Details are sketchy at the moment, but here is the news so far:
______________________________________________________
Two men detained after South bombings
12 Aug 2016
Police have reportedly detained two men suspected of involvement in a string of bomb blasts that rocked the South on Thursday night and Friday in which four people were killed and 30 others wounded, according to Thai media.
Pol Maj Gen Piyaphan Pingmuang, deputy spokesman for the Royal Thai Police, said on Friday that numerous bomb blasts in Prachuap Khiri Khan and other southern provinces were not terrorist acts, but acts of sabotage in certain areas.
He insisted Thailand had no conflicts over race and religions among ethnic minorities or was under threats linked to Islamic State (IS) terrorism. The blasts also had no links to unrest in the Deep South of Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat, he said.
The explosions stemmed from internal conflicts and were aimed at creating chaos, said the deputy police spokesman.
However, police have not yet concluded the incidents were motivated by last Sunday’s constitution referendum or political conflicts, he said.
Authorities were also looking into whether fires in Nakhon Si Thammarat and Surat Thani were linked to the blasts or not.
So far, some suspects have been detained for questioning, said Pol Maj Gen Piyaphan. He declined to reveal the number of detainees.
But TV channels reported that two men were being questioned for suspected involvement in the explosions on Thursday night and Friday morning. The attacks claimed two lives and wounded 30 others, according to the television reports.
National police chief Chakthip Chaijinda on Friday ordered all police agencies to tighten security at important government offices and symbolic places, particularly bus terminals, railway stations, airports, tourist attractions and areas frequented by tourists in the wake of the explosions in the South, Post Today reported.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/securit ... h-bombings
2 men detained so far in connection with the bombings
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Re: 2 men detained so far in connection with the bombings
No further details about the 2 men or news about any additional arrests have been published yet. Meanwhile, despite the stepped up security, yesterday the only police officer I saw was directing traffic on the railroad bypass road. I saw no others. I was nowhere near downtown Pattaya or Walking Street, though.
If anyone does spot a significantly larger police presence, whether in Pattaya or anywhere else in Thailand, please let us know.
If anyone does spot a significantly larger police presence, whether in Pattaya or anywhere else in Thailand, please let us know.
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Trongpai
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Re: 2 men detained so far in connection with the bombings
I've noticed a significant police presence in central Bangkok Friday night. They are walking around in large groups and on the roads with road blocks watching the traffic. They are not checking ID's or passports and not stopping or searching cars. They're just here, there and everywhere. A large group of police walked into soi Twilight last night and caused some concern of an impending raid but then just walked around, went in one bar walked around and then walked out. Again, no ID checking and not really talking to anyone.
It did not appear to stop huge amounts of people on the motorway traveling from Bangkok to Pattaya on Friday for the long weekend. That appeared more than usual for a long weekend. Perhaps those planing on going to Hua Hin diverted to Pattaya. At noon Friday there was a back-up at the toll booth on Rt 7 about 20km long. Pattaya to Bangkok was just the opposite, very light traffic.
It did not appear to stop huge amounts of people on the motorway traveling from Bangkok to Pattaya on Friday for the long weekend. That appeared more than usual for a long weekend. Perhaps those planing on going to Hua Hin diverted to Pattaya. At noon Friday there was a back-up at the toll booth on Rt 7 about 20km long. Pattaya to Bangkok was just the opposite, very light traffic.
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Gaybutton
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Re: 2 men detained so far in connection with the bombings
Police say conditions back to normal
13 Aug 2016
Police say conditions have returned to normal following a series of deadly bomb blasts, with a Trang political activist the first person confirmed to be detained.
They also said preliminary evidence suggested the attacks on Thursday and Friday were not the escalation of the secessionist campaign in the three southernmost provinces.
There were unconfirmed reports earlier that two suspects had been detained for questioning following the incidents that killed four people and injured 35, including at least 10 foreigners, in five provinces: Hua Hin, Phuket, Phangnga, Trang and Surat Thani.
However, the only detention police would confirm was that of a 67-year-old political activist and former constitution writer in the southern province of Trang.
Soldiers from the Fourth Army apprehended Prapas Rojanapithak at his house in tambon Khok Muang in Muang district while he was watching TV on Saturday morning.
The officers took him to Muang district police station and later to the Thao Thepkasattri Thao Srisunthorn military camp in Nakhon Si Thammarat, where he is being questioned. They were acting under a Section 44 order of the interim constitution, which gives the military power to summon, arrest or detain suspects in a range of security-related cases.
Seized from his house were books related to politics and some other documents, authorities said. They want to question Mr Prapas about a possible link to the bombing that killed one person in Trang on Thursday and arson attacks on commercial properties elsewhere in the South.
Mr Prapas was a member of the committee that drafted the 2007 constitution following the military coup that overthrew former premier Thaksin Shinawatra. He was also member of the Trang chapter of the yellow-shirted People's Alliance for Democracy, and belongs to other non-government organisations including the Trang Rubber Planters Network.
Despite his apparent yellow-shirt leanings, Mr Prapas joined 90 other southern academics and activists in signing a statement condemning the May 22, 2014 coup that overthrew the government of Thaksin's sister, Yingluck Shinawatra.
Mr Prapas insisted he had not been involved in the Trang bombing, saying he was at home at time of the incident and that witnesses could verify that. He was sick at the time and was planning to see a doctor but the clinic was closed, he added.
The activist said soldiers seized his mobile phone, an iPad, bank accounts, books related to politics, a diary and his ID card before taking him to the police station. However, no charges have been pressed against him.
Mr Prapas admitted he had exchanged views on politics with friends who shared the same ideology, but had never taken part in any political movement.
He also insisted he had no link with the red-shirts’ United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD).
At a police videoconference on Saturday morning, deputy police chief Pol Gen Pongsapat Pongcharoen said authorities expected they would soon finish processing evidence that includes closed-circuit camera footage and DNA samples.
"We have collected DNA samples from the scenes and the results should be known and sent to investigators responsible for each crime scene on Sunday. We hope to seek arrest warrants soon," he said.
Based on the existing evidence, the violence was not a major expansion of the secessionist campaign that has been concentrated in Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat and rarely targets foreigners, he said.
Senior officials of the military government also believe the attacks were political in nature and intended to discredit the regime.
Government spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd suggested those behind the blasts could be people who have "lost benefits" -- code for followers of Thaksin -- because of last Sunday's referendum, in which 61% of voters approved a new constitution that will entrench the power of the miliutary for years to come.
Pol Gen Pongsapat said the types of bombs and the detonation methods used this week were similar and investigators believed the perpetrators were all from the same group, working for a mastermind who provided them with the explosives.
"We believe the perpetrators are still in the country," he said.
He said police chief Pol Gen Chakthip Chaijinda had vowed that this time the network of the perpetrators would be completely uprooted. "People will finally know who was behind these acts aimed at destroying the country."
The deputy police chief added that there had been no reports suggesting that more incidents might take place.
"We assure the people they no longer need to worry and can travel and return home," he said. "Immigration police reported there were no signs of threats at any entry points and strict inspections are in place. There has been nothing unusual."
Security has been stepped up at Suvarnabhumi Airport and a number of other high-profile public places.
Pol Lt Gen Tesa Siriwatho, the Region 8 police chief, also said on Saturday that this week's fires in Nakhon Si Thammarat, Phangnga and Krabi were clearly arson attacks by the same group of people. However, forensic officers are still pursuing further investigations into a fire in Surat Thani.
The blaze in Surat Thani on Friday morning burned down the Taveesin Plastic shophouse on Kanchanavithee Road, with damage estimated at 10 million baht.
"We're also expanding the investigation to determine whether the incidents were linked to the fire at a Surat Thani cooperative and the car bomb attack at Central Festival shopping complex in Koh Samui on April 10, 2015," he said.
The Region 8 police are responsible for seven provinces in the mid-south: Rayong, Chumphon, Surat Thani, Phangnga, Phuket, Krabi and Nakhon Si Thammarat.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/securit ... say-police
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Thai authorities hunt tourist town bombers
August 13, 2016
HUA HIN, Thailand - Thai authorities on Saturday hunted for culprits behind a wave of bombings targeting popular holiday destinations, as businesses braced for the economic fallout from the attacks on the crucial tourism industry.
The kingdom was on edge after 11 small bombs exploded across five southern provinces Thursday night and Friday morning, killing four locals and wounding more than 30 people -- including foreign tourists.
The bombs, most of them detonated in twin blasts, struck key tourism hubs during a long weekend, including the seaside resort town of Hua Hin and the island of Phuket.
No one has claimed responsibility for the coordinated attack, but police have ruled out international terrorism and said the campaign was an act of "local sabotage".
"We are confident this was work of a network with a mastermind," said deputy police commissioner Ponsapat Pongcharoen, adding that no arrests had been made.
"It’s still unclear what the motive is," he said, stressing it was not connected to a simmering insurgency in Thailand’s south, as analysts have suggested.
If the Muslim rebels are to blame, it would mark a major expansion of a secessionist campaign that rarely targets foreigners.
It would also be a huge embarrassment to Thailand’s coup-installed military government, which has made boosting national security a flagship policy of its regime.
In hardest-hit Hua Hin, a popular beach resort rocked by four bombs in 24 hours, locals said they were fearful the town’s mainstay industry would suffer just ahead of peak tourist season.
"Hua Hin has never had a problem like this," Nai Amporn, the owner of a beachside restaurant, told AFP.
"I am afraid business will become slow -- even this morning, you can see there are fewer people here for breakfast. I think they have all gone home," he added.
Hua Hin, about 200 kilometres (125 miles) south of Bangkok, is home to the favourite palace of revered but ailing King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who has spent most of the past few years hospitalised in Bangkok.
’Confidence will return’
Famed for its idyllic islands and Buddhist temples, Thailand is a tourism powerhouse and was hoping for a record 32 million visitors this year.
The bombings will not affect the tourism industry’s target revenue of 2.4 trillion baht ($69 billion) for 2016, Tourism Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul said Saturday.
"The confidence in tourism will return," she told reporters in Bangkok.
"Thailand solves problems very quickly and always bounces back," she added.
Tourism accounts for at least 10 percent of Thailand’s economy, which the military government has struggled to invigorate since its 2014 power grab.
"This will have a significant impact on the tourist season in the south this year and into early 2017," said Anthony Davis, a security analyst at IHS Jane’s.
He said southern insurgents were the only group capable of carrying out the coordinated attack, dismissing theories that the junta’s other political foes were responsible.
"They have the operational infrastructure and the manpower -- arguably extending the campaign in a striking manner was only a matter of time," he said.
Thailand’s reputation as a holiday-maker’s paradise has in recent years weathered a string of fatal bus and boat accidents, bouts of political unrest and high-profile crimes against foreigners.
After the latest bombings, two Swiss travel companies, Hotelplan Suisse and Kuoni Suisse, said clients with trips to Thailand before August 15 could change or cancel their plans for free, according to Swiss public broadcaster RTS.
The industry has shown previously that it can quickly rebound.
An August 2015 bombing at a Bangkok shrine killed 20 people -- mostly tourists -- and triggered a drop in visitors. But the Kingdom still welcomed a record some 30 million travellers that year.
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakin ... 92876.html
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Extra security at Suvarnabhumi
by Sutthiwit Chayutworakan
13 Aug 2016
Security patrols and strict checks have been increased at Suvarnabhumi airport following the deadly coordinated bombings and arson attacks in the South.
Tourist police, soldiers from the 21st Artillery Regiment in both plainclothes and uniforms, and sniffer dogs have been deployed at the international airport in Samut Prakan province since Friday night to join airport security officers in patrolling the airport and thoroughly checking passengers’ luggage and belongings.
The tightened security measures followed a string of 13 bomb blasts and four arson attacks that rocked the South and the resort city of Hua Hin from Thursday to Friday. Four people were killed and 35 others injured in the blasts.
Currently, security measures at the airport remain at level three. Patrols had been increased at inbound and outbound passenger terminals since bomb blasts in Bangkok last year.
Pol Col Nitithorn Jintakanon, deputy commander of the Tourist Police Division, said on Saturday that Pol Maj Gen Surachet Hakphan, commander of the division, had ordered tourist police to act swiftly in dealing with possible untoward incidents and helping passengers. They were also instructed to coordinate with other security units manning at the airport to ensure greater safety for passengers.
However, the operation must not cause panic among passengers, said Pol Col Nitihorn, citing the tourist commander’s order.
He said security checkpoints had also been set up on main roads and areas vulnerable to violent attacks.
Combined teams of police, soldiers and local officials were sent to man the checkpoints. Rescue volunteers in the areas were also coordinated to help authorities guard important government venues, department stores and entertainment venues.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/securit ... -beefed-up
13 Aug 2016
Police say conditions have returned to normal following a series of deadly bomb blasts, with a Trang political activist the first person confirmed to be detained.
They also said preliminary evidence suggested the attacks on Thursday and Friday were not the escalation of the secessionist campaign in the three southernmost provinces.
There were unconfirmed reports earlier that two suspects had been detained for questioning following the incidents that killed four people and injured 35, including at least 10 foreigners, in five provinces: Hua Hin, Phuket, Phangnga, Trang and Surat Thani.
However, the only detention police would confirm was that of a 67-year-old political activist and former constitution writer in the southern province of Trang.
Soldiers from the Fourth Army apprehended Prapas Rojanapithak at his house in tambon Khok Muang in Muang district while he was watching TV on Saturday morning.
The officers took him to Muang district police station and later to the Thao Thepkasattri Thao Srisunthorn military camp in Nakhon Si Thammarat, where he is being questioned. They were acting under a Section 44 order of the interim constitution, which gives the military power to summon, arrest or detain suspects in a range of security-related cases.
Seized from his house were books related to politics and some other documents, authorities said. They want to question Mr Prapas about a possible link to the bombing that killed one person in Trang on Thursday and arson attacks on commercial properties elsewhere in the South.
Mr Prapas was a member of the committee that drafted the 2007 constitution following the military coup that overthrew former premier Thaksin Shinawatra. He was also member of the Trang chapter of the yellow-shirted People's Alliance for Democracy, and belongs to other non-government organisations including the Trang Rubber Planters Network.
Despite his apparent yellow-shirt leanings, Mr Prapas joined 90 other southern academics and activists in signing a statement condemning the May 22, 2014 coup that overthrew the government of Thaksin's sister, Yingluck Shinawatra.
Mr Prapas insisted he had not been involved in the Trang bombing, saying he was at home at time of the incident and that witnesses could verify that. He was sick at the time and was planning to see a doctor but the clinic was closed, he added.
The activist said soldiers seized his mobile phone, an iPad, bank accounts, books related to politics, a diary and his ID card before taking him to the police station. However, no charges have been pressed against him.
Mr Prapas admitted he had exchanged views on politics with friends who shared the same ideology, but had never taken part in any political movement.
He also insisted he had no link with the red-shirts’ United Front for Democracy against Dictatorship (UDD).
At a police videoconference on Saturday morning, deputy police chief Pol Gen Pongsapat Pongcharoen said authorities expected they would soon finish processing evidence that includes closed-circuit camera footage and DNA samples.
"We have collected DNA samples from the scenes and the results should be known and sent to investigators responsible for each crime scene on Sunday. We hope to seek arrest warrants soon," he said.
Based on the existing evidence, the violence was not a major expansion of the secessionist campaign that has been concentrated in Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat and rarely targets foreigners, he said.
Senior officials of the military government also believe the attacks were political in nature and intended to discredit the regime.
Government spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd suggested those behind the blasts could be people who have "lost benefits" -- code for followers of Thaksin -- because of last Sunday's referendum, in which 61% of voters approved a new constitution that will entrench the power of the miliutary for years to come.
Pol Gen Pongsapat said the types of bombs and the detonation methods used this week were similar and investigators believed the perpetrators were all from the same group, working for a mastermind who provided them with the explosives.
"We believe the perpetrators are still in the country," he said.
He said police chief Pol Gen Chakthip Chaijinda had vowed that this time the network of the perpetrators would be completely uprooted. "People will finally know who was behind these acts aimed at destroying the country."
The deputy police chief added that there had been no reports suggesting that more incidents might take place.
"We assure the people they no longer need to worry and can travel and return home," he said. "Immigration police reported there were no signs of threats at any entry points and strict inspections are in place. There has been nothing unusual."
Security has been stepped up at Suvarnabhumi Airport and a number of other high-profile public places.
Pol Lt Gen Tesa Siriwatho, the Region 8 police chief, also said on Saturday that this week's fires in Nakhon Si Thammarat, Phangnga and Krabi were clearly arson attacks by the same group of people. However, forensic officers are still pursuing further investigations into a fire in Surat Thani.
The blaze in Surat Thani on Friday morning burned down the Taveesin Plastic shophouse on Kanchanavithee Road, with damage estimated at 10 million baht.
"We're also expanding the investigation to determine whether the incidents were linked to the fire at a Surat Thani cooperative and the car bomb attack at Central Festival shopping complex in Koh Samui on April 10, 2015," he said.
The Region 8 police are responsible for seven provinces in the mid-south: Rayong, Chumphon, Surat Thani, Phangnga, Phuket, Krabi and Nakhon Si Thammarat.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/securit ... say-police
________________________________________________________________
Thai authorities hunt tourist town bombers
August 13, 2016
HUA HIN, Thailand - Thai authorities on Saturday hunted for culprits behind a wave of bombings targeting popular holiday destinations, as businesses braced for the economic fallout from the attacks on the crucial tourism industry.
The kingdom was on edge after 11 small bombs exploded across five southern provinces Thursday night and Friday morning, killing four locals and wounding more than 30 people -- including foreign tourists.
The bombs, most of them detonated in twin blasts, struck key tourism hubs during a long weekend, including the seaside resort town of Hua Hin and the island of Phuket.
No one has claimed responsibility for the coordinated attack, but police have ruled out international terrorism and said the campaign was an act of "local sabotage".
"We are confident this was work of a network with a mastermind," said deputy police commissioner Ponsapat Pongcharoen, adding that no arrests had been made.
"It’s still unclear what the motive is," he said, stressing it was not connected to a simmering insurgency in Thailand’s south, as analysts have suggested.
If the Muslim rebels are to blame, it would mark a major expansion of a secessionist campaign that rarely targets foreigners.
It would also be a huge embarrassment to Thailand’s coup-installed military government, which has made boosting national security a flagship policy of its regime.
In hardest-hit Hua Hin, a popular beach resort rocked by four bombs in 24 hours, locals said they were fearful the town’s mainstay industry would suffer just ahead of peak tourist season.
"Hua Hin has never had a problem like this," Nai Amporn, the owner of a beachside restaurant, told AFP.
"I am afraid business will become slow -- even this morning, you can see there are fewer people here for breakfast. I think they have all gone home," he added.
Hua Hin, about 200 kilometres (125 miles) south of Bangkok, is home to the favourite palace of revered but ailing King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who has spent most of the past few years hospitalised in Bangkok.
’Confidence will return’
Famed for its idyllic islands and Buddhist temples, Thailand is a tourism powerhouse and was hoping for a record 32 million visitors this year.
The bombings will not affect the tourism industry’s target revenue of 2.4 trillion baht ($69 billion) for 2016, Tourism Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul said Saturday.
"The confidence in tourism will return," she told reporters in Bangkok.
"Thailand solves problems very quickly and always bounces back," she added.
Tourism accounts for at least 10 percent of Thailand’s economy, which the military government has struggled to invigorate since its 2014 power grab.
"This will have a significant impact on the tourist season in the south this year and into early 2017," said Anthony Davis, a security analyst at IHS Jane’s.
He said southern insurgents were the only group capable of carrying out the coordinated attack, dismissing theories that the junta’s other political foes were responsible.
"They have the operational infrastructure and the manpower -- arguably extending the campaign in a striking manner was only a matter of time," he said.
Thailand’s reputation as a holiday-maker’s paradise has in recent years weathered a string of fatal bus and boat accidents, bouts of political unrest and high-profile crimes against foreigners.
After the latest bombings, two Swiss travel companies, Hotelplan Suisse and Kuoni Suisse, said clients with trips to Thailand before August 15 could change or cancel their plans for free, according to Swiss public broadcaster RTS.
The industry has shown previously that it can quickly rebound.
An August 2015 bombing at a Bangkok shrine killed 20 people -- mostly tourists -- and triggered a drop in visitors. But the Kingdom still welcomed a record some 30 million travellers that year.
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakin ... 92876.html
______________________________________________________
Extra security at Suvarnabhumi
by Sutthiwit Chayutworakan
13 Aug 2016
Security patrols and strict checks have been increased at Suvarnabhumi airport following the deadly coordinated bombings and arson attacks in the South.
Tourist police, soldiers from the 21st Artillery Regiment in both plainclothes and uniforms, and sniffer dogs have been deployed at the international airport in Samut Prakan province since Friday night to join airport security officers in patrolling the airport and thoroughly checking passengers’ luggage and belongings.
The tightened security measures followed a string of 13 bomb blasts and four arson attacks that rocked the South and the resort city of Hua Hin from Thursday to Friday. Four people were killed and 35 others injured in the blasts.
Currently, security measures at the airport remain at level three. Patrols had been increased at inbound and outbound passenger terminals since bomb blasts in Bangkok last year.
Pol Col Nitithorn Jintakanon, deputy commander of the Tourist Police Division, said on Saturday that Pol Maj Gen Surachet Hakphan, commander of the division, had ordered tourist police to act swiftly in dealing with possible untoward incidents and helping passengers. They were also instructed to coordinate with other security units manning at the airport to ensure greater safety for passengers.
However, the operation must not cause panic among passengers, said Pol Col Nitihorn, citing the tourist commander’s order.
He said security checkpoints had also been set up on main roads and areas vulnerable to violent attacks.
Combined teams of police, soldiers and local officials were sent to man the checkpoints. Rescue volunteers in the areas were also coordinated to help authorities guard important government venues, department stores and entertainment venues.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/securit ... -beefed-up
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Gaybutton
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Re: 2 men detained so far in connection with the bombings
Nakhon Si Thammarat arson suspect arrested
13 Aug 2016
A man was arrested on Saturday for allegedly setting fire to a Tesco Lotus store in Nakhon Si Thammarat, one of seven provinces hit by bombings and arson attacks this week.
The 32-year-old native of San Kamphaeng district in Chiang Mai is a worker on an offshore oil platform off Nakhon Si Thammarat. He was apprehended in the southern province, according to several police sources. He was taken to the 41st Army Circle inside Vajiravudh camp in Muang district.
Pol Maj Gen Wanchai Ekkapornpitch, the Nakhon Si Thammarat police chief, confirmed the arrest and identified the suspect as Sakarin Karuehas, the Daily News online reported. Authorities had sufficient evidence to charge him but he denied all allegations, he added.
Mr Sakarin was the second person to be apprehended in the wake of the violent incidents that killed four people and injured 37 on Thursday and Friday. Political activist Prapas Rojanapitak was arrested in Trang earlier for questioning in connection with arson attacks in the southern province.
Pol Lt Gen Tesa Siriwatho, chief of Provincial Police Region 8, flew from the Region 8 base in Surat Thani to join police and army officers to interrogate him.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has called for patience from the public following the arrests until the investigations are completed.
"Authorities are in the process of carrying out interrogations. They are looking at the evidence. So please be patient and don't rush to a conclusion and put pressure on the government," Gen Prayut said.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/securit ... arat-arson
13 Aug 2016
A man was arrested on Saturday for allegedly setting fire to a Tesco Lotus store in Nakhon Si Thammarat, one of seven provinces hit by bombings and arson attacks this week.
The 32-year-old native of San Kamphaeng district in Chiang Mai is a worker on an offshore oil platform off Nakhon Si Thammarat. He was apprehended in the southern province, according to several police sources. He was taken to the 41st Army Circle inside Vajiravudh camp in Muang district.
Pol Maj Gen Wanchai Ekkapornpitch, the Nakhon Si Thammarat police chief, confirmed the arrest and identified the suspect as Sakarin Karuehas, the Daily News online reported. Authorities had sufficient evidence to charge him but he denied all allegations, he added.
Mr Sakarin was the second person to be apprehended in the wake of the violent incidents that killed four people and injured 37 on Thursday and Friday. Political activist Prapas Rojanapitak was arrested in Trang earlier for questioning in connection with arson attacks in the southern province.
Pol Lt Gen Tesa Siriwatho, chief of Provincial Police Region 8, flew from the Region 8 base in Surat Thani to join police and army officers to interrogate him.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has called for patience from the public following the arrests until the investigations are completed.
"Authorities are in the process of carrying out interrogations. They are looking at the evidence. So please be patient and don't rush to a conclusion and put pressure on the government," Gen Prayut said.
http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/securit ... arat-arson
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Smiles
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Re: 2 men detained so far in connection with the bombings
As of last night the main Entertainment Zone (i.e. Bintabat) is still closed down as well as a few bars on a soi close to there ... which includes the best gay bar in HH (i.e. New Guy Bar). The lesser Entertainment Zone (i.e. Soi 80 ... a street running parallel to our home) is wide open after being closed down the night of the bombings.
The downtown area of HH is swimming with police though they are just hanging about doing what looks like nothing ... i.e. the norm.
The downtown area of HH is swimming with police though they are just hanging about doing what looks like nothing ... i.e. the norm.
Cheers ... ( and just one more reason why I love living in Thailand )
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Gaybutton
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Re: 2 men detained so far in connection with the bombings
Sketch of Phuket bomb suspect released amidst heightened surveillance orders
PHUKET: Region 8 Police have released a sketch of a male suspect wanted for detonating a bomb in Patong on Friday morning, which left one motorbike taxi driver injured.
13 August 2016
The sketch was released earlier today (August 13) and follows Phuket Governor Chamroen Thipayapongthada and Kathu District Chief Sayan Chanachaiwong paying a visit to Phuket’s sole bomb victim at his house this morning in Patong.
Somboon Kaikaew, 41, a Patong motorcycle taxi driver, suffered an injury to his right arm on Friday morning, when an explosion occurred at the traffic signal control box near the junction of Bangla Road and the beach road in Phuket’s premier tourist town.
Up until this point, speculation has been rife as few details about investigation progress have been released to the public.
In a statement issued to the press this afternoon, Gov Chamroen gave his assurances that authorities are working tirelessly to track down the culprit or culprits behind the attack in Phuket.
The statement reads: “Phuket belongs to everyone, every nationality, every religion… A world destination, we need to preserve Phuket to be a safety zone for the happiness of everyone, to be a destination of peace where everyone can travel, and return [home] having experienced nature or acquired goods… this or that, but we mustn’t be complacent with what’s happened, and employ measures for the private and public sectors to help serve as the eyes and ears. We will ensure that CCTV surveillance coverage is maintained in precarious areas, and fix where needed. In addition, we will ramp up security forces in populated areas.”
Region 8 Commander Police Maj Gen Teerapon Tipchareon also gave his assurances that authorities are working around the clock on heightened security alert.
Pol Maj Gen Teerapon explained that his officers, together with Thachadchai Police, officers from the Third Naval Area Command and other security personnel in Thalang have inspected all vehicles coming onto the island via the Thachadchai checkpoint on the north of the island.
“We have not found anything suspicious yet, but we’re also cooperating with security personnel working at commerce centres throughout the island [and have ordered them] to be vigilant in inspecting all vehicles coming and going.
“Law enforcement are distributing the sketches at all places throughout Phuket and adjacent provinces,” Maj Gen Teerapon added.
Authorities did not provide any other details about the sketch or suspect.
The Rakyat Post, a daily in Kuala Lumpur reports that a Malaysian mobile phone is suspected to have been used to detonate the Phuket bomb.
The Phuket News has yet to independently verify this claim.
http://www.thephuketnews.com/sketch-of- ... uckyzIb.97
PHUKET: Region 8 Police have released a sketch of a male suspect wanted for detonating a bomb in Patong on Friday morning, which left one motorbike taxi driver injured.
13 August 2016
The sketch was released earlier today (August 13) and follows Phuket Governor Chamroen Thipayapongthada and Kathu District Chief Sayan Chanachaiwong paying a visit to Phuket’s sole bomb victim at his house this morning in Patong.
Somboon Kaikaew, 41, a Patong motorcycle taxi driver, suffered an injury to his right arm on Friday morning, when an explosion occurred at the traffic signal control box near the junction of Bangla Road and the beach road in Phuket’s premier tourist town.
Up until this point, speculation has been rife as few details about investigation progress have been released to the public.
In a statement issued to the press this afternoon, Gov Chamroen gave his assurances that authorities are working tirelessly to track down the culprit or culprits behind the attack in Phuket.
The statement reads: “Phuket belongs to everyone, every nationality, every religion… A world destination, we need to preserve Phuket to be a safety zone for the happiness of everyone, to be a destination of peace where everyone can travel, and return [home] having experienced nature or acquired goods… this or that, but we mustn’t be complacent with what’s happened, and employ measures for the private and public sectors to help serve as the eyes and ears. We will ensure that CCTV surveillance coverage is maintained in precarious areas, and fix where needed. In addition, we will ramp up security forces in populated areas.”
Region 8 Commander Police Maj Gen Teerapon Tipchareon also gave his assurances that authorities are working around the clock on heightened security alert.
Pol Maj Gen Teerapon explained that his officers, together with Thachadchai Police, officers from the Third Naval Area Command and other security personnel in Thalang have inspected all vehicles coming onto the island via the Thachadchai checkpoint on the north of the island.
“We have not found anything suspicious yet, but we’re also cooperating with security personnel working at commerce centres throughout the island [and have ordered them] to be vigilant in inspecting all vehicles coming and going.
“Law enforcement are distributing the sketches at all places throughout Phuket and adjacent provinces,” Maj Gen Teerapon added.
Authorities did not provide any other details about the sketch or suspect.
The Rakyat Post, a daily in Kuala Lumpur reports that a Malaysian mobile phone is suspected to have been used to detonate the Phuket bomb.
The Phuket News has yet to independently verify this claim.
http://www.thephuketnews.com/sketch-of- ... uckyzIb.97
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Re: 2 men detained so far in connection with the bombings
No word has yet been published with any further information about the 2 men detained, the ones referred to in the OP.
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Single mastermind behind bomb attacks, police say
August 14, 2016
Bangkok - Police said on Sunday that one mastermind was behind the recent wave of bomb attacks across the country.
Speaking to reporters, Deputy National Police Chief Pongsapat Pongcharoen said that police have a "clear idea" of who was behind the bomb attacks.
"The events are connected, carefully planned and carried out across many areas and masterminded by one individual," he said without elaborating on who the individual was or their motive.
The attacks on tourist destinations and official buildings across seven provinces on Thursday and Friday left four people dead and more than 30 injured. At least 10 foreigners were among the casualties.
Police released a sketch late Saturday of an individual believed to be part of the network responsible for the bombing.
Authorities also received an arrest warrant for an arsonist that set fire to a department store around the same time as the bombings. Pongsapat said that the two events were connected.
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakin ... 92937.html
____________________________________________
Single mastermind behind bomb attacks, police say
August 14, 2016
Bangkok - Police said on Sunday that one mastermind was behind the recent wave of bomb attacks across the country.
Speaking to reporters, Deputy National Police Chief Pongsapat Pongcharoen said that police have a "clear idea" of who was behind the bomb attacks.
"The events are connected, carefully planned and carried out across many areas and masterminded by one individual," he said without elaborating on who the individual was or their motive.
The attacks on tourist destinations and official buildings across seven provinces on Thursday and Friday left four people dead and more than 30 injured. At least 10 foreigners were among the casualties.
Police released a sketch late Saturday of an individual believed to be part of the network responsible for the bombing.
Authorities also received an arrest warrant for an arsonist that set fire to a department store around the same time as the bombings. Pongsapat said that the two events were connected.
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakin ... 92937.html