Three anti-government protesters, including a leader of the vocational students, who form the hard core element of the “Talufah” demonstrators engaged in street battles with the police in the past weeks, have been arrested by police, Pol Maj-Gen Piya Tavichai, deputy commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Bureau, told a news conference today (Thursday).
He said that one of the three detainees, Thanadet Srisongkhram, aka “Mon Vocational”, had a warrant issued for his arrest by the Dusit District Court, allegedly for his involvement in a string of protests held in the Dusit District of Bangkok.
The two other detainees have not yet been identified.
The deputy commissioner said that two police officers were injured during clashes with protesters from the Talufah group at Din Daeng intersection yesterday (Wednesday), after they had tried to breach the police cordon to access the outbound lane of Vibhavadi Rangsit highway and head for the residence of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha in the barracks of the First Infantry Regiment of the Royal Guards.
The protesters pelted the police with bricks, large firecrackers, slingshots and flares, while the police responded with teargas and rubber bullets.
Pol Maj-Gen Piya said that, since the protests re-emerged in July, police have arrested 187 of the 444 protesters on the police’s wanted list.
Regarding the 14-year old, who was shot during a protest on Monday near Din Daeng police station, he said that the boy’s father told the police that he does not believe officers were responsible for the shooting, adding that Din Daeng police will question the victim as part of their investigation.
Meanwhile, motorists have been advised to avoid several roads around the Democracy Monument late this afternoon, because a protest group is intending to rally there.
Roads to be avoided include all of Rajdamnoen Avenue, Lan Luang, Dinso, Tanao, Nakhon Ratchasima, Prachathipatai and Phra Pinklao Bridge.
Source: Thai Public Broadcasting Service (Thai PBS)