"Sam," the suspect in the murder and robbery of a hotel employee in Hua Hin, claims he struck her to make her unconscious, not expecting her to die. After the crime, he used the victim's money to buy methamphetamine. Police plan to send him to court tomorrow, where he faces the maximum penalty of death.
On 21 Jan 2026 GMT+7, Police Major General Athorn Chinthong, Commander of Prachuap Khiri Khan Provincial Police, along with Police Colonel Kampanat Na Wichai, Chief of Hua Hin Police Station, held a press conference about the arrest of Mr. Rattikorn, also known as Sam Yingyod, 36, accused of fatally striking Ms. Wirin, or Nui, 35, a hotel receptionist in Hua Hin District, Prachuap Khiri Khan Province, before robbing her and fleeing.
Police Major General Athorn revealed that after Sam was arrested yesterday, he was taken for questioning and DNA sampling at Naresuan Camp. During questioning from yesterday until today, the suspect confessed to all charges. The motive was to steal a mobile phone because he saw the victim sleeping with her phone and took 350 baht in cash. After the crime, he used the victim's money to buy methamphetamine worth 50 baht. Whether he used drugs before the crime is still under detailed investigation. The suspect admitted to the police that he was conscious during questioning. He is currently held at a police station in Prachuap Khiri Khan and will be sent to court tomorrow. The charges carry the maximum penalty of death.
After the crime, the suspect left the hotel heading toward the beach and walked along the shore, likely to board a boat near the Shrine of the Goddess Tubtim. Some locations lack CCTV, so it is unknown when he changed clothes. The investigative teams from Prachuap Khiri Khan Provincial Police and Hua Hin Police Station pursued the suspect intensively until his arrest yesterday.
Importantly, the suspect claimed that he struck the victim with a metal rod only to render her unconscious. When police arrested him, he did not know the victim had died; he thought she had just fainted.
Additionally, the Commander of Prachuap Khiri Khan Provincial Police presented a 30,000 baht reward to two arresting teams: the investigative teams from Hua Hin Police Station and the provincial police, and the K-9 police dog unit led by the police dog named Praewa. The reward was originally announced for information leading to the arrest, but since both teams apprehended the suspect, the commander gave the reward as encouragement. The police dog Praewa received her preferred food as a prize.
In the afternoon, the victim’s family, led by her 83-year-old grandmother who arrived with a cane and needed smelling salts due to frequent faintness, along with her 56-year-old mother Noi and the victim's three children aged 10, 13, and 15, came to the police station to present a gift basket to the police in gratitude for the swift arrest. Police Major General Athorn Chinthong accepted the gift on behalf of the police. The family expressed their thanks repeatedly, with the grandmother tearfully expressing her gratitude.