Thai authorities have identified what they believe is a link between international crime syndicates and an Iranian man who used stolen passports to order two tickets on the ill-fated Malaysian Airlines flight MH370.
A Malaysian police official displays photographs of the two men who boarded the Malaysia Airlines MH370 flight using stolen European passports to the media at a hotel near Kuala Lumpur International Airport in Sepang on March 11, 2014. Malaysian police said on March 11 one of two suspect passengers who boarded a missing passenger jet was an Iranian illegal immigrant, as relatives of some of the 239 people on board said they were losing hope for a miracle. (AFP photo)
Immigration Bureau deputy chief Preecha Thimamontri yesterday said investigators believe the man, who he identified only as "Ali", ran a gang which provided forged passports to international human trafficking groups.
Muang Pattaya police superintendent Pol Col Supachai Puikaewkam said "Ali" was believed to be Alireza Kolmoham, 39.
Pol Maj Gen Preecha said the gang had purchased stolen passports and sold them to people with similar facial profiles to those featured in the travel documents.
"I and my team of investigators are conducting further investigation into Mr Ali's crime networks with the Australian Federal Police and the Defence Security Service of the United States,'' he said.
Two passengers on board Malaysian Airlines MH370, which disappeared en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on Saturday, had carried passports stolen from Italian national Luigi Maraldi and Austrian Christian Kozel. Both passports were stolen in Phuket.
Mr Ali had initially reserved the tickets for the two passengers at Grand Horizon travel agency in South Pattaya, Chon Buri, on Thursday, before forwarding the email to its partner agency Six Stars Travel at Central Plaza Pattaya.
After Six Stars Travel contacted China Southern Airlines — which operates a code-share agreement with Malaysia Airlines — in Bangkok, tickets were issued for the two passengers the same day.
They were scheduled to fly to Beijing and then onward to Amsterdam.
The passenger booked with the Italian passport was to fly onward to Copenhagen, while the one booked with the Austrian passport was to continue to Frankfurt.
Meanwhile, Interpol was yesterday shifting its investigation into the disappearance of flight MH370 away from the possibility of a terrorist attack.
"The more information we get, the more we are inclined to conclude it was not a terrorist incident," Ronald K Noble, head of Interpol, told reporters in Lyon, France.
Mr Noble appealed for the public's help in identifying the two Iranian passengers, named as Pouri Nour Mohammadi, 19, and Delavar Seyed Mohammadreza, 29.
Malaysian police also said the 19-year-old man was believed to be trying to migrate to Germany, and had no terror links.
Malaysian police chief Khalid Abu Bakar said Mohammadi was believed to be planning to enter Germany to seek asylum.
"We believe he is not likely to be a member of any terrorist group," Mr Khalid said.
He added that the young man's mother was waiting for him in Frankfurt and had been in contact with police. He said she contacted Malaysian authorities to inform them of her concern when her son failed to get in touch with her.
Back in Thailand, Pol Maj Gen Preecha said his officers were still working to investigate the history of the stolen passports.
There is no record of the documents being used in Thailand after their reported disappearance.
A police source said the testimony of the Italian man about his stolen passport seemed "suspicious", but did not elaborate.
The Bangkok Post called Mr Maraldi to ask about the police suspicions. But Mr Maraldi only said, "Sorry, sorry'', and hung up the phone.
Phuket Immigration Office chief Sanchai Chokkhayaikij said he questioned Mr Maraldi again yesterday about his claims that he had lost his passport in Phuket after learning about a statement from an owner of a motorcycle rental shop in relation to an Italian man whose passport went missing last July.
The owner said a foreign man, claiming to be a customer, asked to borrow a passport from the shop so he could withdraw money from a bank. He apparently left a Russian passport, allegedly that of his girlfriend as a guarantee. The man took the one issued to the Italian man and he has not been seen since.
But Pol Col Sanchai said after questioning that he had not found anything suspicious in the Italian man's claims.
Immigration Bureau chief Pharnu Kerdlarpphon said the same investigation had found that an Iranian man who called himself "Azem" paid 51,000 baht for the two tickets at Grand Horizon in South Pattaya.
Pol Lt Gen Pharnu said Mr Azem was married to a Thai woman in Pattaya was a friend of Mr Ali.
After the payment was made, Mr Ali repaid the money to a bank account of Mr Azem's relative in Iran, he said.
Pattaya Immigration police and local police yesterday went to the house of Mr Azem in Pattaya to question him. He was identified by Pattaya police as Hashem Golestani, 51.
Pol Lt Gen Pharnu said a search of the two Iranians' immigration data revealed that Mr Ali had entered Thailand 19 times. He left the country in December and is believed to now be in Iran.
Mr Azem has been living in Thailand for 17 years under a tourist visa. He last entered Thailand via a Cambodian border checkpoint last July.
Authorities yesterday expanded their search for the missing Boeing 777 on the opposite side of the Malaysia's coast from where it disappeared days ago with 239 people on board.
Speculation has ranged widely, including pilot error, plane malfunction, hijacking and terrorism.