A huge arms cache found on Wednesday in Si Sa Ket is in good condition, with some of the weapons believed to be linked to incidents of political violence between 2010 and 2014, police said yesterday.
Deputy national police chief Srivara Ransibrahmanakul said most of the weapons, discovered by a villager in an irrigation canal in Khukhan district are still in working condition. He said the weapons were not locally made and he believed they were from Russia.
Pol Gen Srivara was in Si Sa Ket to supervise the investigation after the discovery of the weapons on Wednesday.
A local fisherman was using his net in the irrigation canal when he discovered the arms -- 27 rocket-propelled grenades, 24 grenades for M79 grenade launchers, 700 rounds of ammunition for AK assault rifles and 48 detonation caps.
Pol Maj Gen Tawatchai Mekprasertsuk, deputy commissioner of the Office of Police Forensic Science, said yesterday that police had found that some weapons were connected to political violence.
He said they were linked to dozens of violent incidents including in Bangkok's U-thong Nai Road, Government House and at the Dusit Thani Hotel during political demonstrations between 2010 and 2014.
He said police were coordinating with the Customs Department and the Immigration Bureau in an expanded investigation. The canal where the weapons were discovered is about 40km from the Cambodian border.
