SONGKHLA: A group of 61 illegal job seekers from Myanmar on their way to Malaysia were arrested at a resort in this southern border province on Friday night.
Police said a combined team of police, military and administrative officers found 32 female and 29 male migrants hiding in three rooms at the resort in tambon Thung Lung, Hat Yai district. Most were between nine and 17 years old.
During questioning, the migrants said they entered Kanchanaburi province via a natural border crossing and were travelling in three pickup trucks from Kanchanaburi to Hat Yai.
Authorities were able to arrest one of the drivers, Kirati Charoenchai, a 39-year-old Ang Thong native.
The migrants said they had paid 150,000 baht each to job brokers in Myanmar. They were told to wait for assistance getting across the border. Most of their parents were already working in Malaysia.
All of them tested negative for Covid-19.
They were taken to Thung Lung police station for legal proceedings.