PHATTHALUNG: Three abducted Indonesian men have been rescued from a house where they were being held for ransom in Muang district, and an armed Thai suspect arrested.
Phatthalung police commander Pol Maj Gen Nathakorn Kanchanaporn said the three foreigners were held captive in house 123 in village 7 of tambon Tha Khae in Muang district.
They were identified only as Syawana, 29, Ariyadi, 29, and Syabini, 39.
Pol Maj Gen Nathakorn said police were informed by the Indonesian embassy that Mr Syawana had been abducted in Hat Yai district of Songkhla. He was tortured and the abuse recorded and the video sent to the victim's younger sister in Indonesia.
The kidnappers demanded the woman pay a 2.3-million-baht ransom for his release. She sent them about 800,000 baht and simultaneously filed a complaint.
Acting on information from the Indonesian consulate in Songkhla, police raided the house in tambon Tha Khae in Phatthalung on Tuesday.
During the rescue operation, police found two other Indonesians also being held captive. All three were taken to hospital for physical examinations.
At the raided house, police arrested Weerasak Thong-ubon, 36, a local resident of the same village in Phatthalung. He was in possession of a pistol.
Two other armed men were also at the scene. They were from Waeng district of Narathiwat. Police were still investigating whether they were involved, Pol Maj Gen Nathakorn said.