Resort guards arrested

CHERNG TALAY: Two former security guards from Banyan Tree Resort Phuket have been released on bail by the Phuket Provincial Court after being charged with attempted murder. Over police objections, the court released the two men the same day they were taken into custody – March 4. Pol Lt Col Suwat Kaewprom, Deputy Superintendent of Cherng Talay Police Station, named the two as Prayul Detchana, formerly chief security guard of the resort, and Wiroj Srisuwan. Both were charged with attempted murder, while Prayul was also charged with carrying a weapon without a license to do so. The arrests came after a confrontation on March 3 between local villagers and the guards, employed by Banyan Tree as part of its internal security force, escalated into a 100-strong mob scene at the Cherng Talay Police Station. Col Suwat added that the villagers, who demanded the men be fired from their jobs, had taken no further action and that the two had already left the employ of the Banyan Tree Resort.