Rescue workers continue the operation to recover the body of "Teacher Lek," who was killed by her nephew and dumped in an abandoned well characterized by narrowness and poor air quality. Entry is possible only one person at a time after clearing about 2 meters of rock. A smell has begun to emanate, and it is estimated that the body lies beneath another 2 meters of rock.
On 15 Jan 2026, 28-year-old Kittik, accompanied by his lawyer, surrendered to police at Phatthana Nikhom Police Station, Lopburi Province. He confessed to killing his aunt, Ms. Phanomphon, aged 64, known as "Teacher Mam," and his grandaunt, Ms. Jiraporn, or "Teacher Lek," aged 61—both former government school teachers—at their residence in Phra Phutthabat Subdistrict, Saraburi Province. He then transported their bodies in a vehicle to an abandoned groundwater well in Phatthana Nikhom District, Lopburi, to conceal the crime. Afterwards, he abandoned the vehicle in Hat Yai and fled to a neighboring country. Feeling anxious, he consulted relatives before contacting police to surrender.
Initially, Kittik claimed he committed the crime because he could no longer tolerate seeing his bedridden grandmother being abused by his aunt and grandaunt. Each time he visited, he tried to take his grandmother under his care but was consistently obstructed. On the day of the incident, 2 Jan 2026, he went to his grandmother's home, which was also his aunt and grandaunt's house, and saw signs of abuse on his grandmother. He confronted them, asking them to stop hurting her, but a violent argument ensued. He was choked and, in the ensuing struggle, unintentionally caused fatal injuries to both women before putting their bodies in a vehicle and disposing of them to cover up the crime.
The abandoned groundwater well involved is about 1.5 meters wide at the opening, where there are signs that crushed stones were dumped into it. After authorities learned of the case, they coordinated rescue teams to recover the bodies. However, caution is required because the well is quite deep with limited air supply. The first body recovered was that of Ms. Phanomphon, while Ms. Jiraporn, or "Teacher Lek," remains submerged in the well.
Latest updates this morning (17 Jan) from the Ruamkatanyu Foundation rescue team revealed that the recovery operation remains challenging due to the well's approximate 18-meter depth and narrow space. The victim's body is covered by crushed stone, which the perpetrator had a six-wheeled truck dump nearly four cubic meters of to conceal the corpse. Rescue workers must use air compressors and wear oxygen tanks, descending one at a time to scoop out the crushed stone in about 20-liter buckets. Clearing the stone and the continuously flowing underground water is expected to take several hours. Yesterday, starting from 11:00 until 23:30, about 2 meters of stone were removed, but Ms. Jiraporn's body was still not found, leading to a temporary halt in the search.
The rescue team inserted a long, sharp metal rod into the crushed stone inside the well and estimated that over 2 meters of crushed stone still remain. When the rod was withdrawn, many agreed that the smell was that of a corpse, suggesting Ms. Jiraporn's body lies beneath the stone layer. Recovery efforts resumed this morning.
Further updates will be provided as the situation develops.