(25 September) A construction worker allegedly attacked his wife with a knife because she was too ill to help him at his work.

According to Ms. Nurat Tongmakha, a 40 year old resident of Sra Kaew Province, she was cooking for her husband, Mr. Narong Cheenpanich, 58, earlier this morning when he asked her to go to work with him at the construction site.

When Ms. Nurat said she could not go because she was feeling unwell, Mr. Narong reportedly became enraged and poured boiling water on his wife. Ms. Nurat said he also attacked her with a kitchen knife, wounding her right arm and right ear.

She said she was brought to the hospital by her neighbours.

Speaking to our correspondent from her bed at Aranya Pradesh Hospital, Ms. Nurat said her husband is an alcoholic who likes to beat her up when he is drunk. Police are trying to locate Mr. Narong.

(24 September) Bangkok police have arrested a man alleged to have stolen items from the cars of numerous victims, including a reporter of Khaosod newspaper.

The journalist, Mr. Karnbadee Ngamjitr, said that prior to the incident he had parked his car on Soi Kasemsant 1 in Pathum Wan district on the night of 22 September.

As Mr. Karnbadee and a few of his friends were walking back to his car from the National Stadium BTS Station, he said, his friends noticed a man sitting inside the car.

The man quickly escaped after he saw Mr. Karnbodi’s group approaching. Mr. Karnbodi then urged his friends to follow the man, who reportedly ran away and hid inside a building while the reporter alerted the police.

Police later surrounded the area and eventually arrested Mr. Permyos Ratchakhon, 43, a resident of Muang district, Pathum Thani Province. Upon searching Mr. Permyos, police found several items, which Mr. Karnbodi claimed to be his, including a brown leather bag and an iPod Touch.

Mr. Permyos later confessed he had broken into Mr. Karnbadee′s car, and said that he committed car robberies in this manner for only 3 times, and the stolen items were sold at Saphan Phut Night Market to earn money to maintain his drug habit.

He said he had been spending much of the last 15 years in prison, serving his sentence for drug offence 6 or 9 months at a time. Records show his latest jail term was finished earlier this June.

However, Pol.Col. Ruechakorn Jorrajewutthi, senior officer of the Metropolitan Police Bureau, said in a press conference earlier this morning that Mr. Permyos has in fact been responsible for as many as 10 car robberies in the past 3 months alone.

Mr. Pichai Suksavet, 25, is one of the individuals who had filed a complaint to the police in the case. He had previously notified the police that his bass guitar and the instrument’s effects had been stolen from his car in Soi Chula 9.

According to Mr. Pichai, police had helped him retrieve the item by tracking the online purchase of his instruments, which the police pointed to Mr. Permyos.

At the press conference, Pol.Col.Ruechakorn added that “robberies have become a social problem, which the police had been tackling for a certain time. However, public collaboration is needed in order to trace for the crime.”

The officer urged second-hand shops to be aware of the items' history to avoid the charges of trading stolen items, and advised citizens not to park their cars in any suspicious area or leave any valuable belongings inside the vehicles.

(24 September) Chiang Mai Governor Thanin Suphasaen said that the authorities and other related organisations are planning to curb on overpriced services within the Province.

Mr. Thanin said he had been receiving complaints against seven restaurants and karaoke bars, but it is generally understood that patrons who visit the streetside bars in Chiang Mai are often charged extorted prices for their drinks and bar companions.

(24 September) A resident of Kanchanaburi Province reportedly shot dead his former lover who refused to resume her relationship with him.

On the morning of 23 September, Ms. Sureethip Maentim, 24, a niece of Thamuang District′s Headman, was found dead at her uncle’s farm.

Mr. Thinnakorn Chindaponse, 51, a member of the crew, who has found Ms. Sureethip’s body, told police that Mr. Wirach Yeethohun, 48, the caretaker of the farm lived nearby, but once the police arrived at his residence, Mr. Wirach was not present.

According to Mr. Thinnakorn, a gunshot was heard at around 01.00 the  previous night prior to the incident. However, he did not suspect any wrongdoing, as Mr. Wirach has a habit of shooting late at night, and there is also a movie set situated nearby.

The victim’s mother, Ms. Bamrung Khongpum, said that she suspected Mr. Wirach had murdered her daughter. She said Ms. Sureethip had been in a relationship with Mr. Wirach, but she later broke up with him because of her family′s disapproval.

Ms. Bamrung said Ms. Sureethip was about to marry an owner of an orange orchard from the South.

She also mentioned that Mr. Wirach had vowed to kill her daughter on her wedding day. On the night before the incident, she said, Ms. Sureethip had told her family Mr. Wirach had called her to arrange a meeting where they could discuss their problems.

Ms. Sureethip reportedly drove out to meet Mr. Wirach at his farm despite her family′s protests. Police believe he had shot Ms. Sureethip in the back at the farm.

The police are still trying to locate Mr. Wirach.

(23 September) The Ministry of Education is to renew a drive against illiteracy after national test results revealed the embarrassing fact that tens of thousands of Thai school pupils somehow cannot read or write, according to an official.

Dr. Chinnapat Bhumirat, Secretary General of Office of the Basic Education Commission of Thailand, said approximately 64,000 Prathomsuksa 3 and 32,000 Prathomsuksa 6 students in Thailand are illiterate. The number amounts to 8% and 4% of the overall students number in their range, respectively.