A tragic incident in Ratchaburi: the stepfather confessed, claiming the 1-year-old child was fussy, so he slapped him unconscious and used an electric fish shock device hoping to revive him. The child's mother was present throughout. Police canceled the crime scene reenactment fearing public retaliation and plan to detain the suspects tomorrow.
Reporters state that a sad event occurred in Ratchaburi province when authoritiesfrom the investigation unit of Khao Din Police Station in Photharam District, Ratchaburi province, took Ms. Saowaros, 30, the biological mother, and Mr. Surasak, 38, the stepfather of 1 year and 6 months old boy named Kluay Khai, for questioning after the child was found dead at the hospital. Doctors concluded the child died from a blunt object striking the meninges. The body showed bruises and burn marks on the back skin and buttocks, indicating unnatural death. On the day the child died, Ms. Saowaros refused to retrieve the body for funeral rites; only the child's grandmother collected the body for the ceremony at Sri Prachumchon Temple, Village 1, Bang Tonot Subdistrict, Photharam District, Ratchaburi.
Later, the child's mother claimed that she had used an electricfish shockdeviceto shockher son because he was fussy, but not harshly, since the battery used in the fish shockdevicewas very weak. She also claimed that sometimes Mr. Surasak, the stepfather, abused the child, and she would intervene. On 6 April 2026, the day of the incident, the child had an unexplained seizure, so she called a neighbor to help dial 1669 to take the child to the hospital, where he died on 7 April. At that time, she said she did not know what had happened.Untilthe child's grandfather informed her that the child had died, which shocked her. Later, the police arrested her.
During interrogation, the child's mother appeared confused and admitted to drug use. The police investigation team separated the stepfather, Mr. Surasak, for questioning in another room.
Ms. Sakorn Khropbenja, a volunteer from Sawang Ratchaburi Rescue Unit, revealed that she bathed and dressed the body of little Kluay Khai, noticing bruises and burn marks on his buttocks, as well as unusual marks around his anus. Neither the mother nor the stepfather came to see the child’s body.
Meanwhile, Mr. Joe (alias), who helped take the child to the hospital, said that after delivering the child, he questioned the mother about what she had done to her son. The mother admitted that during the child's seizures and unconsciousness, the stepfather used an electricfish shockdeviceto shock the child to stimulate his heart, but the child remained unconscious and was bleeding from the mouth and nose. She then called him to help take the child to the hospital.
Later, under intense questioning, the stepfather, Mr. Surasak, confessed that before the incident, the child was fussy, which made him angry, so he slapped the child once and punched his forehead until the child lost consciousness. Then he used the electricfish shockdevicehoping to revive the child. At that time, the child's mother was watching without intervening. He admitted to regularly abusing the stepson, including burning him with cigarettes, using the electricfish shockdevice, and sometimes slapping his face, for over two months, blaming the child’s crying and fussiness for his annoyance.
Initially, authorities charged them with intentional murder and drug use, then handed them over to Police Lieutenant Colonel Nawapon Harnkhuntod, investigator at Khao Din Police Station, for prosecution.
The child’s relatives plan to hold a Buddhist prayer ceremony at Sri Prachumchon Temple, Village 1, Bang Tonot, for three days before conducting the cremation,scheduled for11 April 2026 GMT+7.
However, prior to this, police had scheduled a crime scene reenactment with Ms. Saowaros and Mr. Surasak at the incident location and planned to bring the suspects to apologize to the deceased’s body. But because villagers gathered at Khao Din Police Station and the crime scene after hearing about the reenactment, investigators canceled it to prevent public retaliation.
Authorities have charged both suspects with jointly inflicting severe injury resulting in death and drug use. They will be detained and brought before Ratchaburi Provincial Court tomorrow (10 April 2026 GMT+7).