NAKHON SI THAMMARAT: A police lieutenant has been arrested on charges of robbing a gold shop in Thung Yai district at gunpoint and making off with ornaments worth about 400,000 baht.
Pol Lt Meechai Chorsom was apprehended on Friday evening at the Nong Chik police station in Pattani, where he worked, and taken to the Thung Yai station, said Pol Col Preecha Panyalert, the Thung Yai chief.
During the interrogation, Pol Lt Meechai denied any knowledge of the crime, but officers have obtained solid evidence against the suspect, said the district police chief.
The arrest came after a lone man robbed the Jiraporn gold shop in tambon Bang Roop and made off with 20-baht weight (304 grammes) of gold ornaments worth about 400,000 baht on Wednesday evening. Police said he stood outside the metal security grille and forced the saleswoman at gunpoint to bring the ornaments to him. He fled on a motorcycle.
Police examined closed-circuit television images at the robbery scene and nearby areas that shed light on the motorcycle, said Pol Col Preecha. The officers later found the bike belonged to another man in Phra Saeng district of Surat Thani.
Investigators questioned the motorcycle owner, who said that Pol Lt Meechai had borrowed his bike, claiming he wanted to look at some rubber and oil palm plantations nearby.
The policeman later returned the bike, whose owner said he was not aware it had been used in a robbery.
Police gathered further evidence and later sought approval from the Thung Yai provincial court to arrest Pol Lt Meechai.
A CCTV image provided by police shows a man reaching through the security grille at the Jiraporn gold shop during the course of the robbery on Wednesday.