Police have arrested a Myanmar man accused of killing a 79 year old grocery store owner during a robbery at his home in Saphan Sung district, Bangkok. The man was found dead in his kitchen on the morning of August 24, and the suspect was arrested at a checkpoint in Samut Prakan a day later, on August 25.
The victim, Thawatchai Siwilai, ran a small grocery store from the front of his house in Thap Chang subdistrict, Saphan Sung, which he typically opened from around 4am to 10pm daily. His wife was in the United States visiting their daughter at the time, leaving him alone in the house.
Two Myanmar women who work at the store and live elsewhere arrived at around 6am and found the shop still closed. Looking through a window, they saw blood inside and called police.
Officers found Thawatchai’s body in the ground-floor kitchen, with head injuries, and a doctor’s initial estimate put the time of death at five to six hours earlier. A broken pestle and a bloodstained mop handle were found near the body and are being treated as possible weapons.
Investigators later said he had suffered three wounds, two to the back of the head and one to the temple.
Blood was found in several places throughout the house, with bloodied footprints leading to Thawatchai’s bedroom, where items had been rummaged through, and a cabinet’s glass panel was broken. The back door had been left open with signs that the intruder had climbed in from behind the house, and the CCTV camera covering the shopfront had been pried upward.
Police said the shop’s daily takings of around 5,000 to 6,000 baht were missing, along with Thawatchai’s mobile phone. The two employees told investigators they recognised the suspect from a photo as a former regular customer, though they didn’t know his name.
According to police, CCTV showed the suspect arrived alone at around 10pm and went into the house with clear intent, searching for valuables. Thawatchai, asleep in his ground-floor bedroom, woke to unusual noise and went to investigate with a flashlight and a long stick for self-defence, while the suspect tried to hide and moved toward the kitchen.
The two confronted each other in the kitchen, an area with no camera coverage, where the struggle turned fatal.
Police said the suspect fled through the back of the house afterwards, changed his clothes, and dumped the bloodstained clothing in a bin near where he was staying.
Investigators believe he used to live in an apartment behind Thawatchai’s house, which has since closed, before more recently moving to a residence elsewhere in Bangkok. Police believe he was familiar with the area and with Thawatchai’s daily routine.
The suspect, identified as Khun Chit Oo, was arrested in Samut Prakan province. Officers recovered a gold necklace and the victim’s mobile phone. He was taken to Prawet police station to be charged and handed over to the inquiry officer for further proceedings.
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