Student killed grandparents before Nonthaburi school shooting, police say

Police investigating the shooting at Debsirin Nonthaburi School say the suspected attacker had killed his grandparents at their home before carrying out the attack at the school on Friday morning (August 7).

Initial reports indicated that seven people, including the suspected attacker, were killed in the school shooting and 15 others were injured.

Investigators identified the suspected attacker as a juvenile studying in Mathayom 2. He lived with his paternal grandparents at a house in a residential estate in Soi Wat Lat Pla Duk, Bang Khu Rat subdistrict, Bang Bua Thong district, Nonthaburi.

When officers examined the house, they found that both grandparents had died earlier that morning. Police believe they were killed with the firearm later used in the school attack.

The weapon was identified as a CZ 9mm handgun registered in the grandfather’s name.

Police confirm school incident has ended

Pol Lt Gen Trairong Phiwphan, spokesman for the Royal Thai Police, said officers had brought the situation at Debsirin Nonthaburi School under control and ended the violence.

Authorities were investigating the cause of the incident, collecting evidence and providing urgent assistance to those injured, he said.

Police were not yet able to establish a motive because a detailed investigation was required into the suspect’s behaviour before the incident, his surroundings and his personal circumstances.

Officers had contacted the suspect’s guardians and initially established that he had been living with older relatives. However, Trairong said further details about the cause of the attack and the suspect’s possible motive remained under investigation.

Access to family-owned gun under investigation

A central issue in the investigation is how the suspected attacker gained access to the firearm and ammunition.

Initial checks found that the weapon was registered to a member of the suspect’s family and belonged to his grandfather.

Although police had established the registered ownership of the handgun, investigators still needed to determine how the suspect removed it from the house, how it had been stored and where the ammunition had come from.

They will also examine the entire sequence through which the suspect gained access to the firearm.

“At this stage, we know only that the firearm was registered to a family member,” Trairong said.

“How the attacker obtained the weapon and the other details involved must be established through the investigative process.”

Mental-health teams sent to assist those affected

All injured people and the bodies of those killed had been removed from the school grounds, police said.

National police chief Pol Gen Kitrat Phanphet ordered officers to clear and examine the area, collect evidence and prepare a detailed plan of the scene.

He also instructed the chief medical officer of Police General Hospital to send psychologists and mental-health specialists to the area.

The teams will provide support to teachers, students and others affected by the shooting, with the aim of helping them cope with the loss and reducing possible long-term psychological effects.