Boats impounded with 325,000 litres of diesel flee police custody

The mysterious disappearance of three fishing boats from the pier of Sattahip marine police at the Sattahip Bay in Chonburi prompted Central Investigation Bureau deputy commissioner Pol Maj-General Jaroonkiart Parnkaew to rush to the province on Thursday.

Pol Lt-Colonel Korbchai To-on, an inspector of Sattahip marine police station, led the delegation of Jaroonkiart to visit the pier of his marine police station on Thursday.

According to a police source, marine police had sought help from Navy boats to arrest five fishing boats about 80-100 nautical miles from Sattahip on March 19 after learning they were being used to smuggle diesel oil into Thailand.

The operation also arrested 15 fishing crew on the five boats. Two of the boats were not carrying diesel oil as they were protecting the three other boats.

Police said the seized 325,000 diesel oil would have been levied 1.9 million baht excise tax and a fine of up to 30 million baht.

The crew of 15 faced charges of smuggling oil and the five boats were docked at the pier of the marine station as evidence.

At around 6pm on June 9, the sea in the Gulf of Thailand near Sattahip became rough with strong winds.

Police feared the big waves would dash the five boats against the pier so they ordered the crew to anchor the boats about 100 metres away from the pier.

A team of policemen were left guarding the boats from the shore and they said they saw the crew turn on the boat lights at 8pm on June 11.

They said all the lights were turned off at 10pm on June 11 but on Wednesday morning, three boats involved in allegedly smuggling the diesel had vanished.

Marine police boats were dispatched to search for the missing boats immediately but to no avail.

Police were informed that Thai fishing boats spotted the three boats near Koh Chang in Trat province at 8.45am on Wednesday.

Police carried out both sea and air searches for the three boats on Wednesday but did not spot them. Police sources said the three boats might have fled to Cambodia.

On Thursday, CIB commissioner Pol Lt-General Jirapop Phuridej signed an urgent order to transfer the chief of Sattahip marine police station, Pol Colonel Intharat Panya, to an inactive post at the CIB head office pending an investigation.

Three subordinates, identified as Pol Lt-Colonel Korbchai To-on, Pol Sergeant Thammarat Lekmontra and Pol Corporal Apichart Channoo, also were transferred.