Navy police break up the
shooting and bring in Sombat “Pooyai Pae” Zupcharoen for questioning.
Patcharapol Panrak
A Sattahip village chief is out on bail after being
arrested for pulling a gun on a Royal Thai Navy officer and firing
multiple shots into the air.
Sombat “Pooyai Pae” Zupcharoen, headman for Bang
Saray Moo 3, was taken into custody after the incident at the Ton-Orr
massage parlor’s karaoke bar after midnight Nov. 20. He is being
investigated for illegal possession of a firearm, threatening bar owners
Manop Lerksanan and his wife Nitiya Taakhum, at gunpoint and firing
multiple rounds into the night sky.
Sombat denied the charges, claiming he had simply
passed outside the karaoke bar and tried to break up a disturbance
inside by firing only one shot into the air. A joint navy-Sattahip
Police committee is now investigating the incident.
Manop said the incident began after Sombat and his
son entered the karaoke bar late at night to assail him about public
comments he allegedly made about the village chief and his real-estate
dealings. The Naval Recruit Training Center officer said Sombat claimed
people now refused to rent properties from him based on those comments.
An argument ensued and Sombat’s son allegedly kicked
and punched him, causing him to fall. At that point, Manop alleged, the
headsman pulled out a handgun, pointed at his head and his wife’s face
and threatened their lives.
Sombat then allegedly stormed out of the karaoke bar
and fired shots into the sky until a navy patrol officer drove by and
put an end to the shooting.
With Sombat’s story varying so much from Manop’s the
joint navy-police panel plans to interview the patrol officer to
determine the true events.
Sattahip District Chief Chaichan Iamcharoen said this
is not the first gun-related complaint tied to Sombat. However, he said,
none of the prior alleged shooting incidents involved a victim. This
time it does, Chaichan said, and if Sombat is found to be lying, he not
only will face criminal charges, but be stripped of his village chief
title.
