Supawit “Sia Tam” Charun was gunned
down outside his So Ban Lang home.
Boonlua Chatree
Jealous business rivals are believed behind the
shooting death of a North Pattaya show bar owner who charged nearly a
third of the cover price of competing clubs.
Supawit “Sia Tam” Charun was gunned down outside his
So Ban Lang home around 2:30 a.m. Nov. 22. Police believe a hired gunman
was lying in wait for the owner of the 69 Club Show Bar to arrive home,
then shot him in front of his wife while he was still in their black
Hyundai.
Supawit managed to escape the shooter, who fired
eight shots in all from an 11 mm pistol. But the bar owner fell into his
swimming pool and died five hours later at Bangkok Hospital Pattaya.
Supawit’s wife, Rattana Chaiyokat, said her husband
had recently had conflicts with owners of other show bars, which cater
to Asian package tourists. They complained Supawit was competing
unfairly, charging only a 300 baht cover charge while all other bars
charged 800 baht.
Police who interviewed Supawit’s competitors got
nowhere, with other bar owners providing no information to
investigators.
Officers now believe the shooting was business related and that the
gunman was hired for the job. Rattana described him as light-skinned,
around 30 years old and between 165 and 170 cm. tall. His hair was cut
short and he was dressed in all black. Police are now circulating a
sketch of the shooter.
