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The death toll in the school shooting at Debsirin Nonthaburi School in Thailand's Nonthaburi province rose to eight on Friday (local time), with 22 others injured, while the grandparents of the suspected teenage shooter were later found dead at their residence.
According to the Bangkok Post, the suspected shooter, a Grade 8 student at the school, was found dead inside the campus after the attack. Authorities later searched the suspect's home in Bang Bua Thong district and discovered the bodies of the teenager's 73-year-old grandfather and 74-year-old grandmother, both with fatal gunshot wounds to the head. Investigators believe the grandparents were killed before the school shooting, though the exact sequence of events remains under investigation. According to Thailand's Public Health Minister Pattana Promphat, the eight fatalities include five teachers, the suspected shooter and the two grandparents. Twenty-two people sustained injuries, including nine who were seriously hurt and taken to hospitals for treatment, the Bangkok Post reported. Police said the teenager entered the school armed with a 9mm handgun believed to belong to the grandfather. Authorities recovered the firearm along with additional ammunition from the scene. Officials said the suspected shooter had barricaded himself inside a school building before being found dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to the Bangkok Post. Videos verified by CNN showed terrified students taking cover beneath classroom desks as gunshots echoed through the school, while other footage captured students being evacuated by school staff. One student told CNN that classmates quickly barricaded their classroom by pushing desks and chairs against the door before switching off the lights and waiting for help. Thailand's Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul described the attack as a tragedy and said it could have been even more devastating, noting that the suspected shooter still had more than 30 rounds of ammunition remaining, CNN reported. He also said preliminary information suggested the teenager had been experiencing stress related to studies, though authorities have not confirmed a motive. Police are continuing forensic examinations of the crime scene, interviewing witnesses and investigating how the teenager gained access to the firearm. The incident is among Thailand's deadliest school shootings in recent years and follows previous fatal attacks at educational institutions in 2022 and earlier this year. (ANI)
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