An American man glared at an Australian man at a restaurant after getting drunk. Later, they met again on their way back to the hotel, argued, and ended up in a physical altercation that escalated to the use of a knife, resulting in a fatal stabbing. The police arrested the American man, who was still intoxicated, and took him to the police station.
At 2:00 AM on July 22, 2024, Pol. Lt. Wichote Meepop, Deputy Chief of Investigation at Ao Nang Police Station, received a report of a brawl along Nopparat Thara Beach, in front of the Razorback Conch Sculpture, Village 3, Ao Nang Subdistrict. Upon investigation, they found Mr. Liam Michael Ross, a 35-year-old Australian national, who had been stabbed in the abdomen, leg, and arm. Rescue workers from the Pracha Santisuk Foundation transported him to Watthana Phaet Ao Nang Hospital, and he was later transferred to Krabi Hospital, where he died.
The perpetrator, Mr. Randall Owen Johnson, a 43-year-old American national, did not flee and was apprehended by police at the scene with a folding knife. Due to his intoxicated state, he was taken to Ao Nang Police Station to await a lawyer and interpreter for a detailed interrogation.
Witnesses reported that the deceased and the perpetrator had likely been drinking together at a nearby restaurant. The deceased was walking back to his hotel when he encountered the perpetrator again. An argument and physical fight ensued, during which the perpetrator pulled out a pocket knife and stabbed Mr. Ross multiple times. The initial motive suggests that the two men, who did not know each other prior to the incident, may have been annoyed with each other at the restaurant, leading to the deadly confrontation. Further investigation is required to confirm these details.
