KANCHANABURI: Sixteen Myanmar migrant workers – 10 men and six women – were apprehended by soldiers in Sangkhlaburi district on Saturday.
Col Chalermpol Sangtong, deputy commander of the Lat Ya Task Force, said the migrants were found hiding in a bamboo forest near the Highlands Agricultural Centre at about 6.30pm. Soldiers from the Nam Krirk border checkpoint near Moo 8 village in tambon Nong Lu found the sixteen about 100 metres from Highway 323 (Sangkhlaburi-Dan Chedi Sam Ong).
The soldiers were acting on information from a local intelligence unit of the Lat Ya Task Force.
The 16 said during questioning tha that following phone conversations with Myanmar job brokers, they travelled from Moulmein, Hpa-an and two other towns in Myanmar to Phyatonzu, the town that lies across the Three Pagodas Pass from Phra Chedi Sam Ong village in Sangkhlaburi district.
Led by Myanmar guides, they crossed the Song Karia stream into Thailand and hid in the bushes near the Highlands Agricultural Centre, waiting for a vehicle to take them further inside the country. Of the 16, five were destined for Chon Buri, four for Samut Sakhon, three for Bangkok, two for Ratchaburi and one each for Ratchaburi and Samut Prakan.
They were to pay 14,000-17,000 baht each to job brokers on arrival at their destinations.
The 16 were sent to Sangkhlaburi Hospital for health screenings before being handed over to police for further legal proceedings.