Suspect confesses, but police want more evidence (Updated)

We now know that detained suspect Bilal Turk, also known as Adem Karadag, has confessed to being the yellow-shirted bomber, but we don't know if he is telling the truth.

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Friday update

We now know that detained suspect Bilal Turk, also known as Adem Karadag, has confessed to being the yellow-shirted bomber, but we don't know if he is telling the truth – and, of course, he may change his story when he recovers from his recent illness.

Here is what is new from today's Bangkok Post:

Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) chief Srivara Rangsipramanakul said Mr Karadag confessed to police that he owned the bomb-making materials after he was detained by army officers.

Even though he has now admitted to being the yellow-shirted suspect, police will not believe it until there is enough evidence to back it up, Pol Lt Gen Srivara said.

Meanwhile, according to a police source, investigators went to question the suspect again at the 11th Army Circle where he is being detained, but Mr Karadag was ill and could not be interviewed.

The investigators will return later, said the source.

National police chief Somyot Poompunmuang said investigators have been convinced from the beginning that Mr Karadag was in fact the yellow-shirted bomber.

But because the yellow-shirted man seen on CCTV footage had long hair, wore glasses and walked in a certain way, police could not conclude it was Mr Karadag without further evidence, he said.

When questioned, the suspect changed his account day by day, added Pol Gen Somyot.

When asked what evidence police used to persuade Mr Karadag to confess, Pol Gen Somyot said investigators found various pieces of evidence tying the suspect to the scene, countering the suspect's earlier accounts.

"At this point, I think police are heading in the right direction," Pol Gen Somyot said, adding police are determined to arrest all suspects involved in the bombings.

Though Pol Gen Somyot refused to reveal the exact nature of the proof, security sources said that police had recently found new CCTV footage recorded in Lumpini Park not long after the bomb was planted at the shrine.

According to police sources, they initially only had footage of the suspect on the back of a motorcycle heading to the park and entering the park's toilets.

But the new footage shows the suspect near the toilets with a plastic bag in his hand. When officers zoomed in on the still frames, the bag had a yellow shirt inside.

Once police knew the suspect had changed his shirt before returning by taxi to his apartment, they used the evidence to convince Mr Karadag to confess it was him, said the sources.

Mr Karadag then agreed to re-enact his alleged crime by wearing a wig and glasses, "and he looks very much like the yellow-shirted suspect", added one of the sources, noting that Mr Karadag has a long scar on his arm, which in is covered by a strap in the video footage.

Thursday's stories

What's new in the Erawan shrine investigation? Quite a lot actually, but it is not clear how important it will turn out to be.

Latest: In an interview with Spring TV at 9:40am this morning Police spokesman Prawut Thavornsiri said he was unable to confirm the latest evidence being widely disseminated by the Thai-language media, particularly that Adem Karadag had admitted to being the bomber.

At about the same time, the suspect's lawyer also cast strong doubts on the possibility his client could be the bomber.

According to our reporters, Mr Karadag's lawyer Choochart Khanphai told the Bangkok Post this morning that reports of the supposed confession were unusual as even the police spokesman's office still refused to confirm it.

Based on appearances alone, Mr Karadag is not the yellow-shirted man captured by security cameras following the Bangkok blast, Mr Choochart asserted.

His client is a slight man and lacks the broad shoulders of the bomber seen in CCTV images, he said.

The attorney said he has not had a chance to see his client since requesting a visit Wednesday and does not expect to meet him until Monday.

Mr Choochart told the Post he has been informed Mr Karadag had a severe cold and was not eating.

Police turn sights back to Karadag

POST REPORTERS

Security officers have found new evidence leading them to turn their focus back to the detained suspect Bilal Turk, also known as Adem Karadag, as he could be the Erawan shrine bomber.

Mr Karadag was arrested on Aug 29 at a room in the Pool Anant apartment in Nong Chok district of the capital where authorities discovered bomb-making material.

Authorities had earlier believed he had only stored the material in the room.

But according to the latest evidence and investigation, authorities suspect he might be the perpetrator of the Erawan shrine blast on Aug 17 which killed 20 people and injured 130 others, security sources said.

Some of the evidence comes from CCTV footage shot in Lumpini Park showing a yellow-shirted man suspected of planting the deadly bomb at the shrine going into a toilet in the park, where he changed his shirt to a grey one.

The man seen in the footage leaving the toilet resembles Mr Karadag, the sources said.

After leaving the park, he took a public bus to the apartment in Nong Chok.

Mr Karadag has a long scar on his arm, while the yellow-shirted suspect seen in the footage had straps around both of his arms, the source added.

According to the sources, the new evidence was shown to Mr Karadag who is now in custody at the 11th Army Circle, and he allegedly admitted to being the yellow-shirted suspect who disguised himself, wearing a wig and glasses.

However, the investigation is ongoing to verify if he really is the bomber, the sources said.

Also Wednesday, a new arrest warrant for a man believed to be connected with the bombing network was approved.

The suspect, whose nationality was not identified, was about 30 years old and 170 centimetres tall and the warrant for his arrest was issued together with a photo of him taken from CCTV footage and his identikit image, said Metropolitan Police Bureau chief Srivara Rangsipramanakul.

He is charged with possessing explosive materials.

An investigation found he bought bomb-making materials at a shop in Soi Sukhumvit 44/2 in Klong Toey district on Aug 4.

A bespectacled man wearing a blue and black striped polo shirt and jeans entered the shop around 3pm, according to the footage from the CCTV cameras installed there.

He bought more than 10 sets of steel pipes and asked the staff to make threads at the top and bottom ends of them. He spent about one hour at the shop.

"The suspect is believed to be Thai as he can speak Thai, and a probe is under way to determine who he is," Pol Lt Gen Srivara said.

Police spokesman Prawut Thavornsiri said 15 people are facing arrest warrants in connection with the bombings.

Two of them – Mr Karadag and Yusufu Mieraili – have been arrested.

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