Thai Gambling Addict Sentenced to Death After Poisoning 15 People

Recently, we told the story of a Thai woman who killed one of her friends, severed her fingers to take rings and stole jewelry to settle a gambling debt. The shocking case led the police to a 57-year-old woman who was subsequently arrested and is facing trial.

Now, another woman in Thailand, addicted to gambling and suspected of murdering more than a dozen people, was sentenced to death.

Thailand’s First Female Serial Killer

The criminal case involves a 36-year-old problem gambler with the initials S.R., who is suspected of poisoning 15 victims, becoming Thailand’s first female serial killer. The Thai woman gained notoriety with the nickname “Am Cyanide,” considering that she allegedly used cyanide to poison her victims, who were often close friends. Before poisoning them, the culprit allegedly asked for large sums of money which she used to settle gambling debts.

Cyanide is a chemical compound that can be lethal to humans. While it is commonly used as an industrial chemical, the substance is also infamous as a chemical weapon used in World War I for the first time. Cyanide can have a lethal effect on the human body and it is often used for poisoning.

In the case of Am Cyanide, an investigation uncovered that she was responsible for a dozen poisonings. Her victims were usually people to whom she owed money. The infamous Thai woman faces more than 80 charges in total over suspicions of poisoning 15 people out of which 14 have passed away.

The Woman Was Sentenced to Death in Her First Murder Trial

As announced by local media outlets, Am Cyanide recently received a death sentence in one murder trial. On Wednesday, the culprit was sentenced to death for the murder of one of her friends, identified with the initials S.K.

The killer and the victim met earlier this year. At the time, a ritual was taking place that involved the release of fish into the Mae Klong River. The victim passed away shortly after the ritual. A police investigation tied the woman to the death of this victim after forensic evidence flagged cyanide.

At a later point, Am Cyanide was also tied to more than a dozen unresolved poisonings. Law enforcement suspects that her first murder dates back to 2015. What helped connect the victims is that they often gave the woman hefty loans. In one case, Am Cyanide collected 300,000 baht ($8,700) from a person who later deceased. Thailand’s first serial killer faces 13 more murder trials.

Capital punishment is recognized as a legal penalty in Thailand. The last time the country executed a criminal was back in 2018 when a 26-year-old robber who caused the death of another person was killed with a lethal injection.

The case in 2018 execution was only the seventh person to die from a lethal injection. In the past, more than 300 people were legally executed in Thailand by shooting.