A shooting at a Phuket market left 2 dead and 3 injured

A man opened fire in a fresh market in Phuket City, in southern Thailand, killing 2 people and injuring 3 others.

The shooting occurred yesterday morning (January 7) at Fresh Market 1 in Phuket City.

The police were notified around 10:20 am of the shooting and responded, accompanied by rescuers from the Kusolharm Foundation.

When the authorities arrived at the scene of the crime, they found 5 people hit by gunfire at the front of the main building, in front of a seafood stall.

The gunman was identified as a 47-year-old man from Songkhla, who operated one of the seafood stands located in the immediate vicinity of where the shooting took place.

After the shooting, he fled the scene in a black Toyota Fortuner, but he allegedly later called the Phuket police to announce that he intended to surrender, confess to the shooting and give himself up.

In the evening, he still had not surrendered.

Although no official motive has been confirmed, the police suspect that the shooting is due to a conflict between competing seafood restaurants.

When the police arrived at the market, five people were on the ground, injured by gunfire.

The paramedics got to work to provide first aid and took the 5 injured people to the hospital.

But 2 of the people who had been injured by gunfire were declared dead shortly after, including the female owner of the competing seafood restaurant where the shooting took place.

The 3 other injured people, 2 women and 1 man, are still being treated at a local hospital.

Source: The Thaiger