Thai police have arrested three people in connection with the brutal stabbing of a Dallas business owner who was killed in Thailand following a disagreement over a karaoke song, officials say.
Thai police said Bobby Carter, Jr., tipped a karaoke band to play a specific song, but got upset when they played something other than what he requested.
"Witnesses said Carter got angry when the band played Hotel California instead of the song he requested, and he refused to step down," said Col. Taksin Pochakorn, with the Krabi police, as told to the Associated Press.
Investigators said Carter was upset and yelled at the band as they walked off of the stage at the Little Longhorn Saloon. The Agence France-Presse reports Carter knocked over the tip jar trying to get his money back, but family members told NBC 5 that doesn't sound like something he'd do.
The disagreement escalated, spilled outside and soon turned physical. In the fracas, Carter was fatally stabbed in the chest with an iron rod; Carter's son, Adam, was stabbed in the shoulder and airlifted to a Bangkok hospital. Family members said members of the band also hit Carter's wife, Kelly, during the fight.
Adam is recovering in a hospital while Kelly Carter is at the consulate speaking with investigators.
Meanwhile, three musicians have been arrested in connection with Carter's death, though the exact criminal charges they face are unclear. More charges could be coming as the investigation continues.
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After the fight, Kelley called her father-in-law, Bobby Carter Sr., and said her husband tried to walk away before the argument turned physical.
"I know Bob got up and walked away. I know that they followed him outside. He wasn't a big drinker. He was a hard worker," said Carter's father.
The victim, along with his wife Kelly, ran LED Cool Lights, a small business that employed five people near downtown Dallas. In addition to the Dallas office, Carter had a plant in China that was run by his son Adam. Carter would visit there four or five times a year and the family was on a 10-day vacation in Thailand before they were to return home, according to family members.
"He loved to entertain, he loved to sing. He was a really outgoing person. He was a good kid," said Carter's father of his son. "We just can't believe what's happening. He was a hard worker, and was so generous."
