Police today are hunting for an additional 10 suspects wanted in connection with the string of bomb attacks that hit Bangkok.
Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha said this morning that at least 10 more people were involved in Friday’s coordinated bomb and suspected arson attacks on five locations across the capital, adding that two suspects already in custody had confessed to being involvement.
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On Friday morning, nine bombs hit five locations in the capital. The targets included government buildings, a high-profile landmark and downtown shopping mall. At least two people were injured.
Though Prayuth said it was too soon to make any conclusions, fingers have been pointing south to separatists in the southernmost provinces. Media reports say two men arrested Thursday night after a bomb scare at police headquarters confessed to carrying out the attacks in revenge for the death of an associate in military custody last month.
None of the additional suspects was identified by name.
Several bureaucrats investigating the attacks reached by phone Monday morning insisted that no motive has been identified and referred further questions to public updates made by the police.
Asked why national police chief Chakthip Chaijinda aired suspicions during the weekend that the attack could be related to the separatist insurgency that’s killed thousands, his own spokesman this morning sought distance from the claim.
“I don’t know why Gen. Chakthip would say that. We don’t know anything about [the Southern insurgency connection] yet,” police spokesman Gen. Krissana Pattanacharoen told Coconuts Bangkok.
Public security measures will remain high this week, especially in crowded areas and at government properties. More patrol cars have been dispatched, while both uniformed and plainclothes officers patrol the area around the Government House.
Prayuth urged people to stay vigilant and immediately report any suspicious-looking objects or individuals to authorities.
One of Friday morning’s blasts occurred at a location on Rama IX Road that has since been deemed unrelated, according to Krissana. Several vocational students have been taken into custody in connection with the explosion of small makeshift bombs that sent two street cleaners to the hospital.
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City Hall said two people were injured by an explosion beneath BTS Chong Nonsi, next to the King Power MahaNakorn building, a popular tourist destination.
Friday’s explosions also hit the Chaeng Wattana Government Complex, the Administrative Court, a store inside Siam Square One and a Defense Ministry building. The attackers are suspected of an arson attack in the Pratunam area.
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