Taxi driver burned to death in parked car in Thailand

2026-01-30 - 05:26

BURIRAM — 30 January 2026, a 58-year-old taxi driver was found burned to death inside his car in a village in northeastern Thailand, with the cause of the fire still unknown, police said. Forensic officers examined the burned-out Toyota taxi, after it was discovered on a concrete road in Ban Tha Ngam village, Phutthaisong district, Buriram province, shortly after midnight. The vehicle was parked awkwardly on the right shoulder of the road and was completely destroyed by fire. A male body, burned almost entirely to skeletal remains, was found in the driver’s seat. Police later identified the victim as Kuson Suriwong, 58, a resident of the village. No signs of struggle or suspicious objects were found around the scene. Village headman Lamut Sribungngao, who is also the victim’s brother-in-law, said residents alerted him at about 01:00 after seeing a taxi engulfed in flames. By the time he and others arrived, the fire had already consumed most of the vehicle and the body inside. He said it was unclear what caused the fire but questioned whether recent repair work on the vehicle had been completed properly. The victim’s niece, Sunisa Onthaisong, 46, said her uncle worked as a taxi driver in Bangkok and had returned home only three days earlier to raise money to repay a loan from the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives. She said Kuson told her his car had broken down in Prathai district, Nakhon Ratchasima province, during the journey. A mechanic quoted 20,000 baht for repairs, which he could not afford. Instead, he asked the mechanic to reassemble the car, paying 5,000 baht in labour costs. She added that her uncle often slept inside his car and suffered from a chronic leg condition. The family has no suspicions and is leaving the investigation to police. Pol. Lt. Decha Butwiset, a deputy investigator at Phutthaisong police station, said the victim’s remains had been sent to the Police General Hospital’s forensic institute for further examination to determine the exact cause of death.