In Phuket, a drunken husband quarreled with his wife, repeatedly hitting her unconscious with a broom. The next morning, he called a car to take her to the hospital before going to work as usual. Police followed him home and then learned the wife had died.
At 12:20 p.m. on 17 Dec 2025 GMT+7, Police Lieutenant Colonel Yutthaphon Promdao, an investigator at Mueang Phuket Police Station, was notified by the emergency room of Mission Hospital Phuket on Thepkrasattri Road, Ratsada Subdistrict, Mueang Phuket District, that a woman who had been assaulted had died. He, along with Police Colonel Chatree Chukaew, superintendent; Police Lieutenant Colonel Kan Aksornthong, detective chief; and Police Lieutenant Colonel Saran Chaiwut, patrol chief, led investigators to examine the scene. The deceased was identified as Mrs. Kai Sriputhon, 51, residing in a rented room in Ratsada Subdistrict, Mueang Phuket.
The investigation team then proceeded to the rented room. Upon arrival, they found a single-story row house. Inside Mrs. Kai’s room, they found Mr. Somnuk Wiset, 54, who was intoxicated and was detained. Also inside was a broken bamboo-handled broom. When questioned, Mr. Somnuk admitted to using the broom to strike his wife, causing severe injuries. At that time, he was unaware that his wife had died. The investigators seized the broom as evidence and took Mr. Somnuk to the Mueang Phuket Police Station for questioning.
Mr. Somnuk stated that on the night of 16 Dec 2025 GMT+7, he had been drinking with Mrs. Kai at their home. They argued, and he then picked up a broom and struck her repeatedly with the handle until she was motionless. The following morning, seeing bruises on her body and that she was unconscious, he called emergency services at 1669 to take her to Mission Hospital Phuket. Afterward, he left for work and returned to the room but did not see Mrs. Kai come back. He waited until police arrived to arrest him, at which point he learned she had died at the hospital.
The investigators will conduct a detailed interrogation of Mr. Somnuk before formally charging him with assault causing death. He was then taken to reenact the crime scene at the room where the incident occurred as part of legal proceedings.