From The Nation (http://www.nationmultimedia.com/):
POLICEMAN'S KILLING
Seksan gets family support
Transexual's adopted daughter vows to make mother proud
The adopted daughter of a transsexual being held over the killing of a police officer said yesterday that she would study hard at school to make "mum" proud.
"I love my mum so much," said Ammy, 13.
The girl said she knew her mum, Seksan Khamwong, was once a man and had served time in prison.
"My grandmother has assured me that my mum will be back soon. I am going to study hard to make my mum proud," said Ammy, who has just begun her Grade 7 classes.
After his arrest, Seksan told police that he had drugged Lt-Colonel Chanin Bunnag in a hotel room because he wanted to steal the officer's valuables in order to help pay for his daughter's school fees.
Seksan's mother, Phet, said Ammy had become depressed and quiet since Seksan's arrest.
Seksan insists he had no intention of killing Chanin and had no idea that the drug, which was just meant to induce sleep, would be fatal.
Chanin was found dead in a Bangkok hotel room on Wednesday morning after he had checked in with Seksan, who had a sex-change operation when he was 22.
Rat Burana police station superintendent Colonel Krailert Bua-kaew said tests were being carried out to determine which drug Seksan had used on Channin and to determine why Chanin's nose appeared to have been pressed in when he was found.
"We should know the results within seven days," Krailert said.
He said the results would determine whether Seksan, 36, who has been charged with theft leading to his victim's death, would face more serious charges.
Police yesterday obtained court permission to detain Seksan for 12 more days.
Meanwhile, Salad Chawichai, the headman of the village where Seksan's mother lives, said people in the village believe that Seksan had not intended to kill the officer.
"If the police allow bail, we are going to pool money to secure his [Seksan's] release," said the headman.
Police, however, have expressed their intention of opposing a bail request, saying that Seksan had been convicted of a similar crime before.
POLICEMAN'S DEATH
Suspect arrested in Lop Buri
Police say transexual admits to spitting crushed sleeping pill into victim's beer can
Two days after a police officer died in a Bangkok hotel, possibly as a result of being drugged after checking in with a male transexual, police yesterday apprehended a man at a Lop Buri hotel whom they suspect of involvement in the death.
Seksan Khamwong, 36, was located after police traced his mobile-phone signal. He was on the run driving the pickup of Pol Lt-Colonel Chanin Bunnag, who was found dead at a hotel on Suksawad Road early Wednesday morning.
The suspect admitted to drugging the officer with one sleeping pill by cracking it in his mouth and then spitting it into a can of beer for Chanin to drink. Seksan claimed he had not intented to kill the officer.
Seksan said he had known that Chanin was a policeman when they met in a pub, where, he said, the officer approached him and offered him a job as an undercover agent for drug sting operations. Seksan said he had drugged Chanin as he was desperate for money to pay tuition fees for his 13-year-old adopted daughter.
Metropolitan Police Bureau chief Lt-General Wiroj Jantharangsee dismissed Seksan's claim that he had merely committed a "crime of opportunity", as the man had once served a prison term for a similar crime and hundreds of sleeping pills were found with him.
However, no criminal charges have yet been filed against Seksan while police wait for a forensic test to determine whether the officer was drugged, or poisoned. The results should be available next week.
The initial autopsy report indicated that Seksan died of suffocation. His death could have been instigated by a stroke followed by a heart attack, according to a police coroner.
After pursuing Seksan on the basis of a recent mobile-phone signal detected in Ayutthaya province yesterday morning, police received an important tip-off from police in neighbouring Saraburi province that they had impounded a pistol thought to belong to the late officer.
Deputy Metropolitan Police Bureau chief Major Krissada Phankhongchuen said that after leaving Bangkok Seksan had met a female prison guard in Saraburi whom he had known while in prison for a similar crime two years ago.
Quoting the unidentified wardress, the officer said she had found the handgun in a bag left with her after she and Seksan went out shopping together, and had taken it to Muang Saraburi police station and asked the officers what she should do about it. After police impounded the gun, the wardress said, she phoned Seksan to ask whether he was involved in the death of Chanin in Bangkok. Seksan denied it and turned his mobile phone off. Police are trying to discover the whereabouts of Chanin's gold necklace and other belongings.
Phet Khamwong, his mother, said she could not believe he was involved in the policeman's death. She said Seksan had had a sex-change operation when he was 22.
POLICEMAN'S KILLING
Seksan gets family support
Transexual's adopted daughter vows to make mother proud
The adopted daughter of a transsexual being held over the killing of a police officer said yesterday that she would study hard at school to make "mum" proud.
"I love my mum so much," said Ammy, 13.
The girl said she knew her mum, Seksan Khamwong, was once a man and had served time in prison.
"My grandmother has assured me that my mum will be back soon. I am going to study hard to make my mum proud," said Ammy, who has just begun her Grade 7 classes.
After his arrest, Seksan told police that he had drugged Lt-Colonel Chanin Bunnag in a hotel room because he wanted to steal the officer's valuables in order to help pay for his daughter's school fees.
Seksan's mother, Phet, said Ammy had become depressed and quiet since Seksan's arrest.
Seksan insists he had no intention of killing Chanin and had no idea that the drug, which was just meant to induce sleep, would be fatal.
Chanin was found dead in a Bangkok hotel room on Wednesday morning after he had checked in with Seksan, who had a sex-change operation when he was 22.
Rat Burana police station superintendent Colonel Krailert Bua-kaew said tests were being carried out to determine which drug Seksan had used on Channin and to determine why Chanin's nose appeared to have been pressed in when he was found.
"We should know the results within seven days," Krailert said.
He said the results would determine whether Seksan, 36, who has been charged with theft leading to his victim's death, would face more serious charges.
Police yesterday obtained court permission to detain Seksan for 12 more days.
Meanwhile, Salad Chawichai, the headman of the village where Seksan's mother lives, said people in the village believe that Seksan had not intended to kill the officer.
"If the police allow bail, we are going to pool money to secure his [Seksan's] release," said the headman.
Police, however, have expressed their intention of opposing a bail request, saying that Seksan had been convicted of a similar crime before.
POLICEMAN'S DEATH
Suspect arrested in Lop Buri
Police say transexual admits to spitting crushed sleeping pill into victim's beer can
Two days after a police officer died in a Bangkok hotel, possibly as a result of being drugged after checking in with a male transexual, police yesterday apprehended a man at a Lop Buri hotel whom they suspect of involvement in the death.
Seksan Khamwong, 36, was located after police traced his mobile-phone signal. He was on the run driving the pickup of Pol Lt-Colonel Chanin Bunnag, who was found dead at a hotel on Suksawad Road early Wednesday morning.
The suspect admitted to drugging the officer with one sleeping pill by cracking it in his mouth and then spitting it into a can of beer for Chanin to drink. Seksan claimed he had not intented to kill the officer.
Seksan said he had known that Chanin was a policeman when they met in a pub, where, he said, the officer approached him and offered him a job as an undercover agent for drug sting operations. Seksan said he had drugged Chanin as he was desperate for money to pay tuition fees for his 13-year-old adopted daughter.
Metropolitan Police Bureau chief Lt-General Wiroj Jantharangsee dismissed Seksan's claim that he had merely committed a "crime of opportunity", as the man had once served a prison term for a similar crime and hundreds of sleeping pills were found with him.
However, no criminal charges have yet been filed against Seksan while police wait for a forensic test to determine whether the officer was drugged, or poisoned. The results should be available next week.
The initial autopsy report indicated that Seksan died of suffocation. His death could have been instigated by a stroke followed by a heart attack, according to a police coroner.
After pursuing Seksan on the basis of a recent mobile-phone signal detected in Ayutthaya province yesterday morning, police received an important tip-off from police in neighbouring Saraburi province that they had impounded a pistol thought to belong to the late officer.
Deputy Metropolitan Police Bureau chief Major Krissada Phankhongchuen said that after leaving Bangkok Seksan had met a female prison guard in Saraburi whom he had known while in prison for a similar crime two years ago.
Quoting the unidentified wardress, the officer said she had found the handgun in a bag left with her after she and Seksan went out shopping together, and had taken it to Muang Saraburi police station and asked the officers what she should do about it. After police impounded the gun, the wardress said, she phoned Seksan to ask whether he was involved in the death of Chanin in Bangkok. Seksan denied it and turned his mobile phone off. Police are trying to discover the whereabouts of Chanin's gold necklace and other belongings.
Phet Khamwong, his mother, said she could not believe he was involved in the policeman's death. She said Seksan had had a sex-change operation when he was 22.
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