A drug addict killed himself after murdering his wife in Kong Maklang village, Tangyan township, northern Shan State.

30-year-old Maungsi stabbed his wife, Aye Na Mee, in the heart with a knife on 29 March at 8 pm. He then attacked his three-year-old son and father-in-law, seriously wounding them, according to a Tangyan township resident named Sai Sai.

Both the young son, who was stabbed in the neck, and father-in-law have been taken to Tangyan hospital.

Sai Sarng Kin, a village head from Mong Kao township, said that neighbors heard cries coming from Maungsi’s house, and found him trying to kill his son and father-in-law, but Aye Na Mee was already dead. They tried to help by throwing stones into the house. When Maungsi saw the neighbors entering his house, he stabbed himself to death in the heart.

According to residents of Nam Lao village, drugs have become more widespread in northern Shan State due to increased conflict between ethnic armed groups and the government military. Many young men are now addicted to drugs, due to their easy availability, and this is causing frequent drug-related violence.