A motorcycle was found abandoned approximately 200 meters from the passenger terminal at Phuket International Airport in Phuket, Thailand, on Wednesday (June 25). Authorities discovered explosives inside the vehicle.
Officers then sealed off a 200-metre radius around the site following the highest security protocols. Two men arrested in Phang Nga District last Tuesday on the same day admitted to planning a series of bomb attacks not only at the airport but also across the popular tourist destination in southern Thailand.
The suspects, identified as Sulaiman and Mahama, both from Southern Thailand, were detained in Phuket Province with a car and a bomb, and they were then transferred to the Yala Provincial Police Operations Center yesterday (June 25) for further questioning.
Mahama admitted to planting three bombs separately. He specifically revealed that a white motorcycle, rigged with explosives, was intended to carry out an attack at Phuket International Airport.
The explosives at the Phuket International Airport were immediately neutralised following Mahama’s confession. Mahama, however, added that two other members who collaborated in the planning are still on the loose – Paju and Po Sue.
According to a police spokesperson, Paju and Po Sue led with the motorbikes, with Sulaiman driving a sedan in the middle, and Mahama following behind on his motorbike. Along the way, they changed motorbikes and jackets to avoid detection and stopped overnight in Krabi.
“The next morning, around 8 am, they headed straight to Phuket. Before arriving, they attached Grab food delivery bags to their motorcycles to disguise themselves.”
“Around noon, they stopped at the Baan Tha Chatchai Mosque in northern Phuket for a meal and prayers, spending about 30 minutes there. They then headed to the Nurul Jannah Mosque at Baan Bang Rong in Pa Khlok for the noon prayer.
After prayers, Paju hid the bomb under the seat of a white motorcycle, turning it into a ‘motorcycle bomb’ which was then left at the airport.
Yesterday, another object resembling a bomb was found buried at Patong Beach, Phuket, which Mahama and Sulaiman also confessed to having been involved in. The threat was also neutralised, and the fragments were taken back by the police for analysis.
Meanwhile, in Krabi province, another alert was triggered at about 11.30am yesterday when a bomb was discovered at the Mahad wood sculpture installation on Uttarakit Road in tambon Pak Nam of Muang district, just 30 metres from a traffic police booth, as reported by The Bangkok Post.
More objects resembling bombs were also found and neutralized at the Promthep Cape of Muang district.
Police have prohibited tourists and the public from walking through the area to avoid any untoward incidents. The authorities, however, assured the public that safety measures have been taken and reminded the public not to panic, according to two reports by The Bangkok Post, and Khaosod English.
