Today, July 29, police in Ayutthaya intercepted a pickup truck packed with 30 undocumented Myanmar nationals after a high-speed pursuit on Asia Highway, exposing a human smuggling operation.
Police Colonel That Phosuwan, Commander of Highway Police Subdivision 1, said the dramatic incident unfolded after officers received a report from Police Lieutenant Colonel Supakorn Tangkaprasert, head of Highway Police Station 1.
A joint task force with immigration and environmental crime officers had been monitoring smuggling routes in the area when they noticed a suspicious white pickup truck with a steel cage and a tarpaulin cover, commonly used for transporting produce, driving erratically.
The truck, with Tak license plates, was swerving dangerously and appeared overloaded. When officers attempted to pull the vehicle over near kilometre marker 45–46 in Maharat district, the driver accelerated in an attempt to flee. A chase ensued, ending when the vehicle collided with a police car and was brought to a halt.
Upon inspection, officers discovered that the truck bed had been modified into a concealed two-tier compartment lined with fertiliser sacks and hay. Inside were 30 Myanmar nationals, 20 men and 10 women, packed tightly together. None of them could produce passports or valid documentation.
The driver, 45 year old Kriengsak Arphai, and his passenger, 31 year old Boonchuay Intheuan, were immediately arrested. Kriengsak reportedly confessed that he was asked by a former employer, who once paid for his mother’s medical treatment, to transport the migrants to Ayutthaya as an act of gratitude. Boonchuay, an associate of the same employer, accompanied him on the trip.
A background check revealed that Kriengsak had previously been convicted of smuggling illegal migrants and had only recently completed a prison sentence four months ago.
According to the migrants, who spoke through an interpreter, they had crossed the border into Mae Sot, Tak province, via natural routes, paying between 12,000 and 18,000 baht (US$370 to 555) per person in the hope of finding work in Thailand, reported KhaoSod.
Kriengsak and Boonchuay have been charged with harbouring or aiding undocumented migrants to evade arrest, while the 30 migrants face charges for entering and remaining in the kingdom without permission. All suspects and evidence have been handed over to Maharat Police Station for further legal proceedings.
The story 30 Myanmar migrants found hidden in truck after Ayutthaya highway chase as seen on Thaiger News.
