Crime
Scrap metal merchant arrested over stolen rail track pins causing train derailment

PHOTOS: Twitter@pr.railway
A scrap metal shop owner has been arrested for stealing rail track ‘pins’ that were responsible for the derailment of a railway carriages heading south from Bangkok to Chumpon province yesterday. The derailment happened in the Phetchaburi province.
The incident happened yesterday (Monday) just after midday and took the rest of the day and evening to lift the carriage back onto the tracks, and inspect the railways lines and missing pins (that hold the railway tracks onto the timber sleepers).
Read the story HERE.
The State Railway of Thailand reports that train #255 from Thonburi to Lang Suan station in Chumphon province became derailed at 12.04pm after departing the Huay Sai Tai station in Cha-am.
They confirmed that six carriages had jumped off the rails. They believed that the theft of steel nails used to fix the tracks to the sleepers had been stolen. Railway teams and cranes went to the scene to lift the carriages back on the tracks and assess the damage.
The acting State Railway governor says inspectors found 168 rail fastening screws and 40 track base plates were missing, along with 340 wooden sleepers damaged over a distance of 350 metres.
Police and railway officials raided the Rungcharoen scrap metal shop in Cha-am district last night. They found 25 rail base plates and 66 rail track pins on the premises.
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Thailand
Banned politician says government silencing him by invoking Lese Majeste law

A banned politician, who criticised the government’s Covid-19 vaccine plan, is claiming the government is silencing him (again) by invoking the Lese Majeste lawagainst him. The alleged defamation case concerns his questioning of using one of the king’s companies as part of the Covid-19 vaccine strategy that he says will slow down the process of inoculations.
Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit accused the government of PM Prayut of relying too much on Siam Bioscience to help in the vaccine plan, and pointed out that it is owned by the Crown Property Bureau, the organisation that manages billions of dollars in investment under the king’s personal control.
Siam Bioscience agreed to manufacture AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine and supply it domestically and across Southeast Asia. but Thanathorn says the deal “lacked transparency” and it was given an unfair advantage over other companies after the government ordered 61 million doses of the vaccine.
He says the government is slowing down the process by relying on just 1 company and points to other countries as they are already starting to inoculate residents. Both AstraZeneca and Siam Bioscience have not commented on his allegations, while the government has filed a complaint against Thanathorn citing the royal insult law under article 112 of the criminal code that can send law-breakers to prison for up to 15 years.
“The deals were not negotiated independently of each other. There was no selection process or comparison so questions must be raised.”
But a government spokeswoman, Ratchada Dhanadirek, maintains the filing of the criminal complaint was not politically motivated. Last year, Thanathorn was banned from politics for 10 years after a court dissolved his Future Forward Party for illegal loans, charges which were upheld by the Constitutional Court.
Meanwhile, others are criticising the government’s announcement to allow local municipalities to pay for vaccines as they say it coincides with upcoming elections. They point out that the government should pay for the vaccinations, especially in Bangkok, as they say the government has the funds to do so.
SOURCE: Bangkok Post
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Crime
Police search for man who allegedly stole 1.9 million baht worth of gold at gunpoint

Police are searching for a man who allegedly pulled out a gun and stole 119 gold necklaces worth more than 1.9 million baht from a Tesco Lotus gold shop in the Isaan province Nakhon Ratchasima’s Non Thai district.
The man allegedly pulled out a gun and yelled at the Yaowarat Krungthep gold shop staff to get down on the floor. He then allegedly climbed over the counter, opened the display cabinets and grabbed dozens of gold necklaces. Police say he then took off on a motorcycle.
Gold shop employees told police that the man was wearing a yellow hoodie, red pants and a purple face mask. An employee at the scene said the man held a gun and ordered him to lie on the ground.
“The robber then jumped over the display cabinets and grabbed several gold necklaces before fleeing on a motorcycle, which had no license plate.”
Police are investigating and reviewing surveillance camera footage. Officers also set up roadblocks.
SOURCE: Nation Thailand
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Bangkok
Man arrested for allegedly importing millions of fake designer sunglasses

A 42 year old Chinese man was arrested for allegedly importing fake designer sunglasses after police raided 2 locations in Bangkok’s Thonburi area and seized 3 million pairs of fake designer sunglasses worth around 300 million baht.
Officers from the Department of Special Investigation raided multiple rooms at the Dao Khanong Condominium and the BMC Dao Khanong Cinema. The department posted photos of the raids showing rooms filled with boxes stacked to the ceiling.
Police say the sunglasses had major designer brand names like Ray Ban, Gucci, Oakley, Chanel, Christian Dior, Dolce & Gabbana, Cartier, Mont Blanc, Marc Jacobs, Armani, Fendi and Versace.
SOURCE: Thai Visa
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