KUALA LUMPUR: Wisma Putra today confirmed no Malaysians were involved in the shooting rampage carried out by a Thai soldier in Nakhon Ratchasima which claimed 26 lives and injured 57 others in Thailand yesterday.
"Checks with our embassy in Bangkok, Thailand, showed that no Malaysians were injured or killed in the shooting. So far, we have not got any report from the Thai authorities about Malaysians," a Wisma Putra spokesman said when contacted today.
He said the Malaysian Embassy in Bangkok was expected to issue a statement, upon confirming the update with the local authorities in Thailand.
It was reported that the suspect, a 32-year-old soldier Jakrapanth Thomma was finally shot dead this morning, hours after he went on a shooting spree killing at least 26 people including security personnel and held hostage dozens at the Terminal 21 mall in Nakhon Ratchasima.
The rampage started on Saturday afternoon when Jakrapanth first killed his commanding officer ... ( Colonel Anantharot Krasae, 48, and his mother-in-law Anong Mitchan, 63) ..before stealing weapons from the Suatham Phithak military camp he was attached to.
Thai media reported that the suspect then continued his attack on the streets and to the shopping centre where he was gunned down this morning by the police and military personnel.
The gunman also posted videos of his attack on his social media account saying he was out for vengeance - but he did not say for what.
It is learnt that in the efforts to calm and convince the soldier to turn himself in through his elderly mother had also backfired when more shootings were heard after that.
Other than taking video of the attack, it is learnt that the suspect had also continued to update his Facebook account before the Thai Ministry of Digital Economy and Society contacted Facebook to suspend his account.
Facebook in a statement also wrote: "Our hearts go out to the victims, their families and the community affected by this tragedy in Thailand.
"There is no place on Facebook for people who commit this kind of atrocity, nor do we allow people to praise or support this attack."
Meanwhile Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha who also visited the injured victims in the hospital was quoted saying that the killings may have arisen over grudge involving a land deal in which Jakrapanth felt he had been cheated.