A Koh Larn family feud spanning more than a decade turned into gunfire after one relative shot another for dumping cat feces in his yard.
Wanchai Somchai, owner of the Charoenchai Resort, was arrested shortly after fleeing the island by boat around 6 p.m. April 22. He was charged with injuring five people with blasts from a shotgun.
Khwanruen Janpad, 51, suffered a gunshot to the stomach and was taken directly by speedboat to Pattaya Beach Soi 4 and moved quickly to Pattaya International Hospital on that street.
Wanchai Somchai has been arrested for allegedly wounding his relatives with a shotgun blast for dumping cat feces in his yard.
Four others: Wanchai’s younger sister Puang-uen Kaewkajai, 45; the victim’s daughter, Maneerath Chungruang, 35; her husband Weerapan, 37; and Pimchanok Wongruen, 23, also received injuries from shotgun pellets. They were taken to Bali Hai Pier and treated at the hospital for minor wounds.
The families, among an enclave of residents on Koh Larn who’ve lived there longer than Pattaya has been a municipality, have feuded for years, with Wanchai and Khwanruen nearly coming to blows several times before.
But the final straw broke when Khwanruen allegedly accused Wanchai’s wife Tik of repeatedly dumping cat poop over the fence into her yard. Wanchai allegedly then settled the argument with a shotgun.
The owner of a fishing boat, Wanchai then sped away, but was followed by neighbors in boats of their own. They stopped him on the high seas before he could get to his Bang Saray hideout and turned him over to police.
