Thai politician held over trafficking
Intensive effort by the authorities to tackle Rohingya labour trafficking continues as a 10-day timeframe designated by Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha to crack down on the illicit trade looms.
Police on Saturday arrested a local politician in Satun, Abu Ha-ura, over his alleged involvement in human trafficking, while two other suspects who are Abu's aides are among 49 wanted suspects.
Abu is among four politicians in custody, who also include the mayor and deputy mayor of Padang Besar municipality in Songkhla. The arrests of two other unnamed suspects means 15 people are being detained.
Abu, 54, a councillor with the provincial assembly representing Khuan Don district, has allegedly confessed to the crimes, after he was charged with human trafficking, abduction and restraint of others' freedom.
He underwent a re-enactment of his crimes at several locations in Khuan Don, where five Rohingya women took part by indicating the route they had been smuggled along between Khuan Don and Satun's Langu district.
Two police officers assigned to the Border Patrol and an area office have been suspended following allegations over their involvement with Rohingya labour trafficking, said deputy police chief General Aek Angsananont.
He also said he was seeking the permanent discharge of Padang Besar Mayor Bannajong Pongphol and his deputy, Prasit Lemleh, via the Songkhla provincial authority.
Aek said police had been working on the problem 24 hours a day since last week.
He said police seeking evidence to obtain court-approved warrants for 49 suspects in only seven days was a record. A few village heads were among the local politicians wanted under arrest warrants.
A body was found yesterday during an inspection of an abandoned Muslim cemetery in Sadao district in Songkhla, after six bodies had earlier been found in eight graves. DNA tests are under way to determine who they were.
More than 240 migrants were under government care at three locations in Songkhla's Rattaphum, Hat Yai and Sadao districts, including 180 found abandoned in the past few days by smugglers fearing detection. There are 152 migrants, including eight women, at the Rattaphum facility undergoing verification of their nationalities, which reportedly include Myanmar nationals, Bangladeshis and Rohingya, an ethic group from Myanmar.
A senior immigration police officer, Maj-General Thatchai Pitanee-labutr, said the victims of human traffickers would be sent to shelters pending a decision on whether they could stay in Thailand, while illegal immigrants would be repatriated.