“I didn’t think he would kill children, but he shot at the door and shot right through it.”

Last Thursday, Thailand experienced its worst, and probably the most heartbreaking, shooting in its history when an ex-cop suddenly went into a rampage and decided to kill just about anyone he encountered that day. No less than 36 people were murdered. Among them were at least 23 children.

What made it worse was that he went to a daycare and forcefully entered a classroom full of innocent two to five-year-old children taking their afternoon naps. 

Emergency responders met a horrible sight as they opened the shattered glass door. The children were still inside their blankets.

Most of the children were slashed while most of the adults were shot.

One teacher was able to run while another died with a child in her arms.

The incident took place in rural Uthai Sawan, which is said to be one of the poorest regions in Thailand.

A police spokesperson said that in addition to the fatalities, around 10 people were injured, six among them sustaining major wounds.

The assailant was identified as Panya Khamrap, a 34-year-old former police officer who was fired from duty due to a drug charge just this past June. Before the shooting, he came from a court hearing and was about to hear the verdict the following day.  

According to reports, Khamrap started his killing fest when he did not find his son in school.

His mother shared in an interview that her son was under a lot of pressure. Aside from his drug charge, he also had a lot of debts.

Nanticha Panchu, the school’s headteacher, said that Khamrap’s son used to attend the school. They described the ex-cop as a polite man who took his son to school. 

She also said that around 90 children would usually be present, but only a few attended school that day due to bad weather.

After the rampage, Khamrap went home, killed his wife and son, and ended his own life afterwards.

Thailand is known to have 15.1 weapons for every 100 people, one of the highest in Asia but shootings such as this are rare. Its previous major incident was in 2020, when 29 people were shot in Nakhon Ratchasima.

Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha visited the nursery site and shared that he feels “deep sadness [for] the victims and their relatives.” King Maha Vajiralongkorn and Queen Suthida are also meeting with the children’s families to offer comfort.