The Director-General of the Department of National Parks urgently went to the area to follow up on the situation of robbers who stole guns and set fires in the Halabala Wildlife Sanctuary. He ordered all units in the area to strictly monitor their shifts and keep weapons in safe places.
From the case of dozens of criminals invading the office of the Halabala Wildlife Sanctuary, Narathiwat Province, throwing bombs, burning down officials’ residences, tying up officials’ hands and feet, and stealing 10 guns at 6:20 p.m. yesterday (21 Sept. 67)
This afternoon (22 September), Mr. Atthaphon Charoenchansa, Director-General of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, visited the area to monitor the situation. He held a meeting with security agencies at the 11th Ranger Regiment’s activity unit and visited the scene to provide moral support to officials and villagers.
Mr. Atthapol revealed that he received an order from Mr. Chalermchai Sri-on, Minister of Natural Resources and Environmen
t, to go to the area to give encouragement to officials in the Halabala Wildlife Sanctuary. This area is an area that has been managed for ecotourism. There are many foreign tourists and homestays of locals who take tourists to see mermaids and the abundance of the wildlife sanctuary. After this, he will urgently restore the condition of the area to create confidence in tourism. He also ordered all units in the area to strictly monitor the shifts and store weapons in a safe place to prevent a repeat of the incident.
This is the third time that a gun robbery has occurred, after 22 years ago in 2002 when the perpetrators committed a similar crime at Bang Lang National Park in Yala Province. At that time, 33 guns were stolen, and the second time in 2003, 5 guns were stolen at Sipo Waterfall National Park.
This time, an investigation found that there were 12 stolen firearms, 11 of which were government firearms, including 10 shotguns, 1 .38 caliber pistol, and 1 11 mm. pistol, which was an official’s personal f
irearm. The cause is under investigation by officials, but it was confirmed that the wildlife sanctuary had no conflict with the community. After this, the various buildings to accommodate tourists will be renovated and restored to return to normal as soon as possible.
Source: Thai News Agency