Teen Arrested for Hammer Murder After Guitar Noise Dispute
An 18-year-old man in Rayong killed his 20-year-old former partner with a hammer after being asked to lower his guitar volume. The suspect fled to a nearby temple but was quickly arrested by police. Authorities say the two had a long-standing relationship that deteriorated due to the suspect's drug use, which may have contributed to the violent outburst.
An 18-year-old man, angered after being warned about playing guitar too loudly, grabbed a hammer and struck his 20-year-old partner to death in a bedroom before fleeing to hide at a temple. On November 7, 2026, Pol. Lt. Col. Pramote Khongkhalai, chief of Ban Khai Police Station, Rayong, led officers with Sawang Phu Rayong rescue volunteers and an on-duty doctor from Ban Khai Hospital to investigate a death at a house in Ban Nong Phawa, Moo 4, Bang But Subdistrict. The victim, identified as 20-year-old 'Lek', was found face down in a bedroom wearing only tartan trousers, with severe head trauma from a blunt object. Investigation revealed the suspect was the victim's former partner since childhood; they had recently drifted apart. Before the incident, the suspect visited the victim's room and played guitar loudly. When the victim asked him to lower the volume, the suspect became enraged, took a claw hammer from the house, entered the bedroom, and struck the victim's head until he died, then fled with the hammer along an irrigation canal. CCTV footage showed the suspect walking calmly. Police tracked and arrested him later at Wat Nong Phawa, where his grandmother had left him with the abbot. The hammer was recovered from the canal. The victim's foster father, 58-year-old Chai Chana, said the two had been friends since childhood but grew apart because the suspect refused to quit drugs despite repeated warnings, while the victim had long since stopped. This may have fueled resentment, and when the victim gave a trivial warning about noise, the suspect snapped and committed the crime. He thanked police for the swift arrest. Ban Khai Police have taken the suspect, identified as 18-year-old Sirawat, for questioning to establish motive and will proceed with legal action.
