Two caught with arms at Thai border

A Thai air force officer and a Cambodian man were taken into custody on Sunday in Trat province and are being questioned in relation to a black pickup truck that was found at the scene of an accident filled with automatic weapons and other ordnance.

According to the Bangkok Post, Thai air force officer Pakhin Detphong was involved in the accident and Cambodian national Leang Piseth was driving nearby in a Toyota Land Cruiser.

The crashed pickup truck contained 29 AK-47 rifles, 42 machine guns and a grenade launcher with 53 grenades. Photos on Thai media showed Piseth’s Cambodian National Police ID card and an immigration police officer’s uniform in the SUV.

Thai authorities said Piseth had passed through two military checkpoints at the Thai border, suggesting that he was a “very important person”. The Thai Public Broadcasting Service reported that the arms were allegedly headed for Myanmar.

Kem Sarin, spokesman for the immigration police, said Piseth was part of the National Police and that officials were attempting to identify his unit.

Contact author: Mech Dara

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