Chakthip goes to KL to check on "confessed" shrine bomber (Updated)

22 กันยายน 2558

Deputy national police chief Chakthip Chaijinda has gone to Malaysia, but he has not, as rumoured, come back with the suspect who has reportedly confessed to being the yellow-shirted suspect in last month's deadly Erawan shrine bombing.

Deputy national police chief Chakthip Chaijinda has gone to Malaysia, but he has not, as rumoured, come back with the suspect who has reportedly confessed to being the yellow-shirted suspect in last month's deadly Erawan shrine bombing.

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Mid-day update

Channel News Asia is reporting that Malaysian Deputy Inspector General of Police Noor Rashid Ibrahim says that they have eight suspects in custody with possible connections to the August 17 bombing in Bangkok. Four are Malaysians and four are foreigners, some of them likely Uighers.

National police chief Somyot Poompunmuang was quick to point out, however, that none of the suspects have been definitely linked to the bombings. He also strongly denied that Deputy national police chief Chakthip Chaijinda had brought back the yellow-shirted suspect as had been rumoured this morning. Post Today reports, however, that the police chief did admit that his deputy did go to Malaysia to meet with authorities there.

Morning story

Rumours began yesterday afternoon that Deputy national police chief Chakthip Chaijinda had left for Malaysia to follow up on an apparent arrest of the alleged yellow-shirted Erawan Shrine bomber.

National police chief Somyot Poompunmuang and police spokesman Prawut Thavornsiri denied any knowledge of such a trip, but they didn't deny that it might have occurred, saying as leader of the investigation, Pol Gen Chakthip has every right to follow up on evidence.

Well, apparently Pol Gen Chakthip has made the trip. Bangkok Post reporter Mongkol Bangprapa brings us up to date.

Chaktip searches for suspect in KL

Mongkol Bangprapa

Deputy national police chief Chakthip Chaijinda has left for Malaysia to look into reports police there have arrested the yellow-shirted suspect in last month's deadly Erawan shrine bombing, a source says.

Pol Gen Chakthip is likely to meet the Malaysian police chief to verify whether the detained man is the suspected bomber in the shrine blast that killed 20 and injured 130 last month, said the source.

He was also expected to negotiate with Malaysian authorities to bring the detained man back to Thailand, if he thinks he might be the suspect.

Late on Saturday night, Malaysian police raided several rental apartments in Kuala Lumpur and detained a suspect who looks like the suspected yellow-shirted bomber, the source said.

Malaysian authorities contacted their Thai counterparts asking them to show pictures of their suspect to detained suspects Yusufu Mieraili, and Bilal Turk, also known as Adem Karadag, and ask them to confirm if the man detained in Malaysia is the yellow-shirted bomber, said the source.

The suspects, however, told Thai authorities they did not know the man detained in Malaysia, the source added.

But after two days of questioning, the new suspect allegedly confessed to Malaysian police he was the Erawan bomber, who was caught on security cameras wearing a yellow shirt while carrying a backpack to the shrine on Aug 17. He left the backpack there shortly before the explosion went off.

Malaysian police began tracking the suspect based on confessions by a Thai national from Narathiwat province who had previously been detained in Malaysia, said the source.

He had provided police with information about people who assisted in the escapes of the yellow-shirted suspect and blue-shirted suspect wanted for the Aug 18 bombing at Sathon Pier.

The Narathiwat suspect told Malaysian authorities the people who helped were Thai and Malaysian nationals.

His information had led to the previous detention of two Malaysian nationals and one Pakistani national, and led Malaysian police to suspect that some Malaysian officials might also be involved, the source said.

Tuesday's stories

Reports from Kuala Lumpur say Malaysian police have arrested a person they believe is "Yellow T-shirt Man" but Thai authorities say they haven't been informed. (CCTV grabs courtesy Royal Thai Police)

Noon update:

There is nothing new from National police chief Somyot Poompunmuang on the reports that at least one bombing suspect has been arrested in Kuala Lumpur. Talking to the media this morning, he said he can not confirm anything.

This came after several Thai-language media outlets had quoted a source as saying the suspect had, after two days of questioning, confessed to being the yellow-shirted man who planted the bomb at the Erawan shrine. Pol Gen Somyot said had received no report on this.

Somyot seeks details of blast arrest in KL

Yellow-shirted man detained, reports say

POST REPORTERS

Police will contact their Malaysian counterparts over reports the yellow-shirted man suspected of planting the deadly bomb at the Erawan shrine last month has been arrested there, police spokesman Prawut Thavornsiri says.

National police chief Somyot Poompunmuang is seeking information from Malaysian police, Pol Lt Gen Prawut said, adding that if the suspect has really been arrested, a police team, led by Pol Lt Gen Suchart Teerasawat, an inspector-general, will be sent to the country to join the investigation or gather information about him.

Verification of the information could take one or two days, the spokesman said.

The blast at the shrine killed 20 and wounded 130 on Aug 17. Another explosion took place at Sathon pier the following day. A man in a blue shirt was seen in CCTV footage nudging a package believed to contain a bomb into the water the day before the blast with his foot.

According to a police source, Malaysian Special Branch police raided a string of apartments and rented rooms in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday night on the lookout for the yellow-shirted and blue-shirted men believed to be holed up in the country.

Malaysian police earlier apprehended two Malaysians and one Pakistani accused of being linked to a network smuggling people into Malaysia.

The suspects told Malaysian police they helped the two suspected bombers escape to Malaysia, the source said.

A Thai-based people-smuggling network saw off the two suspects at the Thai border fence, about 2km from Muno police station in Narathiwat's Sungai Kolok district, where they then boarded a boat across the Kolok River to Malaysia, the source added.

The suspects then got off the boat on the Malaysian side where they met two other Malaysians who had been waiting for them.

Another Malaysian man then took the suspects to Kuala Lumpur.

The source said Malaysian Special Branch police apprehended three suspects during Saturday's raids. One of them resembles the yellow-shirted suspect and his interrogation is under way.

Malaysian police had shared the photos of the suspect with Thai investigators and they will be shown to another bombing suspect, Yusufu Mieraili, to determine whether the man is the yellow-shirted suspect.

Mr Mieraili, 25, was apprehended, according to the Thai military, in Sa Kaeo on Sept 1, and is now in custody at the 11th Military Circle. He allegedly admitted to delivering a bomb-laden rucksack to the yellow-shirted suspect.

If Mr Mieraili confirms the man in the photos is the yellow-shirted suspect, his extradition will be sought, the source said, adding identity verification should take about a week.

Pol Lt Gen Chaiwat Ketworachai, chief of the Special Branch police, said Malaysian authorities have carried out extensive searches to locate the Bangkok bomb cell suspects as that country also faces people smuggling problems.