Police have arrested three Chinese and two Thais for alleged involvement in the online arms trade.
The arrests were announced yesterday by acting police chief Watcharapol Prasarnratchakij at the Royal Thai Police Office.
Pol Gen Watcharapol said the Immigration Police Bureau was contacted by the Chinese embassy earlier this month to apprehend suspects involved with internet arms trading in Thailand, which subsequently led to the arrest of the Chinese twins — Yi Po and Yi Tao.
The investigation then led to the discovery of firearms abandoned at the entrance of Soi Bansuan-Sethakij 30 in tambon Nong Ri of Chon Buri's Muang district.
Investigators later caught Huang Xuegeng, a Chinese man, Seksan Satthai, 42, and Sakol Chairos, 32, and impounded more weapons, Pol Gen Watcharapol said.
The confiscated weapons included an AK-47 assault rifle, two Mauser rifles, multiple handguns and several rounds of ammunition.
Police obtained information about where the weapons were being traded, he said.
The arrests prove authorities were zealous about pursuing the arms trade in Thailand, he said.
Police were also aware some teenagers in the eastern region had ordered firearms over the internet.
"Arms smuggling and their trade online have increased and responsible units such as the Technology Crime Suppression Division must deal with this illegal activity," Pol Gen Watcharapol said.
Information gleaned from monitoring the online firearms trade is shared with other agencies.
Pol Maj Gen Sanit Mahataworn, acting Provincial Police Region 2 commissioner, said the Chinese arms trade gang had been working in Thailand for more than a year.
They approached the Thai suspects to secure the supply of weapons so they could fill the online orders, he said.
Most of the guns were registered and bought from their owners who sold them for a profit.
As for the war weapons and ammunition, which cannot be legally obtained, they were smuggled across the border from a neighbouring country, Pol Maj Gen Sanit said.
Chinese authorities will have to investigate further to find out where the smuggled weapons were headed. He said the seized weapons were not linked to the political violence in Thailand.