A fishing boat owner, her son and daughter have been arrested for allegedly luring Thai nationals into working illegally on trawlers in Indonesian waters.
Amorn Thongma, owner of the Amorn 1 vessel, her son Prawit Singlek and daughter Nathaya Thongma were arrested in Songkhla and taken to the capital for questioning.
According to police, 36 out of the 69 Thai fishermen repatriated from Indonesia last week fell prey to human traffickers.
They told police the three suspects were the owners of the boat on which they were lured into working.
Deputy police chief Pol Gen Ake Angsananont said the court has approved five warrants for the arrest of human traffickers in the case and four suspects now had been arrested.
Another suspect, Somkiat Untreejan, was captured in Indonesia, Pol Gen Ake said. A repatriation process is underway to bring him back to Thailand.
Pol Gen Ake said police will wrap up the investigation within 30 days before forwarding the case to prosecutors for indictment.
This should be the first case that enters the new Criminal Court division for human trafficking cases, he said. The court starts functioning on Aug 10.
Meanwhile, a group of 39 fishermen are seeking protection from the Justice Ministry's Rights and Liberties Protection Department (RLPD) as witnesses in the case.
Accompanied by Paveena Hongsakul, chairwoman of the Foundation for Children and Women, the group lodged requests for protection with RLPD director-general Pol Col Naras Savestanan Monday.
They are among the 69 Thai workers who returned to Thailand last week with the help of the Foreign Ministry.
The group of 39 earlier sought help from the foundation, which contacted the ministry.
Ms Paveena said some fishermen were deceived into working on fishing boats in Indonesia without pay and were forced to work around the clock.
Some of them are from the southern provinces, especially Songkhla, where they live near human trafficking networks, making them fear for their safety, she said.
Pol Col Naras said officials will interview the petitioners before deciding who might be entitled to witness protection.
Under the Witness Protection in Criminal Cases Act, a protected person would be paid up to 800 baht a day for accommodation expenses, 200 baht per day for food and 200 baht per day for loss of working opportunities.
Ms Paveena also took the group to the labour minister to seek the minister's help.
She told officials the workers received only 10-20% of the wage they were promised by employers and were left stranded in Indonesia. Meanwhile, National Legislative Assembly (NLA) president Pornpetch Wichitcholachai said the assembly has reported on its role in amending laws in connection with human trafficking problems.
The National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO) has given advice on the matter over the past one year, Mr Pornpetch said. The NCPO was concerned about the enforcement of laws to combat illegal foreign workers on fishing trawlers.
In response, the NLA has changed the law to include harsher punishments, he said.
The NLA also came up with a new law to combat child exploitation, and played a role in examining how well laws are being enforced. If problems are detected, its members will file a motion to seek response from the government.
The assembly will also speed up the translation of human-trafficking laws into English to improve understanding among foreigners, Mr Pornpetch said.
It will also boost public relations efforts on the matter, he said.