Banglamung-
At 6:00 PM on April 13, 2025, Lt. Ongart Thumsud, Deputy Inspector (Investigation) of the Nongprue Police Station, responded to a report at a cattle ranch in Nam Phong Village outside of Pattaya City. He informed his superiors and arrived at the scene with relevant officers, medical staff, The Pattaya News team, and rescuers from the Sawang Boriboon Foundation in Pattaya.
The scene was a cattle ranch with about 40 cows. Inside a paddy field hut, authorities found the body of a Thai man, later identified as Mr. Somphong Bunmee, alias “Nid,” aged 53, the ranch owner. He was lying face-up, wearing black shorts, with a single shotgun wound to the chest below the sternum. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Mr. Suradech Phatthanangam, alias “Pae,” aged 37, a hired cattle worker, was in shock and gave a statement to the police. He said he was talking with the deceased when a bronze-colored pickup truck pulled up. Three armed men, also cattle ranchers, stepped out. One of them, known as Mr. Neng, confronted the deceased, saying, “This morning, whose cow did you slaughter? My cow’s missing. Did you butcher mine?” The deceased denied any knowledge, insisting his cows were legally purchased. This led to an argument between the deceased and Mr. Neng. One of the gunmen then retrieved a five-round long-barreled shotgun from the truck, approached the deceased, and fired a single shot, causing him to collapse. The gunman briefly pointed the weapon at Pae, who fled into the woods to escape. The gunman did not pursue. Pae hid until he was certain the gunmen had left, then emerged and called the police.
Col. Natthapol Phongsooksakul, Superintendent of Nongprue Police Station, revealed that the investigation has identified all suspects involved. One of them is a cattle rancher from the Wat Khao Din area, about 2-3 km from the crime scene. Preliminary information indicates that the previous night, seven of the suspects’ cows went missing. They recovered five but were still searching for two. That morning, the deceased had slaughtered a cow for sale, leading the suspects to believe he had stolen theirs. They confronted him to resolve the issue, resulting in the fatal shooting.
An unnamed woman, aged 60, the deceased’s older sister, told the news team that her brother was the family’s breadwinner and had a young son (8 years old). She insisted he was not a thief and doubted he would steal anyone’s cattle. She urged the police to apprehend the gunmen, bring them to justice, and ensure fairness for her brother.
Police thoroughly collected evidence at the scene and sent the body for autopsy at the Police Hospital’s Forensic Institute. The initial hypothesis points to a misunderstanding over the suspects’ missing cattle and possible disputes related to the beef trade business. The investigative team is pressuring the suspects to surrender. If they fail to do so, arrest warrants will be issued.
