You wouldn’t expect a Thursday night shopping crowd to witness something that resembled a nightmare, but that is what happened outside a posh mall on Ratchadamri Road. Two Malaysian tourists were taken to the hospital with severe burns, and the perpetrator was not some unknown criminal — it was a 30-year-old former Thai boxer named Worakorn Phabthaisong.
The police now have him charged with attempted murder. He was tested for drugs and cleared, so this was not substance-induced. His own version of events? He claims he was poor, hungry, unemployed, and stressed. He used to box professionally, later got a job as a security guard, but after being terminated, he was rejected on every job application he submitted, saying “No money, no food, no work,” to police — as if that could justify what he did.
Witnesses said it began with a brief conversation between Worakorn, the victims (26-year-old Ong Yik Liang and 27-year-old Ken Siew Sian), and after walking away, he returned while they were sitting on the steps of the mall, poured thinner from a 1.5-liter plastic bottle over them, and lit it. Within seconds, both men were consumed in flames before bystanders could help.
Witnesses outside that upscale shopping plaza acted quickly as chaos unfolded. Some attempted to grab Worakorn before the police arrived while others rushed to help the burning tourists. First responders were able to get them to the Police General Hospital where doctors say their condition is now stable.
Later, officers confirmed they found a thinner bottle and lighter at the scene. There was no indication the attack was targeted – investigators are calling it a random, unusual act of violence in what is frequently considered a safe area of Bangkok’s shopping district. The Department of Social Development and Human Security is now involved and police plan to take full statements from the victims once they are well enough to speak.
If local Bangkok residents needed another reason or reminder to stay alert in crowded public spaces, this horrible incident now gives them one.
