The criminal court postponed the preliminary hearing against a suspect allegedly murdering and carrying arms in public during the confrontation between the red shirts and the anti-election protesters in February 2014.
The criminal court on Monday granted the prosecutor’s request to postpone the preliminary hearing against Wiwat Yodprasit, a 24 year-old suspect, charged with murder and carrying weapons during the political unrest at Laksi, northern Bangkok on 2 February 2014 due to incomplete process of collecting evidences on the death of Akaew Sae-Liew, a 72-year-old street vendor, who were allegedly shot by the suspect.
The inquiry officers has postponed the submission of the forensic evidences of Akaew’s death to 25 January 2015 and the preliminary hearing is postponed to 30 March.
Wiwat is accused of being a so-called ‘Popcorn Gunman’, who used a popcorn sack to conceal an M16 gun and shot at anti-establishment redshirts demonstrators during the confrontation between the redshirt and anti-election People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) on 2 February 2014 at Laksi Intersection in Bangkok.
Four people were heavily injured by the shooting one of whom, Akaew, later died in September 2014 after eight months of paralysis.
Wiwat was arrested by the police on 20 March 2014 and was indicted by the prosecutor on 11 June 2014 for murder and carrying weapons and ammunitions in public, including, breaking the emergency law when was still imposed during the political unrest.
In March 2014, several sources reported that Wiwat confessed that he was the Popcorn Gunman during the police press conference and the police charged him with illegal possession of weapons and attempted murder. However, according to Khaosod, Wiwat only confessed that he was a PDRC guard.
Contrary to the police findings, Puangthip Boonsanong, a lawyer from the Network of Students and People for Reform of Thailand (NSPRT), a group allied to the PDRC, claimed that Wiwat was a scapegoat who was tortured by the police into admitting that he was the Popcorn Gunman.
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