Central Investigation Police launched Operation TAKE DOWN MAFIA Ep.2 to crack down on the gunmen and their employers who shot rubberwood buyers and cut down trees in Satun Province.
Officers from the 6th Division of the Crime Suppression Division joined forces with the Highway Police and Marine Police to launch Operation TAKE DOWN MAFIA Ep.2: The Indigo Gunman, Suppressing the Gang of Gunmen, leading forces to search target areas in Phatthalung and Satun provinces, a total of 14 locations, arresting a total of 4 influential people: Mr. Somkiat, age 49, Mr. Phasin or Nayok Yak, age 63, Mr. Thawee, age 51, and Mr. Reed, age 64, along with seizing 3 cars, 10 telephones, 91 rounds of ammunition, and 3 bank account books.
Pol. Lt. Gen. Jiraphop Phuridet, Commander of the Central Investigation Bureau, revealed that this case stemmed from the incident on December 13, 2013, when a group of perpetrators used military firearms to shoot Mr. Wirot, a rubberwood buyer and tree cutter in Manang District, Satun Province,
while he was driving a tractor out of a woodlot on a mountain, causing his death on the road in the rubber plantation. Later, the deceased’s mother saw that the case involved an influential person, so she filed a complaint with the Crime Suppression Division to help investigate and track down the perpetrators, as their behavior was outrageous, they had no fear of the law, and they used three military firearms, leading to the belief that an influential person was behind the group of gunmen.
From the investigation, it was found that Mr. Wirot (the deceased) had a conflict over logging work with Mr. Somkiat, one of the suspects in the group. They argued with the deceased to the point of threatening to kill each other. This caused Mr. Somkiat to hire a group of gunmen in the area of ??Phatthalung Province to shoot the deceased. From the investigation, it was also found that the gunmen who joined in shooting the deceased were Mr. Phasin and his gang. Therefore, evidence was collected to request the court to issue
an arrest warrant for those who joined in the crime.
In this regard, Mr. Phasin is a former mayor of a certain area in Pattalung Province. He has a history of being convicted of murder and possession of firearms. There is also evidence confirming that Mr. Phasin’s hitman gang has a relationship with Mr. Paitoon’s group, who was arrested during the opening of the TAKE DOWN MAFIA Ep.1 operation in May, along with a group of 9 perpetrators, including those who hired him, those who provided the hitmen, and the group of hitmen who jointly committed the crime. From the investigation, it was also discovered that Mr. Reed, one of the hitmen, after shooting Mr. Wirot, the deceased in this case, in late December 2013, he and his gang went to shoot and kill Mr. Thawat in Chumphon Province.
Initially, the suspects, Mr. Somkiat, Mr. Phasin and Mr. Thawee, were questioned and they all denied all charges. As for Mr. Reed, he is being held in prison for murder in Chumphon Province. The charges will be filed later.
Pol. Lt
. Gen. Jiraphop said that over the past several years, the Central Investigation Bureau has tried to break up several gangs of gunmen and must continue to do so. In the past, local police may not have been effective in suppressing them because there were local influential figures involved. Currently, the Central Investigation Bureau is meeting and coordinating with local authorities to crack down on them. He believes that if we continue to do this, these gangs will naturally decrease.
Source: Thai News Agency