Cops arrest vagrant who may have sparked blaze at bridge

Cops arrest vagrant who may have sparked blaze at bridge

Samrarn Muangkhiaw, 31, alias EK Lock1, shows police where he allegedly dropped a cigarette butt beneath the Thai-Belgian Bridge, thought to have caused the fire on Feb 28. Krit Promsaka Na Sakolnakorn
Samrarn Muangkhiaw, 31, alias EK Lock1, shows police where he allegedly dropped a cigarette butt beneath the Thai-Belgian Bridge, thought to have caused the fire on Feb 28. Krit Promsaka Na Sakolnakorn

A homeless windscreen washer suspected of causing a fire that damaged the Thai-Belgian Bridge late last month has been arrested.

He admitted to dropping a cigarette butt on some dried leaves beneath the bridge after returning from relieving himself nearby, police said.

Samran Muangkhiaw, 31, aka EK Lock1, was caught near the Thanyaburi Welfare Centre for Homeless Men in Pathum Thani on Thursday night.

He was wanted on a court warrant issued on March 15 for causing the fire that damaged the bridge. He was seen on surveillance camera footage walking by the base of the bridge just before the fire.

Metropolitan Police Bureau chief Sanit Mahathavorn said yesterday he had ordered city police to look for the suspect seen in the surveillance footage. Forensic police had concluded the fire on the morning of Feb 28 was started by a cigarette butt. A reward of 10,000 baht had been offered for information leading to his arrest.

The 31-year-old suspect is thought to be the leader of a gang offering a windscreen cleaning service to motorists at traffic lights at the nearby Henri Dunant and Witthayu intersections, police said.

Mr Samran allegedly confessed he was sleeping beneath the Thai-Belgian bridge on the morning of the fire. About 6am, he woke up and relieved himself nearby. At the time he was smoking a discarded cigarette butt he found and dropped it on some leaves near garbage bins stored under the bridge. He then left the area, heading to Sala Daeng intersection near Lumpini Park where his friends were sleeping.

On the way, he looked back and saw black smoke coming from beneath the bridge. He was so scared he ran away.

Pol Lt Gen Sanit said Mr Samran insisted he had no links to any political group or any conflict with other homeless people.

Mr Samran was yesterday handed over to Thung Mahamek police and taken back to the scene for a re-enactment.

The fire damaged the bridge structure, causing safety concerns and forced its partial closure for repairs, resulting in traffic jams on congested Rama IV Road. The work is expected to continue until May 15.

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