A man suspected of involvement in the Koh Samui car bombing and wanted on arrest warrants for aiding the southern insurgency was killed by security forces in a gun battle yesterday.
National police chief Pol Gen Somyot Pumpunmuang said 30-year-old Arhamasu Jaeha was killed by officers in Pattani as they tried to convince him to turn himself in.
A combined force of police and army officers sealed off a children’s centre in Muang Pattani district early yesterday morning to negotiate with suspects who were hiding.
The suspects are believed to be connected to the car bomb at Central Festival Samui on April 10, according to police.
The operation came after the arrest of Mahamud Jeaha on April 29, who told investigators that a group of insurgents had been lying low at the centre.
The insurgents entered the area last week and were employed at the centre as construction workers, police said.
During the operation to arrest the men, the suspects managed to evade the authorities and then opened fire. A lengthy gun battle ensued and continued into the afternoon. Soldiers and police took control of an area behind the children’s centre at about 1pm. They retrieved the body of a man, later identified as Arhamasu.
His body was taken to Pattani Hospital for an autopsy. Arhamasu had been wanted on charges of arson, insurgency and illegal possession of explosives.
Two suspects surrendered. They were identified as Suriya Taha, 29, a resident of Pattani’s Mayor district, and Waesorhao Dohloh, 30. They have been detained for questioning.
Security forces are hunting three other suspects who escaped.
Internal Security Operations Command spokesman Col Bunphot Poonpean said the authorities had tried to handle the operation carefully in response to orders from Deputy Defence Minister and army chief Udomdej Sitabutr. He said officers had no choice but to "escalate their response" when attempts to negotiate failed.