New 'seal' gang confesses to stealing rice from boats

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New 'seal' gang confesses to stealing rice from boats
Published: 15/06/2011 at 12:00 AM
Bangkok Post: Newspaper section: News  

AYUTTHAYA : Police yesterday arrested a gang spotted heisting goods from cargo barges anchored at Chao Phraya River ports in Ayutthaya and Ang Thong.

Police likened the 13 men and three women to a new generation of the so-called "seal" gang which was engaged in a similar activity several years ago.

The 16 suspects, a mix of Thais and Cambodians, were arrested yesterday in Ayutthaya. Police confiscated 260 50-kilogramme bags of milled rice destined for the Middle East, six pickup trucks, a long-tailed boat, a 9mm pistol with some bullets, and 28 ya ba pills.

They were all charged with theft, unauthorised weapons possession, and possession of a Type 1 narcotic.

Amnat Prasat, 40, who confessed to being the gang leader, said at a police press conference that his gang had originally operated mainly at the Klong Toey Port and another port in Phra Pradaeng district before security was tightened.

When stealing cargo became more difficult, the gang moved to Ayutthaya and Ang Thong, Mr Amnat said.

At the new locations, the gang typically made off with between 300 and 500 bags of milled rice, with the help of a worker who controlled the cargo barges, which would dock in the ports en route to Koh Si Chang in Chon Buri.

The gang would pull their own boat up to barges and move the rice on to their craft before racing off.

He said the gang had paid the worker between 300 and 400 baht per bag of rice to turn a blind eye to the theft. The gang would sell the bags of rice for 500 baht apiece.

Mr Amnat said his gang had stolen rice from the cargo barges five times before they were caught red-handed yesterday, adding there were several similar gangs operating in the area.