“Chatchai”, Deputy Secretary-General of the National Security Council, revealed that he is investigating the gun robbery and arrest of forest officials in Halabala. He does not yet know which group it is, but their behavior is skilled. He hinted that they may be workers. He will report to the Prime Minister.
Mr. Chatchai Bangchuad, Deputy Secretary-General of the National Security Council (NSC), gave an interview about the incident in which armed criminals raided and captured officers of the Halabala Wildlife Sanctuary in Waeng District, Narathiwat Province, tied their hands and feet, burned their house, and stole 10 shotguns before fleeing into the forest. He said that the investigation is underway, but there has been no significant progress. As you know, there were 10 shotguns and a handgun, as well as some ammunition. The shotguns are being investigated to see if they were taken by the group of criminals or if they were in the area where they were burned, which is currently being investigated.
When asked if there was an assessment of how the group of criminals got in and why they were able to get in so easily, the deputy secretary-general of the National Security Council said that this place is near the forest and on a mountain.
Can we assess whether this group is a local process group or not? The deputy secretary-general of the National Security Council said that we will have to check. We are not sure yet which group it is, but judging from their behavior, they should be people with considerable expertise.
Asked whether the matter had been reported to the Prime Minister, the Deputy Secretary-General of the National Security Council said that they were still processing it and would report it to the Prime Minister. They were not sure whether it was a worker or something else and were investigating.
When asked again whether it was like a traitor, the deputy secretary-general of the National Security Council said he was not sure. He would have to wait and check first because there were a lot of people in there.
Did the intelligence receive any information about this beforehand? The deputy secretary-general of the National Security Council said that in fact, the intelligence department was working well, but it must be admitted that this case is difficult because it is in a forest area and this area has never had an incident before. Because most of the time, it is a point where tourists go to watch birds and trees. But when the incident happened, we had to look back a bit. In addition, in Waeng District, we have already revoked the Emergency Decree on Public Administration in Emergency Situations B.E. 2548 because before this, we thought it would be good. There would be nothing left. Therefore, there must be an investigation and measures to prevent this kind of incident from happening again. Currently, the security agencies in the area are following up.
Source: Thai News Agency