Veteran Actress Metta Rungrat Dies by Suicide in Bangkok
Former Thai actress Metta Rungrat, 84, was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at her home in Bangkok's Min Buri district. Police are investigating the incident as a suicide, noting the veteran star suffered from Alzheimer's and other chronic illnesses. Her brother said she had previously spoken about ending her life but he never believed she would act on it.
The younger brother expresses shock upon learning of Metta Rungrat's death, revealing she often complained and mentioned a gun she had kept since her youth.
At 4:40 p.m. on November 3, 2026, Pol. Lt. (Female) Warada Chuna, investigator at Chalongkrung Police Station, received a report that a woman had used a firearm to kill herself inside a house in Soi Khum Klao 4/1, Saen Saep Subdistrict, Min Buri District, Bangkok. She informed her superiors and went to inspect the scene with Pol. Capt. Thanakorn Ngamyen, Chalongkrung Station Superintendent, patrol officers, investigators, forensic officers, a police forensic doctor, and volunteers from the Ruamkatanyu Foundation.
The scene was a single-story raised house. In the bedroom, officers found the body of Daradee Kitisuwan, 84, also known as Metta Rungrat, a famous former actress. She lay face down in a pool of blood on the bed with a single gunshot wound to the right temple. A handgun lay nearby. The room showed no signs of a struggle or ransacking.
From questioning, Ms. Romchi, 65, a foster sister, stated that before the incident at 4:00 p.m., she left to drop a friend at the Airport Rail Link Lat Krabang station. She returned around 4:30 p.m. and did not see Daradee under the house, so she went upstairs to the bedroom and discovered the body. She immediately called the police. Daradee had underlying conditions — Alzheimer's, high blood pressure, diabetes, and thyroid disease — and visited doctors frequently; stress from these ailments may have triggered the act.
Later, Mr. Sumet, 65, Daradee's younger brother, revealed that his sister was usually in good spirits but would complain about her health when he visited. She had once remarked that if she could not bear it she would kill herself, but he thought it was just emotional venting due to her illnesses, including Alzheimer's, high blood pressure, and diabetes.
Today, his sister had gone to see a doctor after returning from the hospital. The housekeeper, Noi, who had cared for her for nearly 10 years, called to inform him that his sister had shot herself. The weapon was a .38 revolver she had owned since her youth; he did not know she still kept it. He learned from the caregiver that she habitually placed it under her pillow. He does not suspect foul play because the longtime housekeeper had always taken good care of his sister. The funeral rites will be held at Wat Thong Samrit.
Forensic officers initially examined the scene, collected evidence, and sent the body to the Police Forensic Institute to determine the exact cause of death.
