At Least 7 Killed in Thai School Shooting: A Look at High-Profile Gun Deaths Since 2020
BANGKOK — A 14-year-old student opened fire at a school in Nonthaburi province, just north of Bangkok, killing five members of staff and the grandparents he lived with, authorities said Friday. The attack pushed Thailand’s long-running struggle with gun violence back into the spotlight and raised new questions about school safety and minors’ access to firearms.
Thailand has one of Asia's highest rates of civilian gun ownership, although mass shootings in public places remain relatively rare. The country's deadliest recent mass killing of civilians happened in 2022, when a dismissed police sergeant used guns and knives to kill 37 people — including two dozen toddlers at a daycare center in Nong Bua Lamphu. That massacre stirred grief and calls for tighter gun control, yet reforms have moved slowly.
The Nonthaburi shooting, the latest in a string of high-profile gun deaths since 2020, is likely to renew pressure on Thai authorities to address gun access by minors and security at schools. It also echoes previous cases in which very young attackers used handguns, including a 2023 shooting at a Bangkok mall by a 14-year-old with a converted blank-firing pistol.
Here is a look at other recent high-profile shooting deaths in Thailand that were not related to political violence:
Feb. 11, 2026 — A 17-year-old boy stole a police gun and opened fire at a public high school in Hat Yai in southern Thailand, killing one person and wounding two others. He was arrested after a short standoff.
July 28, 2025 — A gunman shot and killed five people at a popular fresh-food market in Bangkok before killing himself. Police said the attack involved a personal grudge.
Oct. 3, 2023 — A 14-year-old boy opened fire with a handgun inside a major shopping mall in Bangkok, killing two people before being apprehended. Police said the weapon was originally manufactured to shoot blanks but had been modified to fire live ammunition.
March 23, 2023 — Police commandos in Phetchaburi province, about 105 miles (170 kilometers) southwest of Bangkok, shot and killed a man to end a 14-hour standoff after he had fatally shot three people.
Oct. 6, 2022 — A dismissed police sergeant used guns and knives to kill 37 people in Nong Bua Lamphu, including two dozen toddlers at a daycare center. He then killed his wife and stepson before taking his own life.
Feb. 8, 2020 — A soldier angry over a land dispute went on a 16-hour shooting rampage in Nakhon Ratchasima, killing at least 29 people and wounding dozens more. Police and military personnel shot him dead after an overnight siege.
Jan. 9, 2020 — A masked gunman shot dead three people, including a 2-year-old, during a robbery of a gold shop in a shopping mall in Lopburi province. A school headmaster was arrested less than two weeks later and was sentenced to death after pleading guilty to murder charges.