Bangkok Criminal Court Attack: Two Arrested, ‘100 Bomb Attacks’ Planned

Image courtesy of Thai PBS

The Bangkok Criminal Court was attacked on Saturday night by two men “hired” to bomb the court in a plot to allegedly bomb 100 areas in the capital city, reports The Nation.

The suspects, Yuttana Yenpinyo and Mahahin Khunthong, were quickly apprehended after the grenade exploded on the car park, creating a hole in the floor, according to Thai PBS.


Khunthong was the only person injured in the crossfire, according to local news reports, as the two men fired at soldiers to get away before being captured. 

The Thailand criminal attorneys at Chaninat and Leeds’ specialize in prosecuting and defending criminal cases for Thai and foreign clients in Thailand.

During police interrogation, the suspects reportedly said they were part of a “red-shirt group” that mobilized on the social media app, Line, to organize at least 100 bomb attacks at targets including military armories, university campuses and Wat Or Noi temple, according to The Nation.

Security was increased Monday at the Criminal Court and other major public and government buildings in Bangkok.

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US-Thailand Commence Annual Cobra Gold Despite Differences

Cobra Gold 2014 by U.S. Pacific Command is 

licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Though the United States sanctioned Thailand in 2014 for its ongoing coup, both countries still hosted the annual Cobra Gold joint military exercises, reports the Bangkok Post.

There had been speculation that the U.S. might cancel the Cobra Gold this year which has been conducted in Thailand for nearly thirty years. 

One expert on Asian security issues, Ian Storey, told the Bangkok Post that cancelling the Cobra Gold wouldn't have been in Washington’s best interests as it could have “created an opportunity for Beijing to strengthen its strategic ties to Bangkok.”

Washington did scale back the number of troops it sent this year, from 4,300 to 3,600, and “refocused” the drills this year on humanitarian civic-action training and non-combatant evacuation drills.

“Cobra Gold is a symbol of long-standing and continuous military cooperation,” said General Wuttinun Leelayudth, Thailand's deputy Supreme Commander, to this year’s attendees. “The training shows transparency in terms of these relationships.”

Read the full story here and here.

Chaninat and Leeds has a team of Thailand investigators experienced and prepared to gather evidence for clients to build their court cases.