FOUR Myanmar nationals, who were caught in Bangkok with 10 heavy-lift cargo drones they had planned to smuggle to their home country, will be deported there, Thai police said.
The use of drones by Myanmar’s military and myriad rebel groups fighting against its rule has ballooned during the country’s nearly five-year civil war as each side seeks to gain a strategic edge.
Myanmar ranks as the third country globally – behind only Ukraine and Russia – for the number of drone sorties recorded by conflict monitoring group Acled, according to a report released this year.
According to Thai Police Major General Prasong Anmanee, the four Myanmar nationals were caught on Tuesday after authorities received a tip-off from a hotel where they were staying in the suburbs of Bangkok.
Prasong said they checked into the hotel on Sunday and received large boxes from a Thai courier on Monday.
“We went and checked and found out it was drones, and those four do not have any licence or other documents,” the senior officer said.
The unmanned aerial vehicles, which are manufactured by Chinese firm DJI, are capable of carrying 30kg of weight, Prasong said.
“They said they had been ordered to bring drones to Myanmar,” he said.
He added that the suspects had intended to bring the bulky devices out of Thailand in pieces and deliver them to their “boss” in Myanmar.
Prasong said police had not identified the alleged ringleader in Myanmar.
The four suspects were held by authorities ahead of their deportation to Myanmar after their visas were revoked due to immigration violations, he added.
Three of them were found to be living in Thailand under student visas although they were not enrolled in any local university, while the fourth suspect had overstayed, Prasong said. — AFP
