OLD MAN WITH A KNIFE; FOREST FAREWELL; SLEEPING IT OFF

An old man in Khon Kaen has been charged with assault for stabbing a teenage boy with a knife, merely for walking in front of his place.

- 

Tha Phra police nabbed Lop (no surname provided), 78, after he stabbed “Gus” (no other details provided), 13, at a friend’s place in Don Han sub-district.

Gus was walking past the old man's place on the way to see Panwad (no surname provided), 18, an older friend and the owner of the house where the attack occurred.

Panwad said Gus often came over to hang out. However, whenever he came, old man Lop would wait nearby with a slingshot and take a shot at him.

On Aug 4, Gus was walking past Lop’s house on his way to see her when the suspect confronted the boy and threatened him with a 30cm knife still in its sheath.

He struck Gus with the sheathed knife, prompting the boy to retreat into her house.

But Lop followed him inside, pulled the knife from its sheath, and slashed the back of the boy’s neck, causing heavy bleeding and knocking him to the ground.

It is not clear what help Panward offered. However, she did ask a friend to start filming the attack on his phone so they could alert police.

It includes images of the old man holding the knife and his slingshot, and has since gone viral.

Lop put his knife away after the attack and kicked the person who was recording the incident. The wound he left in the boy's neck was 3cm deep.

Panward said old man Lop also turned up at her place the night before, complaining young Gus had stomped past his place, making a racket.

Gus lives with his grandmother, Kaenchon (no surname provided), 57, who said Lop was known in the area for reacting aggressively to any children walking past his house.

He would often shoot at them with a slingshot, would speak to them brusquely, and appeared to have a strong dislike for children in general.

Kaenchon said Gus’s mother would now take Gus to live with her in Kalasin, as the family was worried about their safety.