New clues surface in Sondhi case

The cartridges were engraved with the initials of the Royal Thai Army and the serial numbers showed they had been distributed to a unit in the First Army region, the source said.

Also, 5.56-mm cartridges could have been fired from an M-203 grenade launcher - a modified M-16 rifle installed with a 40mm grenade launching tube under its barrel.

"The two gunmen may not have intended to use the M-203 as their main weapon, after firing a 40-mm shell at a bus near Sondhi's vehicle that did not go off. So only three rounds [from M-203] were shot, leaving the three spent cartridges behind," the source said.

A new eyewitness (aside from a petrol station attendant) has said the gunmen had also fired at him when they saw he had witnessed the attack. But the bullets missed him and he was now under police protection.

Another clue to the murder attempt emerged after Bank of Thailand officials reported that stray bullets hit the third floor of its main building on Samsen Road. An inspection later found at least two cartridges fired by an AK-47 rifle.

Meanwhile, the Rights and Liberties Protection Department warned the media against revealing the identity of witnesses after Thai Rath published photographs of the petrol station attendant who saw the shooting.

But department director-general Suwana Suwannajootha said her agency was not authorised to take legal action against media outlets that reveal a witness' identity without a request from the person concerned. She said police should protect witnesses during the initial phase of an investigation.