Former navy captain held as last suspect in MP shooting case
A former naval captain, the fifth person suspected of involvement in the attempted murder of a Narathiwat Prachachart MP, has been arrested and is facing multiple charges.
He was handed over to Thai authorities last night by Myanmar’s ethnic forces. Police say the suspect, identified as Capt. Viroj Katemanee, was formally taken into custody in Sangkhla Buri district of Kanchanaburi province having fled the country.
He was later transferred to Bangkok for questioning.
The arrest marks the latest development in the attempted assassination of Kamonsak Leewamoh, who was shot at outside his residence in Bacho district of Narathiwat on the evening of March 20.
Kamonsak was not injured by the gunfire, but his driver and a police security officer were seriously injured.
Police said Viroj had fled across a natural border crossing into Karen State in Myanmar, where he had been hiding for about a month.
In cooperation with Thai police, Myanmar’s Democratic Karen Buddhist Army handed him over to Thai authorities at a border crossing in Nong Lu sub-district.
With the arrest of Viroj, who has confessed to being one of the gunmen involved in the shooting, police have now detained all five suspects named in arrest warrants to date related to the case.
The others include an alleged coordinator and planner, a driver, a garage owner accused of dismantling the vehicle used in the attack, and another gunman previously arrested in Kanchanaburi.
Police said Viroj reportedly told investigators that he had resigned from the Navy at the rank of captain and had previously worked overseas with the United Nations for 16 years.
After returning to Thailand and struggling to find work, he stayed with one of the other suspects and became involved in the plot.
Police are continuing to question the suspects to determine the motive and who was behind the attack.
Viroj is expected to be transferred to Narathiwat for further legal proceedings, as investigators gather more evidence and expand the case.