Two men have been arrested and charged with human-trafficking after they were caught attempting to smuggle seven Myanmar nationals across the Sungai Kolok river in Narathiwat province to Malaysia.
At a press conference on Monday, Pol Lt Gen Thitirat Nonghanpithak, comissioner of the Central Investigation Bureau, identified the two arrested men as Sukiman Yuso and Muhamadsueri Sapae-ing.
He said that acting on information some Myanmar nationals would be smuggled into Malaysia across the Sungai Kolok river from Sungai Kolok district, marine police and lay in wait in bushes beside the river on Sunday night.
When a pickup truck arrived at the river bank, the police emerged and stopped it for a search. They found seven illegal Myanmar migrants, five men and two women, aged 17 to 32, and their baggage in the vehicle, which was driven by Mr Sukiman.
Mr Sukiman told the police he was hired by Mr Muhamadsueri to drive the migrants to the river bank.
At that time, Mr Muhamadsueri arrived on a motorcycle. He was detained for for questioning.
Pol Maj Gen Kritthapol Yeesakhon, the marine police commander, said when questioned at the marine police headquarters in Narathiwat, Mr Muhamadsueri said he was hired by a Myanmar national identified only as Sa-eh, who was in Bangkok, to take Myanmar migrant workers to Malaysia. He was paid 4,000 baht for each of them.
Speaking through an interpreter, the migrants said they sneaked across the border from Myanmar into Sangkha Buri of Kanchanaburi province. From the border they were taken to Ratchaburi railway station.
From there they travelled by train to Narathiwat in the company of another man. They were met at the railway station and travelled by pickup truck to a house where they met Mr Muhamadsueri. About an hour after that, they were driven in a pickup truck by Mr Sukiman to the river bank.
Pol Maj Gen Kritthapol said Mr Sukiman and Mr Muhamadsueri were members of a human-trafficking ring. They had been charged with human trafficking and violating the Immigration Act.