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Prayer and candle light mark Visakha Bucha Day
In the evening, residents
listen to sermons.
Devout Buddhists pay homage to
the Buddha at Nong Aor Temple.
Devout Buddhists pay homage to
the Buddha.
Buddhist monks lead residents
in the evening ‘tak baht’ ceremony.
Crowds at Wat Nong Aor put
food in the bowls of Buddhist monks in the morning.
Hundreds of residents
performed the ‘wien tien’ ceremonies at Nongyai Temple in Pattaya.
Devout Buddhists perform the
tak baht ceremony at Nongyai Temple.
Ariyawat Nuamsawat
Devout Buddhists gathered in Pattaya’s temples on May 12, Visakha Bucha Day,
to make merit by placing food in the bowls of monks in the morning, and then
walking with lit candles in their hands around the temples in the evening.
Visakha Bucha Day is one of the most important days in Buddhism, marking
three important incidents in the life of the Buddha, namely his birth,
enlightenment, and passing away. Each year, Buddhists throughout the world
gather together to worship and to contemplate the wisdom, purity and
compassion of the Buddha.
There are 10 temples in Pattaya City and Banglamung district, and all of
them were crowded with devout Buddhists throughout the day and evening.
One worshipper, Ms Saowanee Changcharoen, who came to make merit at Nongyai
Temple, said that she regularly comes here with her family and friends,
especially on this important day. This year, she said, she intends to make
merit to honor His Majesty the King’s 60 years on the throne.
Annulled election leaves Pattaya voters fed up with waste of time and money
The atmosphere at the 2 April Elections, which
were annulled by the Constitutional Court.
Suchada Tupchai
Pattaya residents are disgruntled over the annulled election, many of
them saying that it has all been a waste of time and taxpayers’ money
and that they and their families will probably not bother voting next
time.
The April 2 general election was annulled after the Constitutional Court
scrutinized the actions of the Election Commission. The court found that
the timing of the election was unfair, giving an advantage to the
government at the time of dissolution and therefore breaking the
impartiality of the Election Commission under Article 136 of the
constitution and violating Article 144, which covers the holding of fair
and clean elections.
Small parties were allegedly hired by large parties to participate in
the election to prevent only single entrants in some electorates. The
Election Commission petitioned the court to dissolve the smaller
political parities that had been bought off by the larger parties and
bring criminal proceedings against the leaders of such parties. This not
only violates the Election Act under the constitution but also violates
Article 108 of the constitution, which decrees that a political party
may submit only one representative in a single electorate district and
the buying by the larger political parties of such smaller party
representatives constitutes sending two representatives from the same
party.
The judges of the Constitutional Court found that the April 2 election
was unconstitutional, and a new general election has been scheduled for
October.
Pattaya residents are, however, deeply skeptical of the entire business.
An employee at city hall said it was a waste of time, waste of effort
and a waste of budget. However, the whole time wasting process had to be
repeated otherwise there was a danger of the public losing their rights.
Pattaya Mail asked the opinions of some of those who had voted in the
last election and found a good deal of resentment over the waste of time
and funds. A widely repeated opinion was that they would not be sorry
over the rights they would lose by not voting this time around.
Works continue to ease annual water shortages
Nong Pla Lai has become the
central reservoir to top up other reservoirs when needed.
Ariyawat Nuamsawat
Managing director of Eastern Water Resources Management and Development Co
Ltd Wanchai Lawatanatrakul on May 6 conducted a briefing of the new
facilities being constructed to remedy the water shortages in the Eastern
region.
Wanchai said that at the Bang Pakong River in Cha Chiangsao a pumping
facility has been constructed with a water holding capacity of 30,000 cubic
meters, and that an additional one is planned for later.
Eastwater is laying a 1,400-millimeter pipe from Bang Pakong to Sriracha
that will connect to the existing pipe between Nong Khor and Laem Chabang.
The new pipe is approximately 53 kilometers in length and runs alongside the
motorway. When operational it will have a feed capacity of 200,000 cubic
meters per day or 50 million cubic meters per year. Wanchai said the company
had invested 2,500 million baht in the project, which is now complete, but
the pumps cannot be turned on yet because the Bang Pakong River is too
salty. The pumps are ready to be turned on this June, he said.
“Water fed down the pipe will be stored at Bang Pra reservoir which will be
used to supply consumers and industry as demand will increase in the future.
Fifty million cubic meters of water can be stored annually as Bang Pra
reservoir can hold up to 117 million cubic meters.”
Wanchai added that once water can be distributed from Bang Pra reservoir,
distribution from Nong Pla Lai reservoir in Rayong will be reduced yet still
meet the demand of new consumers at Nikom Amatanakorn, Nong Khor where it is
anticipated that there will be a need for 10 million cubic meters annually.
Other than private sector projects, the government has drought prevention
projects for the Eastern region. The Irrigation Department is to connect Pra
Sae and Khlong Yai reservoirs, a project that includes a 1,600-millimeter
pipe 29 kilometers in length, a 1,400-millimeter pipe 2 kilometers long, and
the construction of pumping facilities that will have a capacity of 80
million cubic meters annually. The budget for this is 1,680 million baht.
The project commenced last October and will be completed by the middle of
this year, being at present about half completed.
Nattawut Sroyprasert of the Irrigation Department said there are a pumping
facility and a 900-millimeter pipe project being built under a 300 million
baht program to store water at Dok Kray reservoir in Rayong. This will have
a pumping capacity of 2,200 cubic meters per hour over a distance of 11
kilometers.
“Rainwater does not flow into the reservoir but flows behind the reservoir,
resulting in low water levels,” he said. “If water flows into the reservoir
then the pumps don’t need to be turned on, saving on electricity.”
Kaset Phusuwan is head of the Khlong Yai project, which involves
transferring water from Khlong Yai to Nong Pla Lai, a distance of 3,200
meters. The project started last September and will be completed this month.
“Transferring water from Khlong Yai to Nong Pla Lai involves a natural
process, as Khlong Yai is located higher than Nong Pla Lai,” he said. “If
the water levels are high in Khlong Yai then the gates can be opened and the
water will flow down into Nong Pla Lai at 9 cubic meters per minute.”
Sukhcharoen Woraphan Sophak, head of planning for the Eastwater project said
that the government had future drought prevention measures and had allotted
a budget of more than 3 billion baht for laying a parallel line with the
Eastwater pipe from Bang Pakong to Chonburi. There is also a water transfer
project from Khlong Wang Tonok in Chanthaburi to Rayong and Chonburi. Both
projects are in the planning stages and will commence soon to bring them in
line with other projects.
Natural water resources at the end of April were as follows. Dok Krai
reservoir had 51 million cubic meters of water, and Nong Pla Lai had 102
cubic meters; the combined levels are 70 million cubic meters higher this
year than last year. Khlong Yai has 35 million cubic meters and Pra Sae has
190 cubic meters, enough to meet demand even with only sporadic rainfall.
Wanchai added that other than the present government and private sector
plans, the company still has other drought prevention projects in hand under
an allocated budget of 500 million baht. These include a drought warning
system, using Nong Pla Lai as the measure. There is a scheme for backups at
present belonging to the private sector or communities to be purchased or
rented and connected to the company networks.
Wanchai added that eventually the reservoirs in the Eastern region, namely
Bang Pra, Khlong Yai, Dok Krai, and Nong Pla Lai would be interconnected,
with Nong Pla Lai as the central reservoir to top up each other when needed.
Chonburi opens 1669 hotline for emergency medical services
Piyavadee Suvannahong
Chonburi Public Health Department has opened a hotline, number 1669, for
any member of the public needing urgent medical services.
The service is for emergency call-out in the event of accidents and
disasters, and to give advice and if necessary hospital transfer in cases of
illness.
Dr Sonchai Wattana, a physician at the Chonburi Public Health Department,
said that anyone using the service should give their name and a telephone
number where they can be reached. The 1669 radio center will order a rescue
team and assign an emergency physician to guide the medical workers so that
appropriate action can be taken as the person receiving treatment is
transferred to hospital.
Calls to the 1669 hotline center are free, as are the emergency services.
But in the event that the in-patient at the hospital needs to pay, then they
must pay according to their right of entitlement.
Drunken woman driver kills 1 and injures 2
A woman driving while drunk killed a pedestrian and injured two other people
when she lost control of her car on a curve. The accident happened at 5 a.m.
on May 5.
Dongtan police sub-station at Najomtien received a report that a car had
crashed on the curve at Soi Chaiyapruk, in front of the 7-Eleven store.
 A
Bangkok woman killed one man and injured two pedestrians in a drunken
driving accident at Soi Chaiyapruk.
Two people were injured. They were Somchat Kidwan, 24, who had both his legs
broken; and Bunrom Thongsaeng, 17, who suffered a broken left arm and right
leg. Police transferred the two to hospital.
Lying nearby at the damaged door of a house was the dead body of Ekarin
Mungrakklang, a 37-year-old resident of Udon Thani. He had died from
multiple injuries.
Approximately 100 meters away from the two injured people and the dead man
was a black Toyota Altis. The vehicle was damaged. Crushed beneath the car
was a Honda Sonic motorcycle. Inside the car was Miss Nathawadee Homhuan, a
27-year-old resident of Bangsue, in Bangkok. She was in a state of
intoxication. Police charged her with careless driving causing death and
injury, and damage to property.
The accident occurred in front of a three-floor commercial building that was
damaged by the collision and flying debris, for the car had demolished a
telephone booth and plowed into two other motorcycles in addition to the
Honda Sonic, slicing both machines in two.
Police have established that Nathawadee was driving from the direction of
Pattaya City and traveling towards Sattahip. She lost control on the curve.
The car ran over people walking on the footpath in front of 7-Eleven before
colliding with all of the motorbikes parked there.
Body of Estonian man found in sea
Boonlua Chatree
Tourists bathing in the sea near the Dusit Resort during the afternoon of
May 6 fled in shock when they discovered the body of a man floating about 5
meters away from the shore.
A security officer working at the hotel, 24-year-old Jakarin Bunma saw the
tourists scrambling from the water and when he went to investigate the
commotion found the body floating face down.
Police arriving at the scene dragged the body onto the beach. The man was
dressed in black trousers but was shirtless. Inside a trouser pocket,
officers found a Visa card, two baht in coins and a driving license with the
name Baranov Matieesti, 34, a national of Estonia.
The body showed no signs of being attacked and the man had been dead not
less than 12 hours. Police took fingerprints before sending the body to the
Department of Forensic Medicine.
One-armed man slit lesbian’s throat in fit of jealousy
Boonlua Chatree
A one-armed man slit the throat of a lesbian prostitute who was
having an affair with a woman he had fallen in love with.
Police received a report of the attack just after midnight on May 6 and,
of course, rushed to the scene, which was outside the Buakao Rama
Cinema. However, the severely injured woman had already been taken to
Pattaya Memorial Hospital in Central Pattaya.
Upon arrival at the hospital officers found the woman undergoing
emergency treatment. She was identified as Miss Wilai Boonkum, age 47, a
resident of Soi Buakao. The wound to her throat required 80 stitches.
Police officers questioned her after her throat had been stitched back
together. Wilai hoarsely told officers that she had taken her
girlfriend, 29-year-old Miss Renu Saenporn to see a movie at the Buakao
Rama Cinema. A 45-year-old man named Saowaluk Hannarong, a left-arm
amputee who worked as a shoe polisher for the tourists in the bars, had
fallen in love with Renu. He found the two women watching a movie and
assumed they were courting each other. He was jealous so he took Wilai’s
arm and asked to speak to her outside the cinema. She followed him
without realizing there was any danger, and Saowaluk took a cutter from
his pocket and slit her throat.
Saowaluk ran from the scene of the crime and police are now searching
for a dangerous one-armed jealous shoe polisher who’s attracted to
lesbian prostitutes’ girlfriends.
17-year-old youth charged with killing of world jet ski champ
Boonlua Chatree
A 17-year old youth has been charged with the killing on March 19 of
world jet ski champion Theerawat Lahib.
 17-year
old “Yod” was arrested and charged with the killing of world jet ski
champion Theerawat Lahib.
Police had earlier arrested six men on charges of intended murder, and the
possession and carrying of a gun and ammunition. On May 6 they announced
that the youth, who can be identified only by the pseudonym of Yod, was the
person who actually pulled the trigger. Yod was not one of the six
originally arrested, having fled Pattaya. Police, however, learned that he
had subsequently returned, and that he was in hiding near the Jet gasoline
station in North Pattaya, and they seized him.
During questioning, Yod told officers that he had made an appointment with
22-year-old Theerawat, who was leader of the Flamingo gang. Yod said he only
wanted to clear differences between the two of them, but Theerawat drove his
Toyota Sport Rider into him and Yod fired the gun, killing the jet ski
champ. He then went into hiding at a friend’s house in Nong Bualampoo before
being tricked by police that his girlfriend had been arrested. He hurried
back to Pattaya to see her. Yod has been charged with murder.
Government pawnshop does brisk business as school year looms
City hall lends support with 10mn baht budget
Vimolrat Singnikorn
Pattaya’s government-run pawnshop is once again busy with the approach
of the school term, and the city council has prepared a 10 million baht
budget to support the enterprise.
Parents, faced with high expenses in outfitting and equipping their children
for the new school year have been visiting the pawnshop since April to
acquire the funds they need.
Pattaya’s government-run pawnshop is doing brisk business, as the new school term gets
underway.
Pattaya City Pawnshop is a government project, and therefore the interest
payments are low. Pawnshop director Nopatad Kongkerd said the percentage
charged is only 0.75 baht per month if the capital is not over 2,000 baht.
For 3,000 and 5,000 baht, the interest will be 1 baht and 1.25 baht per
month. There is a four-month grace period and 30 days for unpaid interest.
However, according to the pawnshop’s rules, deposited objects would be
seized if they exceed the agreed-upon period.
Nopatad said that most of the items deposited are gold ornaments. Currently
the price of gold is increasing and higher than usual sums can be obtained.
The pawnshop will not lend more than 80 percent for the price of the gold.
This year city hall has arranged a 10 million baht budget to support the
pawnshop for this peak period of people in need. The pawnshop is located on
Beach Road Soi 6, and is open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday,
closing at weekends and public holidays.
Cobra Gold’06 kicks off in Nakhon Nayok
U.S. Ambassador Ralph L. Boyce and Thai Supreme Commander
Gen. Ruengroj Mahasaranond officially opened the annual joint/combined
military exercise ‘Cobra Gold’ 06’ (CG’06) at the Armed Forces Academics
Preparatory School in Nakhon Nayok province. Singaporean Ambassador Peter
Chan Jer Hing, Japanese Ambassador Hideaki Kobayashi and Indonesian
Ambassador Ibrahim Yusuf also attended the opening ceremony.
During the opening ceremony, Ambassador Boyce remarked, “For a quarter
century, Cobra Gold has been the most visible symbol of U.S. and Thai
military cooperation. Over recent years, Cobra Gold has evolved from being a
strictly bilateral joint exercise to a multilateral event designed to
enhance our ability to respond to peace enforcement and peacekeeping
responsibilities under the United Nations. This year, in addition to
participation by Thailand and the United States, we are again honored to
include Japanese and Singaporean participants. Also, we welcome for the
first time the participation of Indonesia.”
Training will consist of a computer-simulated staff exercise, field training
exercises, and humanitarian/civic assistance projects.
The exercise will combine Thai, U.S., and Singaporean armed forces in a
combined task force headquarters computer simulated staff exercise. Thailand
and the United States will conduct field training exercises. Thailand, the
United States, Singapore, Japan, and Indonesia will participate in a
computer simulation exercise designed around a United Nations multi-national
peace keeping scenario. Thailand, the United States, and Singapore will
participate in humanitarian/civic assistance projects, designed to improve
quality of life and local infrastructure for the host Thai people; Japan
will participate in the humanitarian/civic assistance projects as an
observer. Concurrently, the United States and Thailand will conduct a peace
support operations field training exercise in support of the United Nations
Global Peace Operations Initiative (GPOI).
Cobra Gold is a regularly scheduled joint and combined multilateral exercise
held in the Kingdom of Thailand. Cobra Gold 2006 the latest in a continuing
series of exercises designed to promote regional peace and security.
Royal Navy conducts disaster control exercise with Sattahip local government officials
Patcharapol Panrak
The Royal Navy worked together with local government departments in
Sattahip district on May 4 on a program of disaster control training.
Concern had been raised about the lack of a cooperation structure between
the responsible civilian departments and agencies in the event of a disaster
in the Sattahip district, as there is no central command that can mobilize
all the forces that might be necessary.
The Royal Thai Navy cooperated with Sattahip district and the local
administration to train for public disaster relief.
The Royal Navy plays a strong role in local rescue operations, and on this
occasion put on a demonstration to show how to coordinate the rescue
services in the event of a major fire.
Admiral Wichai Yuwanangkul, deputy commander-in-chief, led the coordination
of the various chiefs of the Royal Thai Fleet, Sattahip Naval Base, the
Marine Division of the Royal Thai Marine Corps, and Air and Coastal Defense
Command to observe the disaster control training and incident relief.
The armed services worked closely with Sattahip district and Sattahip
municipality officials, and staff of Aphakornkiatiwong Hospital, Somdej
Phranangchaosirlkit Hospital, and Sattahip Hospital.
Cycling cops get on their bikes to help save fuel costs
Pattaya tourist police are now riding bicycles on
their beat.
Boonlua Chatree
Pattaya tourist police are now pounding the beat on bicycles to demonstrate
that the law and order services can also be environmentally friendly.
The bicycling bobbies turned to pedal power on May 8 under a directive of
Pol Maj Gen Panya Mamen, commander of the tourist police, to conserve fuel
by cutting down on the use of patrol cars and motorcycles. Pattaya is the
first town in Thailand to adopt these measures.
Pol Lt Col Wuttichart Luonsukhan, inspector of Pattaya tourist police, led
the cycling cops on their initial foray. The patrols will cover all areas of
Pattaya and help save on fuel costs in these times of high oil prices.
Pattaya plant to treat Najomtien wastewater
Ariyawat Nuamsawat
Sompong Sainapa, mayor of Najomtien, on May 9 requested permission from
Pattaya City Council to use Pattaya’s wastewater treatment plant. The
meeting, held at city hall, voted unanimously to allow use in the hope of
furthering tourism and other relationships. But adverse effects also needed
to be studied in order to prevent them.
Najomtien wastewater will now be treated at the plant at Soi Wat
Boonkanjanaram, in Jomtien.
Najomtien Mayor Sompong Sainapa explains the situation to the Pattaya City Council.
Sompong said the municipality needed help from Pattaya City Council to treat
its wastewater as the budget is insufficient for the construction of a water
treatment plant. The municipality will lay a 0.6-meter pipe to the water
treatment plant, which should be complete by 2008.
Viratt Jirapaitoon, director of Pattaya Public Works said the water
treatment plant at Soi Wat Boonkanjanaram has a total capacity of 20,000
cubic meters per day and presently treats 14,000 cubic meters of wastewater
from Pattaya. There should be no problem with the extra 2,000 cubic meters
per day required by Najomtien district municipality, he said.
Farooq Wongborisuthi, member of Pattaya City Council said that studies
should be carried out on the adverse affects of the plans to make ready for
any problems such as more water flowing into the plant during the rainy
season as well as Pattaya’s future needs due to rapid development.
Nation prepares for historic Royal Barge procession
The Royal Barge procession to honor His Majesty the
King’s 60th anniversary of accession to the throne will take place in
Bangkok during the evening of June 12.
Fifty-two barges manned by a total crew of 2,082 will take part in this
historic occasion, which will be witnessed by foreign monarchs and statesmen
along with thousands of Thai people.
Rehearsals will be held on June 2, 6 and 9 at 6 p.m., with the event itself
taking place on June 12 at 7:30 p.m. Ticket prices for the rehearsals and
the event are 3,000 baht and 1,000 baht.
There is a limit of 2,000 seats for the 3,000 baht tickets, which will be on
a river cruise ship attending the rehearsal nights only, June 2, 6 and 9.
Visitors will board the ship, the Nivet Voradit Ferry, beside the Royal Navy
Club from 5 p.m. to 60 p.m.
There are 4,000 seats available at the 1,000 baht ticket price, and they are
located at the Bank of Thailand. Visitors should be present before 5 p.m.
These seats are available on June 2, 6, 9 and 12.
To make a reservation to view the Royal Barge Procession, please go to the
Tourism Authority of Thailand head office or tel 0 2652 8313-5 (direct line)
or 0 2250 5500 ext 2115-7. In Pattaya call TAT Central Region 3 on 0 38
427667, 428750 or fax 0 38 429113, 423990 or email [email protected]
Two Singapore Navy frigates anchor at Sattahip
Patcharapol Panrak
Two Singapore Navy frigates anchored at Chuck Samet, Sattahip Naval Base on
May 9 for a training exercise with the Royal Thai Navy.
The vessels were the RSS Sea Wolf, led by Commander Lim Wee Kwong, and RSS
Resilience, led by Lt Chang Kim Choa.
RSS Resilience (APV-82), one of two Singapore war ships to visit Sattahip.
The Sea Wolf is a missile gunboat with a displacement of 260 tons and a
length of 44.9 meters. She is manned by six commissioned officers and a crew
of 35, and is armed with a 57mm bow gun, Harpoon anti-ship missiles, Gabriel
surface missiles, and Mistral surface-to-air missiles.
The Resilience has a displacement of 500 tons and a length of 55 meters. She
carries five commissioned officers and a crew of 27, and her weapons include
a 76mm bow gun, and Mistral surface-to-air missiles.
These two ships visited the Royal Thai Navy to cement friendships and
explore further cooperative training methods. Captain Ekasak Tuksoon, deputy
chief of staff at Sattahip Naval Base welcomed the officers and crew.
Captain Ekasak said it was an old tradition for navies of the two countries
to visit each other. They are able to discuss at first hand ideas and
experiences, along with sea operational problems.
Lt. Chang Kim Choa, captain
of the RSS Resilience, Commander Lim Wee Kwong, captain of the RSS Sea Wolf
and officers greet Captain Ekasak Tuksoon, deputy chief of staff, and
officers at Sattahip Naval Base.
Polizeikurznachrichten
Boonlua Chatree
Killer who shot love rival is traced to temple
A man was shot dead on April 28 apparently in a quarrel over a girl, and
police following the trail of the killer discovered the gun in a Huay Yai
temple.
Police at Kong Dongtan sub-station in Najomtien received a report at 9 p.m.
that a man had been shot and killed on Sukhumvit Road at the entry to
Nongpangkae Village. Officers arriving at the scene found that a traffic jam
had built up, and they diverted vehicles into one lane before carrying out
their investigations.
The dead man was Wittaya Kruanoi, age 26. He was lying on his back beside
the road. Officers and a physician from Banglamung Hospital examined the
corpse and found that Wittaya had been shot in the stomach and head with a
.38 caliber weapon. Visible on the road were the tread marks of a vehicle
that had apparently accelerated very quickly away from the scene. One .38
caliber shell casing was found.
Witnesses said the deceased had arrived in an employees’ transport from the
Mitsubishi car assembly plant in Laem Chabang. Wittaya was an employee of
the company. A bronze Ford Ranger came and parked nearby. Police were
provided with the license plate number. While the driver waited in the Ford
Ranger, two passengers came and spoke loudly to Wittaya. One man then took a
firearm from his waist and struck Wittaya several times around the head,
knocking him down. The assailant then fired four times at the fallen man.
The two men got back into the truck and sped off in the direction of Huay
Yai.
Police questioned the dead man’s partner Ms Wanwisa Saekow, 29, who lived
with him at an apartment at Nongpangkae. She stated that the deceased came
back to his residence with the company employees’ transport, and went out to
the same place everyday. She didn’t know the reason why anyone would shoot
him, because he was a good person and came back home at the same time
everyday.
At 4 a.m. on April 29, police went to Huay Yai and found the truck at the
Najomtien Temple. Officers spoke to Abbot Prakhru Pinit Cholatham and asked
him if he knew who owned the car. It was learned that a man had run into the
room of a monk, 33-year-old Suchat Saipiyapan. Examining the room police
found a .38 caliber gun loaded with four bullets and hidden in the kind of
bag a monk would carry. Suchat told the officers the gun did not belong to
him, but to Chan Huayyai. The two had been monks together. Chan had run into
the room and hidden something before fleeing, leaving the car in front of
the temple.
Police searched the car and found a letter that included the phrase, “You
will die because you took my lover”. There was a firearm document with the
name and photograph of Chan (Jeng) Huayyai, a 35-year-old resident of Huay
Yai. Police applied for a warrant from Pattaya District Court for the arrest
of Chan.
Volunteer policeman was lookout for drugs gang
A volunteer police officer who was also a lookout for a gang of drug dealers
managed to warn the gang about a police trap but was himself arrested in the
process.
Police had laid the trap just after midnight on May 11 when they discovered
that a quantity of the drug ice was to be delivered in the woodlands behind
Aksorn Thaepprasit School, in Soi Ko Phai.
Their wait, however, ended in failure because the gang had an informer who
was a police volunteer. The officers discovered him when they phoned him to
ask where he was. He was in fact driving his motorcycle past the front of
the school.
The volunteer was identified as Sutat Ruangsak, 25. He claimed he had no
intention of informing the gang about the trap and was just carrying out his
normal duties. Police didn’t believe him because while they were in hiding
waiting to make the arrest Sutat called the gang and informed them that
police were waiting for them and to leave the area urgently. On other
occasions Sutat had claimed to be a police officer, and taken people’s money
and property. Sutat was arrested on initial charges of carrying a police
issue radio.
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