Seventeen people, including migrant workers and suspected online gambling administrators returning from Cambodia, have been arrested in separate operations along the border in Chanthaburi province, Thai authorities said on Saturday.
The arrests were made on Friday by officers from the Chanthaburi and Trat Border Defence Command, local police and immigration officers during patrol and surveillance operations in Pong Nam Ron district of Chanthaburi province, Royal Thai Navy spokesman Rear Adm Parach Rattanachaiyaphan said on Saturday.
In the first operation, a marine unit, local police and immigration officers arrested four Cambodian nationals and one Thai near a forested border zone at about 4.30pm.
Officers also seized a pickup truck believed to have been used to transport the migrants, who had crossed into Thailand through a natural border passage, said the navy spokesman.
The detainees reportedly admitted they intended to travel further into Thailand for work, paying about 5,000 baht each for transport. They were taken into custody for legal proceedings.
A Thai man who showed his ID card and four Cambodian illegal migrants are arrested in a forested border zone in Pong Nam Ron district of Chanthaburi on Friday afternoon. (Photo: Navy spokesman)
At about 5pm, another patrol unit stopped a Thai man behaving suspiciously while riding a motorcycle along an agricultural road near the border in Marum village of tambon Khlong Yai.
A search revealed he was attempting to smuggle consumer goods and Thai cigarettes into Cambodia in exchange for a 1,000-baht fee. A urine test later showed the presence of methamphetamine. He was detained along with the motorcycle for prosecution.
Half an hour later, special operations personnel, together with police investigators, apprehended 9 Cambodian nationals near border marker 53 in tambon Thep Nimit. The group was found walking through difficult terrain in an apparent attempt to avoid detection. None possessed valid travel documents.
The migrants told authorities they were driven by economic hardship in Cambodia and sought employment in eastern provinces including Chanthaburi, Rayong and Chon Buri. They were handed over to investigators for further legal action.
Later, at 5.50pm, officers intercepted two Thai nationals riding a motorcycle in another border-side agricultural area. The pair admitted they had illegally re-entered Thailand after working as administrators for an online gambling operation in Pailin province of Cambodia.
The suspects told authorities that they earned between 20,000 and 25,000 baht per month, but decided to flee after Cambodian authorities launched crackdowns on buildings tied to online gambling networks, rendering their operations unsustainable.
They said they had paid 8,000 baht each to be smuggled back into Thailand. The suspects were handed over to police investigators and immigration officers for legal action.
Rear Adm Parach said economic conditions in Cambodia, coupled with authorities’ efforts to improve the country’s image through crackdowns on illicit operations, have contributed to increased cross-border movement.
