A man in a drug-fueled frenzy armed with a firearm chased police officers, refusing to stop and firing multiple shots. The Nan provincial police chief revealed he was once a good person, honored by the province, but his life collapsed due to drug involvement.
Reporters stated that on 25 Feb 2026 at 17:32, police investigative officers from Tha Wang Pha Police Station fatally shot Mr. Phattharakorn, 36, a resident of Saenthong Subdistrict, Tha Wang Pha District, Nan Province. The incident occurred on rural highway number 4022, Nanun-Sop Khun Road, near Ban Nanun 1, Village No. 1, Saenthong Subdistrict, Tha Wang Pha District, Nan Province.
After the deceased became violently agitated while armed and riding a motorcycle searching for a police officer who lived in the village, he threatened the officer's wife with a firearm. Villagers alerted police to intervene, but Phattharakorn fled on his motorcycle, firing four shots at the officers before being fatally shot on the road.
Earlier, Phattharakorn and his older friend, Mr. Fong (alias), 63, had been drinking together. When drunk, they caused a disturbance at a village grocery store, then drove around searching for a police officer living in the village but did not find him. The officer's wife happened to drive by, and Phattharakorn followed her, called her to stop, pulled a bullet from his pocket, showed it to her, asking "which one do you want?" He then questioned her about the officer and drove around the village looking for him. Villagers sensed trouble and notified police to intervene.
When police arrived, they found Phattharakorn and Mr. Fong leaving near the roadside close to the village grocery store on motorcycles. The officers identified themselves, butPhattharakorn fled on his motorcycle.With Mr. Fong as a passenger, police pursued and ordered them to stop, but Phattharakorn refused and fled toward Ban Nanun, a large community area.
Before Phattharakorn crashed his motorcycle, officers stopped and tried to intervene, but he fired a .38-caliber pistol at them, hitting the vehicle's radiator twice and the windshield near the front passenger seat. The officers returned fire in self-defense, hitting Mr. Fong in the hip once, causing him to cry out in pain.
Phattharakorn then righted his fallen motorcycle and fled further. At that moment, an oncoming vehicle approached, and Phattharakorn fired at it, but the bullets struck a police investigative team vehicle arriving for backup. Officers stopped and fired two 9mm shots in response, hitting Phattharakorn and causing his motorcycle to fall. He still triedto reload his weapon.He continued firing at officers but eventually succumbed to his wounds, collapsing in a pool of blood in the middle of the road.
Nearby, police found a .38-caliber pistol, spent cartridges, and bullets at the scene. Upon inspection, Phattharakorn had been shot in the head.An ambulance was called to assist and both men were transported to the hospital.However, Phattharakorn died later from his wounds. A search of his waist pouch found spent cartridges and an empty methamphetamine pouch, but no drugs, suggesting he had consumed all the drugs. Also found were a pipe used for smoking methamphetamine and corn kernels.
Pol. Maj. Gen. Daret Kanlaya, Commander of Nan Provincial Police, said after inspecting the scene that Phattharakorn had once been a good person with a warm family, a father to a young child, and a role model in many ways, earning a certificate of honor from Nan Province.
Later, he became trapped in drug addiction, undergoing treatment at Nan Hospital three times, excluding several times when police took him to calm down at Tha Wang Pha Police Station. The last incident involved him becoming violent, wielding a knife and performing a sword dance behind a pickup truck, claiming to be a soldier of King Taksin. Police then took him for treatment. It is believed that Phattharakorn was troubled by these events, leading to today's incident.