PATTAYA, Thailand – Officers from Thailand’s Central Investigation Bureau (CIB), through the Crime Suppression Division (CSD), have arrested a 22-year-old man who had been on the run under a warrant for attempted murder after allegedly taking a leading role in a brutal machete-style knife attack that left a rival critically injured. The suspect, identified only as Wutthinan, was arrested in the parking area beneath a condominium in Pattaya’s Naklua area on July 17 after investigators tracked him to the city, where he had allegedly been hiding while working as a bar host to avoid detection. According to police, the case stems from a violent street confrontation in Khlong Yai district, Trat province, on the night of April 18 last year. The victim had accompanied a friend who had an ongoing personal dispute with one of the suspect’s associates. When the two groups encountered each other by chance, the confrontation quickly escalated into violence.
Police said the suspect and his accomplices allegedly attacked the victim with knives, inflicting severe wounds to the head, arm, and shoulder. The victim survived only after bystanders intervened and rushed him to hospital. One suspect later surrendered to police, but Wutthinan fled the area. Investigators subsequently obtained an arrest warrant from the Trat Provincial Court on April 24 charging him with jointly attempting to commit murder. Following an investigation, officers learned the fugitive had relocated to Pattaya and was working as a bar host while concealing his identity. Surveillance officers eventually spotted him leaving his condominium and moved in to make the arrest. Police said the suspect admitted he was the person named in the warrant and confessed to the charge. He has been handed over to investigators at Khlong Yai Police Station in Trat for further legal proceedings.
