The 2am operation followed a tip-off that armed insurgents were hiding out in a house in Sawor Hele village of Sawor sub-district. The seven men were arrested as they tried to flee into a rubber plantation behind the house.
A subsequent search of the property yielded 100 items, including four pistols and ammunition, six backpacks, four sets of military uniform, and 11 cellphones. The seven men, aged between 22-40, were taken to the special task force’s base at Wat Suan Tham for questioning. Their fingerprints and DNA samples were also taken, before they were taken for further questioning to Nakhon Si Thammarat’s Wachirawut Camp.