The chief of Sa Kaeo immigration police, Pol Col Pairat Pukcharoen, and five other officers have been suddenly transferred to Bangkok for an indefinite period for allegedly taking bribes, <i>Thairath Online</i> reported.
The five other officers are Pol Lt Col Benjapol Rodsawat, Pol Lt Col Prasit Thongkham, Pol Lt Col Ruangdet Thammanan, Pol Lt Col Yankawi Prawatpakdi and Pol Maj Nathi Thongsukkaew.
National police chief Pol Gen Somyot Poompunmuang has ordered the six immigration officers to report the RTP's operations centre by 3pm on Sept 3.
The sudden transfer came after a foreign suspect who was arrested at an apartment in Nong Chok district told police that he paid Sa Kaeo immigration police to enter Thailand, Thairath reported.
The man said that he was using a fake passport and took a flight from Turkey to Vietnam before proceeding to Laos.
From Laos, he hired a vehicle to take him to Cambodia, and entered Thailand via the Sa Kaeo border checkpoint where he paid 18,000 baht to officials there so that he did not have to use his fake passport to go through a regular immigration procedure.
The man was arrested at Pool Anant Apartment in Nong Chok with some bomb-making materials and a large quantity of fake passports. He is suspected of involvement in the bombings at the Erawan shrine on Aug 17 and at Sathorn boat pier the following day.
The suspect, who was initially believed to be Turkish, has been detained by the military for questioning at the 11th Army Circle headquarters in Bang Khen. His real identity and nationality have yet to be established.
He was also suspected of being a member of a human-trafficking network which produces fake passports to enable Uighur migrants to travel to a third country and Turkey.
His information regarding the bribe led to the transfer of the six Sa Kaeo immigration police officers.
