Former Thai lawmaker arrested after allegedly shooting government official

A former lawmaker in Thailand was arrested Monday for allegedly shooting a local government official and his driver, police said.

Chalong Riewrang was arrested and taken to the local police station, Nonthaburi police chief Dejrapee Kongdee said.

“We are investigating him in regard to his motive. The two who were shot are being treated at a hospital,” he said.

One of them, the chairman of the Nonthaburi local government administration, was “seriously injured,” the police chief said.

The other victim was his driver, he said, without providing details of his condition.

Police did not immediately confirm any deaths as a result of the alleged shooting.

Local media said a private dispute may have been the cause but the police chief declined to comment.

According to CBS News partner network BBC News, Chalong called a political commentator who was livestreaming on YouTube at the time and declared he had carried out the attack. The presenter, former journalist Anchalee Paireerak, was seen reacting with shock and told him to wait for police to arrive.

Chalong is a former member of Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s party.

On Friday, a 14-year-old boy shot dead the grandparents who raised him in Nonthaburi before killing at least six others at his school and then turning the gun on himself, authorities said.

Thailand has one of the highest rates of gun ownership in the region, with around 10 million firearms estimated to be in circulation, roughly one for every seven inhabitants.

Officials have promised stricter gun laws since Friday’s shooting, but previous pledges have failed to prevent repeated shootings.