A former Cambodian opposition MP Lim Kimya was fatally shot by a gunman in Bangkok on January 7, 2025. Then, a viral claim stated the gunman was arrested by Thai police. Another claim said that he was arrested at the Cambodia-Thailand border as he attempted to cross to Cambodia. However, our investigation found out the claims are false.
SOCIAL MEDIA CLAIM
A viral social media claim reported that Thai police arrested a Cambodian national just hours after he fatally shot a former opposition MP from Cambodia in Bangkok on Tuesday.
The statement includes a photo of a man photographed by the police in front of a height measurement board.
The claim has been widely shared by Khmer-speaking social media users, who are condemning the brutal killing of Lim Kimya, 73, a former MP of the dissolved opposition CNRP.
Below is the screenshot of the viral claim posted on Facebook yesterday, stating “Thai authority arrested the gunman who fatally shot Lim Kimya – former CNRP MP. The first-hand report said the gunman was a Cambodian national. […]”
Meanwhile, another claim posted by a Facebook user stated that Thai police arrested the gunman at the scene after he fatally shot Lim Kimya in Bangkok on Tuesday evening.
The claim also included a photo of the man photographed by police in front of a height measurement board.
Below is a screenshot of the claim posted on Facebook yesterday, stating, “Thai police immediately arrested a suspect just after he fatally shot Lim Kimya in Bangkok on January 7, 2025. Just a reminder that Lim Kimya is a former CNRP MP for Kampong Thom province.”
Another claim, posted by a political activist living in exile in a European country, stated that the gunman was arrested at the Cambodia-Thailand border as he attempted to cross into Cambodia.
Below is a screenshot of the social media claim stating, “A first-hand report, Thai police arrested the gunman at the Cambodia-Thailand border as he attempted to cross into Cambodia.”
Below is a screenshot of the same claim, posted yesterday by another Facebook account with the same name as the previous user.
FACT CHECK
Fact Crescendo began debunking the claim by reviewing reports from reliable media outlets in Thailand and other international media services. Through this investigation, we discovered the following facts.
As of 7 PM on January 8, 2025, 24 hours after the fatal shooting, no Thai media outlets had reported the arrest of the gunman.
Instead, various news reports indicated that Thai police were hunting the gunman, who is identified as Ekkalak Phaenoi (เอกลักษณ์ แพน้อย), also known as JA M (จ่าเอ็ม).
Below is a screenshot of the Bangkok Post website as of 7 PM on January 8, 2025, which did not yet report any news of the gunman’s arrest.
As of 7 PM yesterday, The Nation, one of Thailand’s leading media outlets, had also not reported the news of the gunman’s arrest.
“Instead, it reported that Thai Prime Minister Phaethongthan Shinawatra demanded the gunman’s swift arrest and that a warrant for his arrest was issued by Thai police.
The Nation Front Page | Archived Link
Using keywords to search for information on Google, we did not find any news reports about the arrest of the gunman who shot and killed Lim Kimya.
We did come across news reports indicating that Thai authorities were actively searching for the assailant.
However, Thairath News did not publish news about the gunman’s arrest until 7:41 PM on January 8, 2025.
Thairath Report | Archived Link
According to reports from Thai media outlets, the photo of the gunman in front of the height measurement board is an old image taken after his arrest by Thai police in 2021.
Below is a screenshot of Khaosod’s English post stating that the photo of the gunman was taken by Thai police after his arrests in 2021 and 2022.
Thai media also reported that, based on security camera footage, the gunman immediately left the scene and rode away on a motorbike before Thai authorities arrived.
In Cambodia, based on a press release from the Cambodian police, various media outlets reported around 9 PM today that the gunman was arrested by Cambodian authorities at 1:50 PM on January 8, 2025, in Maung Russey district, Battambang province.
Below is the screenshot of the Fresh News’s report which was published at 8:07 PM yesterday.
“Below is a press release from the Cambodian National Police Chief regarding the arrest of the gunman who fled into Cambodia.
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CONCLUSION
Fact Crescendo found the claims described above to be misleading. The gunman who fatally shot Lim Kimya, a former Cambodian opposition MP, was arrested by Cambodian authorities at 1:50 PM in Maung Russey district, Battambang province. He fled to Cambodia after gunning down the politician in Bangkok on January 7, 2025.
Title:Thai Gunman Arrested in Cambodia After Killing Former Opposition MP
Fact Check By: Jay UdomResult: False
