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A Thai woman, accused of being one of the country's most prolific serial killers, has been sentenced to death for poisoning a friend with cyanide. This is the first of 14 murder trials involving Sararat Rangsiwuthaporn, 36, whose alleged crimes have shocked the nation, according to The Guardian.
Sararat, described as an online gambling addict, is accused of swindling large sums of money from her victims before killing them with cyanide. Thai media reports that she borrowed thousands of dollars from her victims and later killed them to fund her gambling habit.
On Wednesday, a court in Bangkok convicted Sararat for the murder of her friend, Siriporn Khanwong. The two met near Bangkok in April 2022 to participate in a Buddhist ritual of releasing fish into the Mae Klong River. Shortly after the ritual, Siriporn collapsed and died. Investigators later found traces of cyanide in her body.
Authorities have since linked Sararat to a series of cyanide poisonings dating back to 2015. "The court's decision is just," said Siriporn's mother, Tongpin Kiatchanasiri, following the verdict. "I want to tell my daughter that I miss her deeply and justice has been done for her today."
Police revealed that Sararat borrowed as much as 300,000 baht from some victims, stealing their jewellery and mobile phones after killing them. She reportedly lured 15 people, of whom only one survived, to consume poisoned "herb capsules."
Deputy National Police Chief Surachate Hakparn explained Sararat's motives: "She asked people she knows for money because she has a lot of credit card debt ... and if they asked her for their money back, she started killing them."
Sararat faces charges for 13 additional murders and has been accused of around 80 offences in total. Her ex-husband, a police lieutenant-colonel, was sentenced to 16 months in prison, while her former lawyer received a two-year sentence for complicity in Siriporn's murder.
Thailand has witnessed several high-profile poisoning cases in the past, but Sararat's alleged crimes stand out for their scale and severity.