BANGKOK, 28 September 2015 – National Police Chief Pol Gen Somyot Poompanmoung has announced the conclusion of the probe into the Ratchaprasong and Sathorn bombings in Bangkok, saying more than one group of perpetrators were involved in the incidents.
Pol Gen Somyot hosted a press conference, together with other top-ranking police officers, to declare closure of the Bangkok bombing investigation. He expressed satisfaction with the quick operations of the investigators, believing the success of the probe will help restore the international community’s confidence in the Thai police’s ability to protect citizens and bring criminals to justice. On this occasion, reward money was granted to the investigative team of the Metropolitan Police Division 6.
Pol Maj Gen Chayapol Chatchaidej, Commander of the Metropolitan Police Division 6, then informed the press that police have interrogated over 200 witnesses on the incident at Ratchaprasong intersection and another 30 on the one at Sathorn Pier. The information obtained led to police raids at two apartments in Nong Chok and Min Buri districts, during which the officers found a large amount of bomb-making materials that matched evidence collected from the two sites of explosion. The discovery provided a linkage between the two bombings.
Pol Maj Gen Chayapol added that the military court has so far issued arrest warrants for 17 suspects as requested by police. Two of them have been apprehended, namely Mr Yusufu Mieraili and Mr Bilal Mohammed, aka Adem Karadag. Two were also found to be Thai nationals, one of them is Mr Yongyuth Pobkaew or Odd Payungwong, who is wanted for other explosions in Bangkok in 2010 and 2014 which were politically related.
During an inquiry session, Pol Gen Somyot told press members that there were at least two groups of people responsible for the latest bombings, with one being the mastermind. As of now, the Police Chief said the evidence suggested that the case has connections to Thailand’s eradication of human trafficking and that police cannot yet rule out political motives. He also affirmed that police will continue, with the best of their ability, to pursue the remaining 15 suspects still on the run.
