A 13-year-old Plutaluang boy has been arrested for allegedly raping a 9-year-old neighbor and drowning her in a ditch where she laid for four days.
Sattahip police claim the unnamed teen confessed May 25 to the brutal murder of Chandee “Tan” Srijaiwong four days earlier. He told officers he was attracted to the girl and deceived her into taking a walk into the jungle where he molested her and then held her head under water when she threatened to go to the police.
The girl’s disappearance set off a four-day search by police and residents. Investigators finally pried a confession from the boy, who was the last person seen with Chandee before she disappeared from their public housing project apartment block May 21.
The teen took police to a water-filled ditch near a racetrack about two kilometers from the housing project. There they found the naked girl lying face down in muddy water, the boy’s underwear nearby, still smattered with semen.
Police later forced the boy to simulate a re-enactment of the crime, which was watched by throngs of angry neighbors who cursed and threatened the boy. Police were forced to restrain the crowd to protect the suspect’s safety.
Investigators are continuing to investigate, however, believing the young boy would be incapable of such a crime on his own and are looking into whether there were accomplices helping him.
