Most killers run from the police. This one called a live television host, lit a cigarette at the police station, and asked the cameras to listen to his side of the story.
In most parts of the world, if you shoot someone in the street, you run. You hide. You wait for the sirens to fade. But in Thailand this week, a former politician treated a murder charge like a press tour.
Chalong Reawraeng used to be a member of parliament. On Monday, he allegedly shot a former police official named Thongchai Yenprasert in the neck outside an office near Bangkok. Thongchai died in the hospital. His driver took a bullet to the arm.
Right after the shooting, Chalong did not call a lawyer. He called Anchalee Paireerak, a political pundit who was in the middle of a YouTube livestream. Viewers watched Anchalee pick up the phone mid-show.
“Did he die? Did he die?” she asked the camera, her voice dropping in shock. “You shot him in the head? You need to wait there for the cops.”
When the police finally arrested Chalong, things got even stranger. They let him hold a press conference at the station. He stood behind a microphone, smoking a cigarette, without a pair of handcuffs on his wrists. For six minutes, he explained himself to the reporters.
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He claimed he and Thongchai were good friends but had a personal dispute. He said Thongchai pushed him away, and when they got near a car, the victim’s driver pulled a weapon.
“When I pulled the gun out, I didn’t intend to shoot him,” Chalong told the room.
The optics of a suspect smoking and giving speeches while in custody made people furious. Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul stepped in to shut down the special treatment.
“The wrongdoer didn’t have to wear the handcuffs, had a press conference and acted like it was a normal situation,” the Prime Minister said. “No matter who he is, he is now a murderer.”
This public confession landed just three days after a 14-year-old boy killed eight people in a mass shooting. Thailand already has the highest rate of gun ownership in Southeast Asia. Now, the government is promising checkpoints and stricter laws, but for the people watching that YouTube livestream, the damage is already on the screen.
