartridge case, a small amount of charge and a primer, which is usually used for training and exercises, but is lethal when fired at close range.
Tuesday's shooting at Bangkok's well-known Siam Paragon Mall left two dead and five wounded. The two deceased were Chinese nationals and Myanmar citizens.
Police said the suspect had a psychological breakdown before the shooting. But according to a court document seen by Reuters, the court rejected a police request to detain the suspect in a psychiatric hospital and instead ordered him to be sent to a juvenile detention center.
Siam Paragon Mall reopened on Wednesday, leaving flowers in front of the mall and workers replacing shattered windows at Louis Vuitton stores.
Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin attended the event at the mall and told reporters that the government would work with police to tackle the gun problem, including modifying them.
Mass shootings are rare in Thailand, but gun ownership is high and gun violence is widespread. Thai officials have strict rules for gun ownership, but guns can be modified and obtained illegally, and many guns are smuggled from abroad.
A year ago, a former policeman killed 35 people, including 22 children in a nursery school, in a town in northeastern Thailand.
In 2020, at least 29 people were killed and 57 injured when a soldier fired wildly at four locations near the northeastern Thai city of Nakhon Ratchasima province.
Bushfires in eastern Victoria were followed by flooding
Eastern Victoria has recently experienced a double flood, starting with wildfires a few days ago, followed by stormy and flooding.
Flood warnings have been issued in most parts of eastern Victoria, and residents of several towns have been evacuated overnight.
Last night (October 4), the towns along the Macalister River downstream of Lake Glenmaggie were asked to evacuate immediately, and the water level reached 6.87 metres at 4am today.
Residents along the Wonnangatta River were also notified last night to move to higher ground.
Dane Martin, general manager of the 5,000-hectare Glenfalloch farm near the small town of Licola, said the situation here jumped from one extreme to another.
He said there had been a drought before, and even several lagoons were completely dry. However, "it started raining around seven o'clock [last night] and it hasn't stopped until now," and overnight, the drought turned into a flood.
Windy in NSW Sydney Airport nearly 100 flights cancelled
There were strong winds in NSW, with winds reaching 90km/h this morning.
According to records on the Sydney Airport website, more than 50 inbound flights and more than 40 outbound flights were cancelled throughout the day.
A Sydney Airport spokesman said authorities informed them last night that windy weather might require the closure of the runway, with only one runway operating.
Passengers travelling today are advised to contact the airline to check the status of their flights.