Police seek warrants for Thai, foreign suspects in Erawan Shrine bombing

31 August 2015
Police seek warrants for Thai, foreign suspects in Erawan Shrine bombing
A Thai police officer on duty as a tourist with luggage walks past the Erawan Shrine in Bangkok, Thailand, 30 August 2015. Photo: Rungroj Yongrit/EPA

More arrest warrants are being sought for Thai and foreign nationals suspected of involvement in the bombings in Bangkok that killed 20 people earlier this month as authorities speculate a suspect taken into custody Saturday might have been planning more attacks Thailand’s Khaosod English website reported on 31 August.
Two days after the arrest of a foreign man in Bangkok’s eastern suburbs led police to raid other residences where they reportedly found bomb-making materials, Thailand’s top police official today said the suspects are part of a network responsible for the 17 August Erawan Shrine bombing and another explosion at a riverside waterway the next day.
“Right now, we are in the process of applying for arrest warrants for those who were involved in and gave assistance to the perpetrators behind the Ratchaprasong intersection and Sathorn Pier [attacks],” Police Gen. Somyot Pumpanmuang said. “There are both Thais and foreigners, but we cannot yet disclose the number. We are waiting for the court’s approval first.”
The break in the case came after investigators spent nearly a week searching through phone traffic data near the site of the attack and found “Turkish phone numbers” using international roaming services, according to an unidentified police source in a Bangkok Post report.
In a special order issued by junta chairman and Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha in April, soldiers are permitted to detain individuals and search properties without court warrants.