BANGKOK – Thai police have arrested a man accused of setting fire to two Malaysian tourists in downtown Bangkok on Thursday night (Aug 7), in an attack that left both victims with serious burns.

The incident occurred on the steps of the Big C shopping centre, opposite the Central World mall on Ratchadamri Road. According to local media, the victims – identified as Ong Yik Leong, 26, and Gan Xiao Zhen, 27 – were sitting outside the shopping centre when a man allegedly poured thinner on them from behind.

As the victims tried to flee, the suspect – identified as Varakorn Pubthaisong, 30 – reportedly chased them and set them alight. Members of the public intervened and detained the suspect until police arrived.

Both victims were rushed to hospital. Ong was admitted to the intensive care unit at Police General Hospital with second-degree burns across his upper body, while Gan was taken to King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital with burns covering 36 per cent of her body.

Bong Yik Jui, the Malaysian Embassy’s Chargé d’Affaires ad interim in Thailand, told Malaysian news agency Bernama that both victims remain in critical but stable condition. “Ong’s injuries are serious but not life-threatening. Gan is stable and conscious,” he said.

Bangkok’s Lumpini police chief, Yingyos Suwanno, said the victims would be interviewed as part of the legal proceedings against the suspect, who is being held at Lumpini police station.

Police said Varakorn, a former boxer and recently unemployed security guard, claimed he attacked the tourists out of frustration over losing his job. The investigation is ongoing.

^{Source: CNA, Bangkok Post, Bernama}