cnn newsroom. good to be with you. thailand is reeling right now after a massacre inside a child care center. at least 36 people were killed, including 24 children. they were gunned down or stabbed. the children inside were sleeping at the time. investigators say the shooter was an ex-cop who had been fired and just appeared in court on drug charges. one of the teachers described the moment she saw the shooter. translator: around noon i saw him enter the gate. the staff was having lunch. i suddenly heard what sounded like fire crackers. he pulled the gun from his waist, loaded it and was about to point the gun at me. i called to another teacher who was holding a kid. i didn t expect him to also kill the kids. authorities say the gunman later killed his own wife and stepson, then took his own life. mass shootings are extremely rare in thailand. what else do we know? reporter: this is a peaceful, quiet area that is now believed to be the scene of thailand s deadlies
a witness said she watched as the attacker used his knife to kill the kids before he frled te nursery, killing anyone he came into contact with, with his begin, knife or striking bystanders with his car. he returned home and killed his wife and 2-year-old stepson before taking his own life. at least 36 people were murdered, including 24 children. another ten people injured, six of them seriously injured. he is a former police officer who was fired from duty and charged with a drug related offense last year. his police chief said that this possession charge is a result of confessing to taking and possessing crystal meth and yaba, which means crazy medicine