Police suspect the murder of 58-year-old Sakhon Srisomphoch, president of the Patong Tuk-Tuk Drivers’ Club, stemmed from a business dispute or a personal grievance.
Around 3am, police went to the front of Phuket Villa Kathu Housing Estate, where they found the victim’s body in his modified tuk-tuk in the middle of the road. They said Sakhon was shot by unknown assailants on a motorbike while driving home.
Sakhon had led yellow-licence-plate tuk-tuk drivers in filing complaints with the Phuket provincial authority and related agencies against illegal small transport trucks that take passengers in popular tourist areas near Patong Beach.
In 2014, he led a road blockage in Patong to demand a police crack?down on illegal trucks and tuk-tuks.