Thirty illegal migrants, including nine children, and two Thai drivers were arrested by the army in the northern provinces of Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai.
In Chiang Rai, a patrol from the Pha Muang Task Force spotted a group of people not far from the border walking towards a waiting pickup truck on a road at Pha Mee village in tambon Wiang Phang Kham of Mae Sai district on Friday morning.
They were stopped and questioned. There were 11 illegal border crossers from Myanmar, and one guide.
The migrants said they had crossed from Myanmar into Thailand using a natural border crossing. They were heading for jobs in Bangkok. All were detained for legal action and deportation.
In Chiang Mai, soldiers from the Pha Muang Task Force stopped a van for a search at Bang Makong checkpoint in Ping Khong of Chiang Dao district on Thursday afternoon.
The van had a Thai driver and 19 passengers, nine of them children. None of the migrants had travel documents.
The adults told the arresting team they had illegally sneaked into Thailand using a natural border crossing and planned to get jobs in Chiang Dao district.
All were handed over to Chiang Dao police station for legal proceedings and deportation.
Eleven illegal migrants from Myanmar were found on this pickup truck, which was stopped for a search in Chiang Rai's Mae Sai district on Friday morning. (Photo: Pha Muang Task Force)