PHETCHABURI — Security officials briefly closed part of Cha-am railway station after a fake bomb was discovered under a tree in front of the busy train building on Sunday morning.
A bomb disposal unit with sniffer dogs from the Naresuan police camp in Cha-am district was deployed to the scene after a motorcycle taxi driver found a suspicious device which appeared to be a bomb and alerted local police at about 9am.
After 20 minutes, during which the entrance and exit to the train station were sealed off, the bomb squad declared the object a hoax, said Pol Lt Col Paitoon Promkiew, deputy chief of Cha-am police station.
Officials examining the package said it was made of dry batteries placed in a yellow box that was wrapped in aluminum foil, with wires and a wristwatch attached to a black box.
Pol Lt Col Paitoon said police are now trying to identify the people behind the bomb scare and are inspecting fingerprints on the device.
He said the perpetrator may have intended to “incite disorder”, but did not elaborate.
The incident occured just a week before the nation decides on the fate of the junta-backed draft constitution on Aug 7.