Senator shot wife; what happened?

Senator Boonsong Kowawisarat (56) loved firearms. "He liked to show them to others," says the mother of Chanakarn Detkard (46), the woman who was hit by a bullet from her husband's gun on Mother's Day.

“He showed me one once when I was visiting. But I've never seen this gun before. Maybe he just bought it.'

That assumption is correct. Boonsong had indeed just bought the weapon, a Jericho 941 also known as an Uzi Eagle, and he wanted to show it to his dinner companions. The family was out for the day and would have the meal at Piyanart Garden resort, owned by a relative of Chanakarn, in Phrae province.

The senator had removed the magazine from the gun, but one bullet remained. When he went to put the gun back in his bag, it went off. The bullet hit his wife and mother of two in the abdominal area. She died on the way to the hospital. According to the senator, the gun was secured. Thai television showed images of Boonsong crying heartbreakingly at the lifeless body of his wife in the hospital. The man was broken.

The police are now investigating whether he has a permit for the weapon, partly in view of his health condition because he is partially paralyzed. But permit or no permit, a weapon may never be carried or displayed in public places. The victim's family has said they will not press charges. The police want to have him prosecuted for negligent homicide, but this can only be done after November when parliament goes into recess. Then his immunity expires.

The couple, who had not legally married, lived together again after a divorce, after Boonsong fell ill. This explains why some media referred to the victim as his ex-wife. Whether his wife also worked as his secretary is not mentioned in the article. The designation niece or nephew of some media was completely wrong.

The senator's mother says she has never seen her son with a gun, and she wouldn't know why he would need a gun. “He's been a senator for almost 10 years. Everyone loves him. He has no enemies.'

It is not expected that it will ever come to a conviction. We take good care of us Thailand.

(Source: Bangkok Post, August 19, 2012)