Friend’s Advice on Drugs Leads to Cafe Shooting

Five people were wounded Sunday when a gunman opened fire in a crowded Hollywood restaurant after an acquaintance told him he should “lay off drugs,” Los Angeles police said.

Seventy people who were inside That’s Thai Restaurant at 5825 Sunset Blvd. dove to the floor or ran for the bathrooms and exits when the gunman, an 18- to 20-year-old Thai, began shooting wildly at about 1 a.m., Detective Russell Kuster said.

The gunman was angry at being chided about drug use in front of his friends, which Detective Dennis Kilcoyne said was considered an insult under Thai culture. The remarks that preceded the shooting were made by Arvut Witaya, 36, of Los Angeles, Kilcoyne said.

“He basically said it in a concerned way, just friends talking,” the detective said.

Wounded Are Treated

Witaya was not injured, but two men at his table were wounded. Somsa Thanasirangkul, 25, of Torrance, was shot in the thigh, and his brother, Somchai, 28, of Los Angeles, was shot in the hip. They were taken to Cedars-Sinai Medial Center, where Somsa was hospitalized and Somchai was treated and released.

Avirut Krittayapong, 22, who was sitting at another table, was shot in the neck. He was in serious but stable condition at Hollywood Presbyterian Medical Center after surgery Sunday.

Jantana Krisanayuth, 26, of Los Angeles, was in fair condition at County-USC Medical Center with a gunshot wound to the abdomen. Juktsud Amatayakul, 21, of Los Angeles, was in fair condition in the same hospital with a gunshot wound to the left wrist. Both were sitting at nearby tables when the shooting occurred.

The gunman, who fled on foot, was not identified by police. He was described as 5 feet tall, 105 pounds, wearing a green and yellow shirt, blue jeans and a blue denim jacket.