14-year-old boy kills 5 teachers in Bangkok school shooting

A 14-year-old pupil opened fire at a Bangkok school on Friday, killing five teachers and injuring 23 people before turning the gun on himself.

The shooting unfolded at Debsirin School in Nonthaburi, a prestigious institution just outside Thailand’s capital. Panic erupted as students fled the building mid-lesson. One seventh grader, who spoke to the BBC near the school gates, said she was standing in front of her teacher when the gunman appeared. “She was talking to me when he showed up,” she said, still visibly shaken. Another student, 18, told Reuters he first mistook the sound of gunfire for firecrackers. “There were many shots: bang bang bang,” he recalled. “Then it went quiet. Then it started again.”

Authorities say the shooter killed his grandparents earlier in the day. He then moved through classrooms, targeting teachers and pupils. Among the wounded were students as young as 12, some shot in the arm, back or chest. Paramedics rushed victims to hospital as crowds outside clung to each other in grief. Rescue worker Kiatikhun Verapongpradith arrived to find students bleeding and in shock. “I saw students who had been shot,” he told Reuters. “Some in the arm, some in the back, some in the chest. So I rushed to help get them to the hospital first.”

Investigators have not yet named a motive, but early details suggest pressure at home may have played a role. The handgun used was legally owned by the shooter’s grandfather. Police say the shots were “quite accurate,” with several hitting vital spots on victims. Education officials described the boy as a good student with strong grades and an interest in gaming. Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul suggested school stress could be a factor, noting the boy’s grandmother was a strict teacher. “From what the police gathered from his close friend, they knew he was quite stressed about it,” the PM said.

This is Thailand’s deadliest mass shooting in years and the second school attack this year. In February, an 18-year-old fatally shot a head teacher and a student before taking his own life. The latest violence raises urgent questions about school safety, gun access and mental health support. Authorities face growing pressure to explain how such a young shooter could carry out such a planned attack—and what must change to prevent the next one.