30 dead after day-care center shooting

An armed ex-cop stormed a day care center in northeast Thailand, killing at least 36 people.

People gather outside the daycare center where an ex-cop killed over 30 people.

Sakdipat Boonsom via Reuters

ela. At least 36 people have been killed by gunfire in a northeastern province of Thailand. Authorities confirmed this to CNN and Reuters on Thursday. The massacre took place in a day-care center in Uthaisawan Na Klang district. At least 24 children are said to be among the dead. The youngest victims are said to have been two years old.

According to the Bangkok Post, the suspect is a former police officer who was fired for drug-related offenses. He was armed with firearms and knives. He gained access to the daycare center and opened fire. At least twelve people were injured. The local hospital called for blood donations, as the newspaper “Khaosod” reported.

About 30 children were at the facility when the gunman entered around noon, district official Jidapa Boonsom told Reuters. The man initially shot four or five staff members, including a teacher who was eight months pregnant, Jidapa said. “At first people thought it was fireworks,” she added.

Thai media reports that the perpetrator is on the run. According to the Reuters news agency, the alleged perpetrator is also said to have killed his wife and child. Reuters reports that the perpetrator took his own life.

The province of Nong Bua Lamphu is not far from the border with Laos. In Thailand, which is heavily influenced by Buddhism, crimes with many deaths are rare. In February 2020, a soldier killed 29 people in a rampage. He had taken hostages in a shopping center in Nakhon Ratchasima in the northeast of the country. He was later shot dead by security forces.

In Thailand, not as many people are killed by guns as in America

The annual rate of all gun deaths per 100,000 population

More to come.


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