MUKDAHAN: All of the seven members of the Uighur ethnic group who escaped from an immigration police detention cell in this northeastern border province on Tuesday night have been recaptured.
One detainee was caught shortly after the escape and two others were recaptured on Wednesday in a village.
The fourth was nabbed at about 9am on Saturday after officers from several agencies and a sniffer dog were dispatched to the plantation behind Nong Hoi village in tambon Bang Sai Yai in Muang district after local residents reported a man was seen in a makeshift shelter on the plantation.
At about 8.30pm on Saturday, the three other Uighur escapees were caught by Mukdahan town's ring road after being spotted by local villagers.
Pol Col Komen Suphap, chief of the Mukdahan immigration police, said police and other local officials were deployed to hunt for the Uighurs after their escape. Copies of a leaflet with the pictures of the seven escapees were widely distributed, with a cash reward of 10,000 baht for each person recaptured offered to people who provided clues leading to their arrest.
Most of the escapees were recaptured with clues provided by informants, he said.
In the past, Thailand has been criticised for sending detained Uighurs back to China, where they reportedly face persecution.
