A 41-year old man, possibly under the influence of hallucinogenic drugs, has allegedly killed his mother with a billhook in her Rayong home.
Chatchawal Sodakaew was arrested and charged on Thursday night, according to the Bangkok Post, for the killing of his 69-year old mother after he was caught by neighbours leaving the scene of the crime.
His mother, Poenchan Sodakaew, was eating her dinner with her daughter Wanphen, the suspect’s elder sister, in her home where they could see Chatchawal sharpening his almost metre long billhook – a traditional cutting tool used to prune vegetation – outside. His sister has said that there was no sign he would turn violent at this point.
After his sister returned to her bedroom upon finishing her meal, she heard her mother scream and found her collapsed in a pool of blood as Chatchawal retreated from the scene, still carrying the billhook. She called for her neighbours to stop Chatchawal as she attended to her mother, and he was quickly arrested by the police and his billhook confiscated.
Chatchawal is known to have caused problems around his mother’s home before – the start of 2016 allegedly saw him set fire to the house and he had been unable to work for a period as he was suffering from drug-induced hallucinations. It is unknown whether he was on drugs when his mother died.
He is currently being held by police.
Featured image is of billhooks and is by
