Four Myanmar workers jointly killed their 49-year-old employer by slitting his throat at a worker camp in Chiang Mai. Police caught them in Chiang Rai as they were attempting to flee the country. They confessed to being angry at the victim due to unpaid wages.
At 1:00 p.m. on 2 May 2026, Police Lieutenant Colonel Akkharaphon Amornwet, Deputy Superintendent of Investigation at Mae Rim Police Station, and Police Lieutenant Colonel Chaipol Chaiyachana, Investigation Officer at the same station, along with others, arrested Mr. Su, Mr. Yao, Mr. Dam, and Mr. Boss, all Myanmar nationals without surnames. They were charged with jointly murdering another person using a knife. Earlier this morning, Chiang Rai police intercepted them near Wat Rong Khun in Chiang Rai while they were preparing to flee across the border, then handed them over to Mae Rim police for prosecution.
Police Lieutenant Colonel Chaipol Chaiyachana revealed that before the incident, at 2 a.m. on 1 May 2026, the four suspects planned to kill Mr. Somchai Lungwi, 49, an ethnic Tai Yai who lived at the worker camp with the suspects and was their employer. The suspects were angry because he had withheld their wages.
Mr. Su and Mr. Yao used a knife to slit and repeatedly stab the victim’s throat while he was asleep, while Mr. Dam and Mr. Boss stood guard at the entrance. After the attack, all fled the worker camp and took a shortcut route, which was captured by CCTV during their escape. They then boarded a vehicle heading to Chiang Rai province, intending to cross into Myanmar, but were arrested before they could escape.
After the arrest, police interrogated the suspects, who confessed to being owed wages. Sometimes when they asked for their pay, they were denied, which led them to plan the throat-slitting murder. After the interrogation, they were handed over to investigators for further legal proceedings.
