An 11-year-old boy has crashed a pickup truck into a group of monks on a pilgrimage walk in northeastern Thailand, killing nine, officials said.
A total of 35 monks from Mukdahan province, about 600km northeast of the capital Bangkok, were on the pilgrimage on Thursday (local time). Five monks were killed at the site, while four others died at a hospital. Thirteen were hospitalised with three in critical condition, according to the provincial administration.
The group started the 260km walk to Ubon Ratchathani province about 30 minutes before the crash.
Security camera footage shared by a local rescue group, Ruam Jai Mukdahan Rescue Association, showed the monks walking in a single line on the side of a road before the truck crashes into them.
The boy was in custody and would be questioned when state child protection officers arrived, police said.
The cause of the accident was under investigation, but police said the monks described seeing the vehicle swerving before it slid off the road and crashed into the group.
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