Why did this super charming guy suddenly go crazy and murder multiple people?
His name is Somkid, but we’ll call him Kid. He lived in Thailand and had a lifetime talent for getting people to trust him. But once he gained their trust, he would swindle them. He was a full-time con man, surviving by cheating people out of their money.
By 2005, around the age of 40, Kid decided that conning people wasn’t enough. He turned to murder. One day, he checked into a nice hotel, then went to a karaoke bar, where he spotted a beautiful woman singing. He introduced himself as a talent agent, charming her into coming back to his hotel. But once they were alone, she started questioning his story. Feeling exposed, Kid snapped. He strangled her, then drowned her in the hotel bathtub before stealing her belongings and fleeing.
The next morning, police found her body. They had his real name from the hotel booking, but it was so common in Thailand that it didn’t lead to an arrest. Kid remained free, and five months later, he struck again. He hired a masseuse, brought her back to his hotel, and after an argument, strangled her to death, stealing her jewelry and phone before disappearing.
His killing spree continued. Within weeks, he picked up another woman, lured her to his hotel by claiming he owned a gemstone mine, and killed her too. Since his victims were found in different provinces, police hadn’t yet connected the murders. However, security cameras at one hotel caught his face. Investigators started to piece together that someone was targeting women in hotels across Thailand.
A nationwide manhunt began, but Kid kept moving. He picked up another masseuse, drugged her drink, then strangled her while she was unconscious. This time, he made a mistake. He left his fingerprints at the crime scene. Police identified him and launched a full-scale search. Soon, his face was everywhere on the news. But by then, he had already killed his fifth victim and escaped to another town, staying with a widow who had no idea he was a serial killer.
His downfall came when he used one of his victim’s phones. Police had been tracking the SIM cards, and as soon as he made a call, they pinpointed his location. A SWAT team stormed the widow’s house and arrested him. He was sentenced to life in prison.
But unbelievably, after serving just 14 years, Kid was granted royal clemency for good behavior and released in 2019. At 55, he quickly charmed his way into a relationship and moved in with his new girlfriend. But soon, he met another woman, Ratsumi, and started dating her too. She lent him money to buy a car, but when he couldn’t afford the payments, he decided to kill her instead of paying her back. After strangling Ratsumi, he stole her motorcycle and vanished.
This time, police immediately knew it was him. His face was plastered across the country again. Four days later, a young couple spotted him on a train and tipped off the authorities. The moment the train stopped, police arrested him.
This time, there was no escape. Kid was sentenced to death, bringing an end to one of Thailand’s most disturbing crime sprees.
