Bangkok Bomb: Main Suspect Arrested by Thai Police
The main suspect of the Bangkok bombing has been arrested, according to Thai authorities.
In a press conference, authorities announced they have arrested a man whom they believe was wearing a yellow shirt on the CCTV camera minutes after the explosion, reports the Bangkok Post.
"The man found and arrested by the Burapha Task Force matches the suspect in the yellow T-shirt described in the arrest warrant for the attack at the Ratchaprasong intersection that killed 20 people and injured 131 others," National Council for Peace and Order spokesman Winthai Suvaree said in the press conference.
According to the Telegraph, the man was arrested on the border with Cambodia on Monday. Officials say the suspect was carrying a Chinese passport with an Islamic name from the western province of Xinjiang.
Thailand Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha described the man as the main suspect who killed over 20 people in the bombing at the shrine last month. National police spokesman Prawut Thavornsiri said he thinks the main suspect is a part of an international network.
The BBC reports the man is identified as Yusufu Mieraili on the passport and he is believed to be between 25 and 28 years of age. Xianjiang province, where the man allegedly comes from, has a large Muslim Uighur population.
Tony Davis, a security expert based in Bangkok, told the Telegraph that the attack was an elaborate terrorist operation.
"It is important the security services recognize squarely that the Erawan atrocity was the not the fumbling revenge of a locally based criminal gang facing a police 'crackdown' but rather a well-planned and technically sophisticated international terrorist operation," he explained.
So far, he has been the only suspect arrested for the bombings. Police are looking for Wanna Suansan, a 26-year-old woman from from Phang Nga, a province in southern Thailand. The female suspect was last seen wearing a hijab and could be linked to the bombings.
No one has been charged with any crime, and the investigation is still ongoing. It is not known if police have more persons of interest in their investigation.
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