Search for Thailand bomber impeded
BANGKOK: Nearly a week after a bomb in Thailand killed 20 people, authorities appear no closer to identifying suspects or a motive, with police saying yesterday a lack of modern equipment was hampering their investigation.
The blast last Monday at one of the capital’s most famous shrines, packed with Asian visitors, will inevitably dent the tourist industry, one of the economy’s few bright spots.
Economic woes could undermine the military government as it steers the country towards an election next year under a new constitution that critics say will not end a decade of turbulent politics.
The strongest evidence appears to be grainy CCTV footage of a young man who left a backpack at the Erawan Shrine before the explosion. He disappeared into the night on a motorcycle taxi.
Authorities have issued confusing and at times contradictory statements about the suspect’s appearance, the number of accomplices he might have had and the likelihood of foreign involvement.
National police chief Somyot Pumpanmuang said progress was being made but a lack of equipment was a problem.
“We don’t have modern tools to support our work… we have difficulties with technology and data,” he said, without elaborating.
“We have to wait for co-operation from abroad, to come and help with this equipment.”
Police are also investigating another piece of CCTV footage that could provide clues to who was responsible for a small blast on Tuesday at a river pier that caused no injuries.
Police said they were investigating the footage of a man who appeared to push a bag off a walkway into the river. They have not confirmed that the blasts were linked.
The Erawan Shrine, dedicated to a Hindu deity, is hugely popular with tourists from China, and seven of the 14 foreigners among the dead were from mainland China and Hong Kong.
Police initially speculated that Muslim ethnic Uighurs from western China might have been responsible, but officials later cast doubt on an international link and said China was not targeted.
The government has offered $85 000 (R1.1 million) for information leading to the arrest of the bomber. – Reuters